Studying the Influence of Multisensory Stimuli on a Firefighting Training Virtual Environment

Area of Science:

• Virtual Reality (VR) and Human-Computer Interaction
• Sensory Perception and Simulation
• Occupational Training and Simulation

Background:

• Virtual reality (VR) experiences primarily engage sight and hearing, limiting realism.
• Integrating additional sensory stimuli into virtual environments (VEs) offers significant potential, particularly for training applications.
• Perceptually equivalent virtual experiences encourage consistent user behavior across real and virtual settings, crucial for fields like firefighting.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of diverse sensory stimuli on user stress, fatigue, cybersickness, presence, and knowledge transfer in a firefighter training VE.
• To identify which specific sensory stimuli are most effective in creating a realistic and impactful virtual training experience.
• To evaluate the overall efficacy of a multisensory VR environment for firefighter knowledge transfer and user well-being.

Main Methods:

• An experiment was conducted involving users in a virtual reality firefighter training scenario.
• Different combinations of sensory stimuli were applied, including heat, weight, a uniform, and a mask.
• User responses were measured concerning stress, fatigue, cybersickness, presence, and knowledge acquisition.

Main Results:

• The combination of all tested sensory stimuli (heat, weight, uniform, mask) significantly impacted user responses.
• Wearing a firefighter's uniform was identified as a key impactful stimulus.
• The virtual environment did not induce cybersickness and successfully facilitated knowledge transfer.

Conclusions:

• Multisensory integration, particularly with a uniform, is critical for enhancing the realism and effectiveness of VR training.
• The developed VE is a viable tool for firefighter training, promoting knowledge transfer without adverse effects like cybersickness.
• Further research into optimizing multisensory feedback can advance the application of VR in high-risk profession training.