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In fields such as science and engineering, virtual environment is commonly used to provide replacements for practical hands-on laboratories. Sometimes, these environments take the form of a remote interface to the physical laboratory apparatus and at other times, in the form of a complete software implementation that simulates the laboratory appara...
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Objective:
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Background:
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Citations
... Augmented Reality in education has been widely applied to assist students in understanding a learning material. Augmented Reality in education has been widely used as an instructional tool in carrying out laboratory experiments (Onime & Abiona, 2016), a learning medium to be used in studying the character of aquatic organisms (Tsai & Yen, 2014), as a learning medium in geometric lessons because it can visualize geometric concepts in real so that it can facilitate students' understanding (Carvalho & Morais-Lemos, 2014). ...
... Augmented Reality technology allows users to see and observe virtual objects in 2D or 3D projection onto an entire system. Augmented Reality is a technology that can combine digital content created by computers with real systems in real-time (Onime & Abiona, 2016). Augmented Reality technology can become a learning medium because of its ability to integrate tangible objects into virtual objects in a natural environment, real-time interactive execution with real and virtual objects, and convey information to support the learning process (Ke & Hsu, 2015). ...
The use of computer applications as learning media has been widely used in the learning process. One such computer application is Augmented Reality. Augmented Reality has advantages in ease of use, media appeal, and mobility because it can be used on cell phones and tablets. Creative thinking is a skill that students need in solving problems in a learning process in the classroom. The research objective is to investigate the effect of augmented Reality on students' academic achievement viewed from the creative thinking level. MANOVA was used to analyze differences in cognitive and psychomotor learning outcomes between the experimental class using AR and the control class using PowerPoint. The results showed that learning media and creative thinking levels affect cognitive and psychomotor learning outcomes. Cognitive learning outcomes of students using AR are higher than student learning outcomes using PowerPoint. Meanwhile, the psychomotor learning outcomes of students using AR are higher than those using PowerPoint. The learning media significantly affects cognitive learning outcomes with a p-value = 0.007, while the creative thinking level significantly affects psychomotor learning outcomes with a p-value = 0.016.
... To fulfill the first objective for this study which is introducing an environment where e-tutoring takes place, a virtual learning environment will be used. A virtual learning environment according to Ricketts et al. (2018) refers to a designed information space where the presentation of information can be made, where academic interaction takes place and where the students are active participants, but also actors of such interactions (Onime and Abiona 2016). Academic interactions among participants in virtual learning environments are achieved using informational and communication technology which includes media technologies that allow monitoring and management of content in the learning environment. ...
The use of social media application tools and mobile devices such as smartphones, tablet, and others has in recent years positively impacted teaching and learning practices in most academic institutions. Apart from sharing of information among students and teachers, but also as a means of communication, these tools are also used as platforms where teaching and learning take place, and social learning is the term that is used to describe this type of learning. This research study had two primary objectives: the first one was to introduce a learning environment where e-tutoring takes place and secondly to explore how the use of social media as platform for e-tutoring address the academic needs of and the subsequent impact on all participants’ user experience. A qualitative case study approach was chosen as a method to explore the user experiences of first-year students studying an introduction to programming course in an open distance learning environment. A WhatsApp application was used as a social media tool to create a virtual teaching and learning environment to enable the researcher and the study participant exchange academic-related information and other learning resources. An Interpretive phenomenological analysis was used to analyze the data recorded in the Experience Journal and three superordinate themes emerged after a systematic analysis of the recorded data. The results of the study revealed three identified themes namely, openness and quick learning, high degree of learners’ flexibility, and positive participants’ reactions.
... The integration of AR with laboratory activities forms a virtual learning environment, a virtual laboratory that uses computer-based software simulation. Figure 7 presents the concepts of augmented and virtual reality between hands-on, remote, and virtual laboratories (Onime & Abiona, 2016). ...
Engineering education in aviation vocational education builds up skills and attitudes. Students must deal with the laboratory complexity, especially in radar training. Students must understand so much basic knowledge and enhance their skills. The high equipment cost and inflexibility of current learning make radar training less effective and cognitive. Augmented Reality (AR) integrated with laboratory activities is an opportunity to improve learning outcomes for vocational education training in an online learning platform. This study aims to find student learning problems in radar training and propose a framework for integrating virtual radar laboratories with Augmented Reality. This research used a descriptive analysis approach and a literature study. A survey at four Aviation Polytechnics in Indonesia results in cognitive load and troubleshooting skills as the main problem in radar training. The proposed framework concept for laboratory integration with Augmented Reality is added a learning style: the VARK framework and Augmented Reality design with a 5E-based model to make laboratory interaction design. Virtual laboratory integration with Augmented Reality with learning style proposed to enhance laboratory activity to achieve the troubleshooting capability on radar laboratory and make this learning more flexible and personalized.
