Recent Advances in VR Labs for Use in STEM Education

Abstract

[EN] Virtual Reality (VR) is increasingly being used in the gaming and entertainment sectors. It has also been gradually finding its way in the industrial training sector. But its potential in the education field has yet to be fully recognized. Recent breakthroughs have made head-mounted displays (HMDs) for virtual reality (VR) accessible to the educational institutions and to the public at a low cost. Similar breakthroughs are on the horizon in the haptic gloves technology, which are likely to lead to low cost and functional haptic gloves. Combination of VR with haptic gloves is expected to significantly change the user experience for the better. This paper seeks to explore the untapped potential of VR technology in education, specifically focusing on its applications in STEM laboratories. After a review of our past work in the development of VR labs for STEM subjects, we will describe recent advances made in the development and implementation of VR STEM labs in engineering.