Virtual reality helping to make construction sites safer
Virtual reality may be still only an emerging phenomenon, but researchers in Bochum, Germany, believe that the fledgling technology can be used to improve health and safety conditions on construction sites.
This is done by creating interactive training courses for virtual reality headsets. Intended for use by both construction workers and health and safety experts, individuals can walk around a virtual version of a site before construction even begins. This will allow the identification of any areas that pose particular safety risks to allow for the planning of appropriate measures before the build commences.
The same technology that is used in high-end video games is being used to replicate the real life situation, allowing workers to understand the environment and be aware of potential hazards before they set foot on site. They can interact with the environment around them, such as picking up and carrying objects, using controllers.
Dr Jochen Teizer, who is working on the project, says: “The cause of an accident is often not misconduct by a single worker but rather a lack of a safety culture in the company or insufficient requirements for safe working conditions.”
His colleague, Thomas Hilfert, adds: “As you have an unlimited number of lives in virtual reality, we can observe there precisely how the test subjects react before and after fatal accidents and when learning effects come in.”
A number of Germany-based construction companies are said to have already expressed an interest in the technology.