... Blended markers have an advantage over abstract markers such as those based on QR codes and do not require additional interpretive visualization on the part of the end-user to be useful, in addition, the ability to recognize the represented object reduces the fear of malware/other infection (Yong et al., 2019). Educational use of blended markers is also growing as documented in Onime et al. (2014) and Onime and Abiona (2016) along with applications in other sectors (Carmo et al., 2014). Virtual markers do not suffer from the issues such as visual obstruction that affect abstract or blended markers and may involve less coding, processing and prior preparation of the environment (Moreno et al., 2015). ...
... During use, the learner rotates the cube in order to individually view all six virtual objects. In Onime and Abiona (2016), a single application is used to show the electromagnetic radiation patterns of three different antennas. Here, the learner or user is expected to initiate a switch between the three different markers as the application would lock and track a single one even when all three markers are in view. ...
Purpose
This paper presents a reclassification of markers for mixed reality environments that is also applicable to the use of markers in robot navigation systems and 3D modelling. In the case of Augmented Reality (AR) mixed reality environments, markers are used to integrate computer generated (virtual) objects into a predominantly real world, while in Augmented Virtuality (AV) mixed reality environments, the goal is to integrate real objects into a predominantly virtual (computer generated) world. Apart from AR/AV classifications, mixed reality environments have also been classified by reality; output technology/display devices; immersiveness as well as by visibility of markers.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach adopted consists of presenting six existing classifications of mixed reality environments and then extending them to define new categories of abstract, blended, virtual augmented, active and smart markers. This is supported with results/examples taken from the joint Mixed Augmented and Virtual Reality Laboratory (MAVRLAB) of the Ulster University, Belfast, Northern Ireland; the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste, Italy and Santasco SrL, Regio Emilia/Milan, Italy.
Findings
Existing classification of markers and mixed reality environments are mainly binary in nature and do not adequately capture the contextual relationship between markers and their use and application. The reclassification of markers into abstract, blended and virtual categories captures the context for simple use and applications while the categories of augmented, active and smart markers captures the relationship for enhanced or more complex use of markers. The new classifications are capable of improving the definitions of existing simple marker and markerless mixed reality environments as well as supporting more complex features within mixed reality environments such as co-location of objects, advanced interactivity, personalised user experience.
Research limitations/implications
It is thought that applications and devices in mixed reality environments when properly developed and deployed enhances the real environment by making invisible information visible to the user. The current work only marginally covers the use of internet of things (IoT) devices in mixed reality environments as well as potential implications for robot navigation systems and 3D modelling.
Practical implications
The use of these reclassifications enables researchers, developers and users of mixed reality environments to select and make informed decisions on best tools and environment for their respective application, while conveying information with additional clarity and accuracy. The development and application of more complex markers would contribute in no small measure to attaining greater advancements in extending current knowledge and developing applications to positively impact entertainment, business and health while minimizing costs and maximizing benefits.
Originality/value
The originality of this paper lies in the approach adopted in reclassifying markers. This is supported with results and work carried out at the MAV Reality Laboratory of Ulster University, Belfast–UK, the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste-Italy and Santasco SrL, Regio Emilia, Milan–Italy. The value of present research lies in the definitions of new categories as well as the discussions of how they improve mixed reality environments and application especially in the health and education sectors.
... The simplest form of application uses neither tangibles not real electricity [13,14]. A second group of applications uses tokens for constructing a circuit [2,10]. ...
... There are several studies regarding augmented reality based distance laboratory systems (Andujar et al., 2011;Frank & Kapila, 2017;Maiti et al., 2018;Onime & Abiona, 2016;Vargas et al., 2013). Vargas et al. (2013) see AR as an innovative path to enriching visualization in distance laboratories for engineering education. ...
This second Open Praxis issue in 2020 includes nine research papers.
... There are several studies regarding augmented reality based distance laboratory systems (Andujar et al., 2011;Frank & Kapila, 2017;Maiti et al., 2018;Onime & Abiona, 2016;Vargas et al., 2013). Vargas et al. (2013) see AR as an innovative path to enriching visualization in distance laboratories for engineering education. ...
