Ruth de Villiers

Virtual reality training applications for the mining industry

Virtual reality is a rapidly growing technology which utilises the ever-increasing power of computers to simulate real-world and imaginary environments and situations with a high degree of realism and interactiveness. Safety in the South African mining industry is a vital issue. On average, one worker dies every working day, and about 16 are injured in mine-related accidents. Inadequate or insufficient training is often cited as a root cause for many mining fatalities. However, training outside the direct working environment provides only limited real-life opportunities and may fail to make a significant impact within the tense working environment itself. Virtual reality-based training tools can, by contrast, provide simulated exposure to real-world working conditions without the associated risks. This paper discusses contextual requirements and constraints for virtual reality application development, applied to safety training in mines. The results of the contextual analysis were applied to the design and development of several prototypes of VR training systems. The paper also reports on how realism can be enhanced in simulation training systems.

Application usage of unsupervised digital doorway computer kiosks in remote locations in South Africa

Digital Doorways are rugged computer terminals that offer unassisted learning and peer-assisted learning of basic computer skills, as well as a range of computing activities from entertainment, through education, to independent research. Sites are located in impoverished areas of South Africa at schools, colleges and public community facilities. Usage is free of charge and available to the entire community. This paper poses research questions relating to application usage data and how it relates to user demographics, in order to better understand both the user base and the nature and extent of interaction with a selected set of terminals. This study thus addresses significant issues with respect to ICT for Education and Development in the Digital Doorway context. Analysis of the data indicates notable trends and patterns, and raises certain concerns.

Usability context analysis for virtual reality training in South African mines

The usability of any tool or system has to be viewed in terms of the context in which it is used, and its appropriateness to that context. According to the ISO definition of usability, the context of use includes the users, tasks, equipment (hardware, software and materials), and the physical and social environments in which a product is used. Context analysis provides a framework to ensure that all factors which may affect the usability of a product are considered. Safety in the South African mining industry is a vital issue. On average, one worker dies every working day, and about 16 are injured in mine-related accidents. Inadequate or insufficient training is often cited as a root cause for many mining fatalities. However, training outside the direct working environment provides only limited real-life opportunities and may fail to make a significant impact within the tense working environment itself. Virtual reality-based training tools can, by contrast, provide simulated exposure to real-world working conditions without the associated risks. This paper discusses contextual analysis for virtual reality (VR) application development, applied to safety training in mines. This contextual analysis has been conducted to contribute to the usability of future system design. It also provides a basis for designing subsequent usability evaluations. The results of the context analysis were applied to the design of a prototype, which was used and evaluated at two large platinum mines.

Multi-Method Evaluations: Case Studies of an Interactive Tutorial and Practice System

The teaching and learning of a complex section in Theoretical Computer Science 1 in a distanceeducation context has been enhanced by a supplementary interactive e-learning system with tutorial and practice functionality in a classic computer-aided instruction (CAI) style. A participative action research process was used to develop, evaluate and refine the application over a longitudinal period. Case studies are presented of evaluations by four different methods – questionnaire surveys, interviews, heuristic evaluation and a post-test. Their respective findings, relating to functionality, usability and contributions to learning, are given and discussed. The findings lead to reflection and lessons are learned regarding the design of e-learning applications. In an overview, the complementary roles of different evaluation techniques are discussed.

The Usefulness and Ease of Use of a Mobile Simulation Application for Learning of ERP Systems

The hands-on use of complex, industrial Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in educational contexts can be costly and complex. Tools that simulate the hands-on use of an ERP system have been proposed as alternatives. Research into the perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) of these simulation tools in an m-learning environment is limited. As part of this study, an m-learning simulation application (SYSPRO Latte) was designed based on experiential learning theory and on a previously proposed theoretical framework for m-learning. The application simulates the hands-on experience of an ERP system. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the results of a study of 49 students who used SYSPRO Latte and completed a questionnaire on its PEOU and PU. The results revealed that students perceived SYSPRO Latte to be easy to use and useful, and verified other studies identifying a correlation between PEOU and PU. The study also confirmed the benefits of simulation-based learning and m-learning particularly for content presentation. The importance of considering design principles for m-learning applications was highlighted. This study is part of a larger, comprehensive research project that aims at improving learning of ERP systems in higher education.