Immersive Fugacity VR Experiment
Virtual Reality · Hand Gestures · Controllers · Meta Quest 3
An hour-long virtual reality experiment that teaches an abstract thermodynamic concept to a whole class at once, consistently and safely.
Robi, the instructor who guides students through the experiment. Drag to rotate.
THE CHALLENGE
How do you teach an abstract thermodynamic concept like fugacity to a whole class at once, consistently and safely, without each student getting a different experience?
THE SOLUTION
An hour-long virtual reality experiment where students operate the lab equipment themselves, heating the material, moving the piston, opening valves, and reading the pressure, guided by a virtual instructor. Up to 12 devices run in parallel, each paired with the instructor’s tablet. Movement inside the experiment is deliberately designed to keep motion sickness to a minimum, so a full hour in the headset stays comfortable for an entire class.
THE DESIGN & OPTIMIZATION
The VR experience uses teleportation and dedicated navigation controls designed to reduce unnecessary movement and minimize motion sickness during an approximately one-hour session. Robi, our in-house 3D virtual instructor, provides spoken guidance. Polygon count reduction, baked lighting and reduced draw calls lower geometry complexity and real-time rendering work, while gesture tuning refines hand-based actions alongside controller input on Meta Quest 3.
THE RESULT
The whole class goes through the same precise, safe experience together, instructors see exactly where each group is and collect the session data, and an abstract concept becomes a tangible, guided experiment. In use in the Thermodynamics B course at the Technion.
Developed at Dana Research Group
THE SERVICE BEHIND IT
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