The main purpose of this research is to determine the usability of augmented reality in open and distance learning environments in accordance with universal design principles, and to make predictions for the future by gathering expert opinions on this subject using the Delphi technique. The Delphi technique was applied to 14 expert participants for 3 rounds as the primary data collection tool with open ended questions based on the theoretical framework. Structured interview questions were used as a secondary data collection tool and were applied during an academic exchange in China. In the Delphi technique used as the primary data collection tool, 92 themes were evaluated by experts and accepted as usability principles by end of this research. Therefore, 92 themes under 21 titles were presented for the use of augmented reality within the framework of universal design principles in open and distance learning. This research may be the first unique study on the usability of augmented reality not just as the convergence of this technology with open and distance learning environments but also incorporating the learning and communication dimensions of this convergence, thereby contributing to the literature of the field. It is imperative to determine the usability of augmented reality in open and distance learning, along with the “how” of this use in application. In this regard, the findings of this study are significant in shedding light to the enrichment, diversification and increased interaction of open and distance learning environments in accordance with universal design principles, bringing a new perspective to how a different technology convergence may be conducted, providing further accessibility.
... Thus in terms of real world analogy, if you want to find some additional content in the physical space, you can look for the anchor point it has been assigned to and you will get to the object you were looking for. 40 ...
Since exceedingly efficient hand-held devices became readily available to the world, while not being a relatively recent topic, Augmented Reality (AR) has rapidly become one of the most prominent research subjects. These robust devices could compute copious amounts of data in a mere blink of an eye. Making it feasible to overlap computer-generated, interactive, graphics over the real world images in real-time to enhance the comprehensive immersive experience of the user. In this paper, we present a novel mobile application which allows the users to explore and interact with a virtual library in their physical space using marker-less AR. Digital versions of books are represented by 3D book objects on bookcases similar to an actual library. Using an in-app gaze controller, the user’s gaze is tracked and mapped into the virtual library. This allows the users to select (via gaze) a digital version of any book and download it for their perusal. To complement the immersive user experience, continuity is maintained using the concept of Portals while making any transition from AR to immersive VR or vice-versa, corresponding to transitioning from a ”physical” to a virtual space. The use of portals makes these transitions simple and seamless for the user. The presented application was implemented using Google AR Core SDK and Unity 3D, and willserve as a handy tool to spawn a virtual library anytime and anywhere, giving the user an imminent mixed senseof being in an actual traditional library while having the digital version of any book on the go.
... A small comparison of augmented and virtual realities is also provided. Onime and Abiona (2016), prepared 3D mobile Augmented Reality (mAR) interface and limited simulations as a replacement for practical hands-on laboratories. This is an important achievement when considering that the augmented reality will be the part of real life manufacturing systems. ...
... Expectedly, some researchers such as, Wamba et al. (2017), Jannsenn et al. (2017, Wang et al. (2017a, b), Hardy and Maurushat (2016), Onime and Abiona (2016), Sookhak et al. (2017), Lee and Shin (2017), Alharthi et al. (2017) indicated that big data is essential for processes and has remarkable impact on systems. They also presented new technologies for utilizing big data. ...
Manufacturing industry profoundly impact economic and societal progress. As being a commonly accepted term for research centers and universities, the Industry 4.0 initiative has received a splendid attention of the business and research community. Although the idea is not new and was on the agenda of academic research in many years with different perceptions, the term “Industry 4.0” is just launched and well accepted to some extend not only in academic life but also in the industrial society as well. While academic research focuses on understanding and defining the concept and trying to develop related systems, business models and respective methodologies, industry, on the other hand, focuses its attention on the change of industrial machine suits and intelligent products as well as potential customers on this progress. It is therefore important for the companies to primarily understand the features and content of the Industry 4.0 for potential transformation from machine dominant manufacturing to digital manufacturing. In order to achieve a successful transformation, they should clearly review their positions and respective potentials against basic requirements set forward for Industry 4.0 standard. This will allow them to generate a well-defined road map. There has been several approaches and discussions going on along this line, a several road maps are already proposed. Some of those are reviewed in this paper. However, the literature clearly indicates the lack of respective assessment methodologies. Since the implementation and applications of related theorems and definitions outlined for the 4th industrial revolution is not mature enough for most of the reel life implementations, a systematic approach for making respective assessments and evaluations seems to be urgently required for those who are intending to speed this transformation up. It is now main responsibility of the research community to developed technological infrastructure with physical systems, management models, business models as well as some well-defined Industry 4.0 scenarios in order to make the life for the practitioners easy. It is estimated by the experts that the Industry 4.0 and related progress along this line will have an enormous effect on social life. As outlined in the introduction, some social