Recent graduates 泰勒Talarico-Yunker and 达科塔Kistler, along with campus instructional designer Joe Scott, speak with Alzbeta Prokopova, an application and support engineer at Amberg Technologies. Shown is part of the Hagerbach Test Gallery in Flums, 瑞士, one of several locations where the students captured 360-degree video.
Thanks to a new 虚拟现实 initiative at 十大网投平台信誉排行榜阿尔图纳分校, recent graduates in the rail transportation engineering (RTE) program have traveled to Europe to create immersive learning experiences for future students.
During the spring 2018 semester, 布莱恩Schlake, RTE讲师, paved the way for this and future interdisciplinary opportunities at the 阿尔图纳 campus through the creation of a new 虚拟现实 learning lab. 在那个时候, he instructed students on how to use the 360-degree camera equipment to capture footage, and he tested 虚拟现实 headsets that would complete the lab in the fall. 帮助启动实验室, the campus was awarded a $15,000 grant from the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association.
"I have a friend from Eastern Kentucky University who always used to say, 'Never tell a person what you can show a person,’”施莱克说. “A lot of students are visual learners, and they can read in a book about what catenary wire looks 就像 -- which is the power lines that power electric trains -- but for them to actually see it, 看看是什么样子, 看看它是如何组合在一起的, it does a lot more than what I could do trying to explain it. Or for them to see how a station is set up, for them to actually enter that environment virtually, they are able to see the future that they will be designing."
Schlake, 和乔·斯科特一起, an instructional designer at the 阿尔图纳 campus, and a group of students from the RTE program, recorded 360-degree video at various railroad locations in Germany, 瑞士, 和奥地利. Schlake说 they collected videos of the trains, 铁路, 码, 终端, and even footage from the operator’s cab on several trains. The trip was sponsored in part by 徕卡呈, of which Schlake说 him, Scott, and the students were extremely grateful for the support.
Schlake说, "Students will take those videos back and process them, 然后明年, we'll be able to step into our 虚拟现实 lab and use the headsets -- we have several different types of 虚拟现实 headsets for students to put on and wear and enter into this environment to kind of take a virtual tour of those railway systems that don't even exist in North America. It gives them an opportunity to still learn about those systems and operations from right here in Central 宾西法尼亚."
回到阿尔图纳后, Scott has been helping Schlake and his students develop online course content using the 360 videos. Scott is also exploring the use of 360 videos for other courses, and he said the trip to Europe was an excellent proof of concept both for virtual video creation and for capturing video in an international context.
"I’m interested in using the trip and associated videos to create digital storytelling experiences that immerse students in unique environments and deliver meaningful curriculum content,斯科特说. "The resources created can be used for course content and attracting potential students to the program."
目前, the VR lab has an Oculus Rift system, 谷歌白日梦, and a Samsung Gear VR platform, and Schlake说 they will soon purchase additional headsets to make a total of seven to eight headsets for the lab. 另外, the lab will have several other systems, including a virtual welder trainer and a locomotive simulator for students to learn how to operate a locomotive. Students have already begun to use the virtual welder trainer to practice shielded metal arc and gas metal arc welding in the RTE 404 (Railroad Mechanical Practicum) course.
从左, 泰勒Talarico-Yunker, 达科塔Kistler, and Stephen Harvey test 虚拟现实 headsets in the new lab.
Students who will create the 360-degree video have been very excited about the opportunity. 即使斯蒂芬·哈维, 萨维尔的, 宾西法尼亚, has not used the 虚拟现实 equipment much, he said he thinks it will be a great opportunity for future students.
"The VR equipment is very interesting and we've never been exposed to it, 所以这是一种全新的体验,” Harvey said before going on the trip. “It should be a great experience for all the new students coming in to see the videos that we're making."
达科塔Kistler, 威廉斯堡的, 宾西法尼亚, said that even though he was graduating he may still use the experience on his resume and possibly in the future. "What I think is going to be pretty cool is that now I have first-hand experience with 虚拟现实 equipment and [with it] becoming more popular later on in my career, 我可以说‘是的, I can actually use it' and maybe go on and use the skill in my everyday life."
Another recent graduate in Schlake’s spring class who took 360-degree videos of the high-speed rail systems in Europe is Tyler Talarico of Media, 宾西法尼亚.
"I think one of the cool things with the VR is just that it kind of takes your 2-D world with your projection in class and puts it into your normal 3-D so you're able to manipulate the video with the headset itself,他说. "I feel very honored to be able to maybe leave my mark for future classes and really build up the program in a good way."
在春天， 宾州州立大学的媒体共享资源 aided in getting the VR lab underway. Schlake说 the staff from 媒体共享 purchased the 360-degree cameras for the 阿尔图纳 campus library and Dan Getz of the Penn State 沉浸式体验实验室 provided training on how to use the cameras and the Adobe Premiere software, which will be used to process the videos.
媒体共享 consultant Nick Smerker said immersive learning experiences 就像 this are important because they allow students to dive into worlds that they could not otherwise easily get to. With an up-close view of a fundamental process or preview of potential employers, students get a sense of place in a way that traditional video cannot replicate.
“I see a lot of potential for using 360-degree video with all things international at the University,斯默克说. “As someone who has been fortunate enough to travel, I definitely know that it’s true that the perspective gained by leaving the country (to say nothing of language learning opportunities and more) is invaluable.”
Implementing 身临其境的体验 in campus programming, such as ones centering around a country of focus, 就像 EDGE计划 十大网投平台信誉排行榜海狸分校, 或者在课堂上, make it possible for students to gain a sense of being on the ground and engaged with a particular foreign culture without the associated costs of actually being on location. Otherwise, costs make these experiences very prohibitive for many students, Smerker said.
Schlake has high hopes that this project will have a big impact on students while also educating people about rail safety.
"We're hoping that this will really inspire students all across the country but also all across the world to explore railway transportation,他说. “It's a field that people don't think a lot about but really it's the backbone of our economy in North America."
He added that freight transportation is seeing a large growth, especially in cities.
在阿尔图纳校区, there has been a lot of support and interest in immersive learning experiences from the administration, along with students and faculty from other disciplines, such as electro-mechanical engineering technology, 心理学, 和通信.
教师 or staff who are interested in getting started with 360-degree video and/or 虚拟现实 at their campus can contact 媒体共享 at (电子邮件保护).
