Keywords

1 Introduction

The digital era has a robust desire for the modern industry to rationalize education and training programs to produce knowledgeable engineering graduates. Crucial to attaining this, is the ability to integrate academic learning with practice in real work environment. WIL is the term used by the world associations for cooperative education to lessen the several confusions of terms used in the higher institutions, describing the educational approach for undergraduates’ students to apply their theoretical knowledge into real work professional practice relevant to their field of study or future career [1,2,3,4]. VR technology launches a critical function in computer-generated 3D models simulating real physical environments and physical situations by offering the immersed user to interact, hear and touch the 3D virtual environment (VE) [5]. VR technology has potential to positively impact students work readiness through offering immersive training experiences, transfer of skills, educational learning outcomes, and achievements in the different scenarios of their future profession. Till to date, undergraduates are not progressing academically due to the scarcity of placement-based WIL opportunities in South African industries. This is a dilemma because placements opportunities are not always readily available in South Africa and there is pressure within institutions and from certain faculty members to eliminate the WIL component from curricula [6].

2 State of the Art Review

Research focusing on instructional design methods, education learning outcomes, intervention characteristics, and evaluation measures associated with immersive VR usage has been sparse [7]. Hence, the urge to follow a human centered design approach which is iterative, measurable and results driven in designing the virtual environment that will be able to train, expose and prepare undergraduate student to be work ready and employable humans who can effectively perform work tasks and interact in any industry setting.

2.1 Work Integrated Learning

The opportunity to be placed in a real company or industry setting, creates a refreshing and life changing experience to undergraduates. Several studies have demonstrated that WIL programs offer vital benefits for undergraduates, skilled employers, and the higher learning institutions [8]. Coll et al. [1] stated that the crucial purpose of work-integrated learning is to provide undergraduate students with a comprehensive ability and skills set desired by potential employers. Furthermore, Govender and Wait [9], mention that WIL must assist undergraduate students understand the information learned in the university lecture hall, advance their knowledge, and assist them to complete a real-world task successfully and be competent.

2.2 Virtual Reality

Currently, VR systems can be categorized into three classifications based on immersion level, and the type of interfaces used in the system. These are the fully immersive, semi-immersive and non -immersive VR systems [10]. Fully immersive VR technology user wears HMDs, this device consists of small screens in front of both eyes, display the 3D images and magnifies them to fill a wide field of view [11]. It, furthermore, enable user to be totally immersed, isolated from the real world, and generates the feeling of truly being inside an environment and interacting with it, rather than observing a screen. Hardware used in Semi-immersive VR technology are high resolutions screens or walls through stereo projection systems, special stereo eyewear and 3D controllers or joysticks to handle input data and it is also called cave automatic VE [12,13]. In semi-immersive VR user is partially immersed in VE and this could increase the feeling of immersion or presence. Non-immersive/ desktop VR, users observe the virtual world on desktop and the is no immersive feeling only high-resolution monitor and mouse are hardware used, but with the lower cost incurred with the hardware, it makes it easy to use and easily accessible.

2.3 Virtual Work Integrated Learning (VWIL)

Wood et al. [14] mention that virtual WIL can be defined as an immersive WIL experience in a context created to imitate the functions and operations of a workplace with input by the industry, educational institution, and the student. The introduction of VR courses and development of authentic and relevant VE by HEI are increasing, hence instructional designers and developers who want to incorporate VR in WIL curricular need to develop customized teaching and learning platforms for undergraduates’ students that are authentic, interactive, and possess impactful learning. Radianti et al. [15] examined IVR in higher education exclusively and found that 70% of the 38 studies in the review did not include learning theory for forming the foundation of the VR activity. Male [16] developed and steered eight modules to support non-placement WIL, the author identified the requirements and learning outcomes to design a suite of VWIL for engineering students to engage with professional engineering practice. Immersive virtual work integrated learning can enhance students’ curiosities, excitements, and the value of experience in learning technical skills. Furthermore, undergraduate student who had an IVWIL experience mentioned that positive learning, transferability of skills learned, assisted them in acquiring graduate employment and were better prepared for engineering practice [17].

3 Methodology

The rail transportation industry in South Africa, commutes more than 2.3 million people per day making it an important mode of transportation [18]. Thus, the reason for recent investment in rail manufacturing and the need to train undergraduate students on the set of work integrated learning activities, machinery and equipment used at the rail industry. This section introduces the case study of the reconfigurable guillotine shear and bending press machine to be used to train the undergraduate students on how to form the rail components using the machine and the iterative processes of the HCD.

3.1 Reconfigurable Guillotine Shear and Bending Press Machine (RGS&BPM)

The transition from traditional machine systems to current reconfigurable machine (RM) requires consistency in achieving the requirements brought by the changes on the customer demand, product life cycle and growing variation of tailored quality products. As mentioned by Koren et al. [19] a RM is a machine whose structures can be altered to provide alternative functionality to meet production turnaround time. According to Sibanda et al. [20] RGS&BPM was designed at the onset to cut variable lengths of sheet metal pieces into the required sizes and then switch functionality to perform bending of varying length sizes of sheet metal pieces into multitudes of shapes required by the clients.