transformation is also expected. It is assumed that the robots will be more dominant in manufacturing, implanted technologies, cooperating and coordinating machines, self-decision-making systems, autonom problem solvers, learning machines, 3D printing etc. will dominate the production process. Wearable internet, big data analysis, sensor based life, smart city implementations or similar applications will be the main concern of the community. This social transformation will naturally trigger the manufacturing society to improve their manufacturing suits to cope with the customer requirements and sustain competitive advantage. A summary of the potential progress along this line is reviewed in introduction of the paper. It is so obvious that the future manufacturing systems will have a different vision composed of products, intelligence, communications and information network. This will bring about new business models to be dominant in industrial life. Another important issue to take into account is that the time span of this so-called revolution will be so short triggering a continues transformation process to yield some new industrial areas to emerge. This clearly puts a big pressure on manufacturers to learn, understand, design and implement the transformation process. Since the main motivation for finding the best way to follow this transformation, a comprehensive literature review will generate a remarkable support. This paper presents such a review for highlighting the progress and aims to help improve the awareness on the best experiences. It is intended to provide a clear idea for those wishing to generate a road map for digitizing the respective manufacturing suits. By presenting this review it is also intended to provide a hands-on library of Industry 4.0 to both academics as well as industrial practitioners. The top 100 headings, abstracts and key words (i.e. a total of 619 publications of any kind) for each search term were independently analyzed in order to ensure the reliability of the review process. Note that, this exhaustive literature review provides a concrete definition of Industry 4.0 and defines its six design principles such as interoperability, virtualization, local, real-time talent, service orientation and modularity. It seems that these principles have taken the attention of the scientists to carry out more variety of research on the subject and to develop implementable and appropriate scenarios. A comprehensive taxonomy of Industry 4.0 can also be developed through analyzing the results of this review. © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
... Reality may be considered as a state of having existence, substance or objects that may be actually experienced and/or seen (Onime and Abiona, 2016), while virtuality may be considered as having a non-realistic (or abstract) view of objects, that is opposite of an idealistic, realistic or notional view. This opposing relationship between reality on the one hand and virtuality on the other hand is illustrated in Figure 1, where reality is at one extreme of a continuum while virtuality, better known as virtual reality (VR), is at the opposite extreme and in-between them is the mixed-reality environment . ...
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report on developments and applications of mixed reality cubicles and their impacts on learning in higher education. This paper investigates and presents the cost effective application of augmented reality (AR) as a mixed reality technology via or to mobile devices such as head-mounted devices, smart phones and tablets. Discuss the development of mixed reality applications for mobile (smartphones and tablets) devices leading up to the implementation of a mixed reality cubicle for immersive three dimensional (3D) visualizations.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach adopted was to limit the considerations to the application of AR via mobile platforms including head-mounted devices with focus on smartphones and tablets, which contain basic feedback–to-user channels such as speakers and display screens. An AR visualization cubicle was jointly developed and applied by three collaborating institutions. The markers, acting as placeholders acts as identifiable reference points for objects being inserted in the mixed reality world. Hundreds of participants comprising academics and students from seven different countries took part in the studies and gave feedback on impact on their learning experience.
Findings
Results from current study show less than 30 percent had used mixed reality environments. This is lower than expected. About 70 percent of participants were first time users of mixed reality technologies. This indicates a relatively low use of mixed reality technologies in education. This is consistent with research findings reported that educational use and research on AR is still not common despite their categorization as emerging technologies with great promise for educational use.
Research limitations/implications
Current research has focused mainly on cubicles which provides immersive experience if used with head-mounted devices (goggles and smartphones), that are limited by their display/screen sizes. There are some issues with limited battery lifetime for energy to function, hence the need to use rechargeable batteries. Also, the standard dimension of cubicles does not allow for group visualizations. The current cubicle has limitations associated with complex gestures and movements involving two hands, as one hand are currently needed for holding the mobile phone.
Practical implications
The use of mixed reality cubicles would allow and enhance information visualization for big data in real time and without restrictions. There is potential to have this extended for use in exploring and studying otherwise inaccessible locations such as sea beds and underground caves. Social implications – Following on from this study further work could be done to developing and application of mixed reality cubicles that would impact businesses, health and entertainment.
Originality/value
The originality of this paper lies in the unique approach used in the study of developments and applications of mixed reality cubicles and their impacts on learning. The diverse composition in nature and location of participants drawn from many countries comprising of both tutors and students adds value to the present study. The value of this research include amongst others, the useful results obtained and scope for developments in the future.