3.2 Human-Centered Design Process

The human centered design (HCD) process is followed to design and develop the virtual environment suitable to train, expose and discover the benefits of an IVWIL experience to final year industrial engineering undergraduates’ students on the manufacturing processes of rail components using the RGS&BPM and performing time and motion studies on the virtual manufacturing process. HCD as described by [21] is a system design and development that resolves to create interactive usable systems by focusing on the use of the system, applying human factors or ergonomics, usability knowledge and techniques. Five key HCD iterative processes as described by [21] are shown in Fig. 1 which must be understood and undertaken to successfully incorporate the design and development of the IVWIL training platform. Martin & Hughes [22] states that WIL is a three-way relationship between the student, the academic institution, and the workplace, it requires all involved to perform specific tasks and accept certain responsibilities.

Fig. 1.
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ISO 9241- 210 (2010)

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3.3 Understand and Specify the Context of Use

A pilot study to be conducted with industrial engineering undergraduates’ students identify the following priority areas of training in a rail manufacturing plant without prior industry experience:

  • Rail component manufacturing: Undergraduate student need to understand how an RGS&BPM can be used to manufacture a plain sheet metal to the required rail component. The components to be manufactured are the train door panel, co assy lower bracket, and assy support bracket component.

The development of a sufficiently detailed IVWIL training model must be manageable, easily understood and clearly defines the learning outcome. SimLab soft a software compatible to create real-time VE and immersive experiences is used for the development of the VWIL training platform. The 3D models in the training platform were created using SolidWorks then migrated to the Simlab software for the development.

3.4 Specify the User Requirement

The IVWIL training platform is custom designed to be used by a group of final year industrial engineering undergraduate students. The researcher will train and monitor the users and the WIL department lecturer will supervise the project. A user story card based on agile systems development method was used as a requirement tool to model and document all the requirements needed by the user to perform the task. Bik et al. [23] defines user story as an essential element tool to explain the type of user, what function they must perform and what object they need, this tool is an easy explanation of a user requirement needed to perform the operation in the system.

3.5 Produce Design Prototype and Design Solutions

Figure 2 demonstrates the procedure of how the virtual environment is developed from creating the 3D models needed for the system and importing them to the SimLab software for the simulation process.

Fig. 2.
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Procedure for preparing the CAD models for the immersive 3D virtual environment

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Churchville [24] describes user interface (UI) as a channel between human and computer interaction as the point where a user will interact with a computer or machine to complete tasks, the purpose of a UI is to allow a user to effectively control a computer or machine they are interacting with, and for feedback to be received to communicate effective completion of tasks. The design model user interfaces and instructions were created for the IVWIL training platform. These interfaces direct users on how to navigate and perform tasks in the system.

4 Findings and Discussion

This was an inhouse project-based learning that took a period of twelve months by a novice instructional designer who is the researcher of this study and a novice software developer who capacitated themselves using asynchronous e-learning through intensive review of literature, using search engines, and forums to design and develop the environment. An ongoing pilot study on the evaluations of the undergraduate students based on the requirements of the training system and learning outcomes are taking place. Overall, findings from the design and the development of the IVWIL training platform necessitates careful planning and involving all product’s stakeholders; undergraduate student, engineers, manufacturers, higher institution can help instructional design engineers design virtual environments that’s sustainable and socially beneficial to be used for training by local communities, industries, and schools. VR enable sustainability in education by providing various training experiences that are impossible, scarce to access and difficult to experience in real life industry setting where safety measures are concerned in some school modules. Furthermore, VR as an educational tool can further contribute to the sustenance of the environment, economic and social dimension in all aspects of its use such as in the process of design, commissioning, and training. Though it was a successful project integrating outsourced experts in the design and development would have greatly enhanced the speed of completing the project and having support structure to guide the novice developers when enquires arise. Other researchers have conducted experiential learner centred design and virtual fieldtrips to train their undergraduate students. Virtual reality an inventive educational tool for engineering studies, makes it possible for undergraduates’ students to apply the relevant knowledge and understanding gained from their course of study. This immersive virtual environment experiences can equip and prepare undergraduate students for a realistic and practical solution of a real-life industry tasks.

5 Conclusion

This paper described the design and development of IVWIL training platform using the HCD approach. The key parameters of HCD approach on the development of the IVWIL training platform were discussed and the design of the system was presented. A user story card was used as a user requirement tool explaining the tasks to be done by the undergraduate student to manufacture the rail components using the RGS&BPM. As an immerging and interactive technological approach, IVWIL can be considered to promote active learning, cost-effective, and accessible training opportunities for undergraduates. Government, industries, institutions, and the community all play a role in raising awareness and promoting the benefits of this approach in addressing the ever-increasing scarcity of placement-based WIL. This work advances the field of IVWIL access by providing a novel approach that helps in identifying, designing, and developing a training platform that can benefit institutions, undergraduates, and industries. It is recommended to do further experiments to design full course modules for students to interact with and VR assessment techniques to evaluate user. The last phase of the HCD is to evaluate the user experience in the system to determine its significance and effectiveness. Henceforth, future work entails a pilot study to evaluate the designs over the requirements to prove the capability and effectiveness of the training system to the undergraduate students in engineering education using the IVWIL programs.