Virtual Machina: Integration of VR-based simulation for the safe interaction and practice of students and workers with machinery and robots

The Virtual Machina (V-Machina) project deals with the familiarization and training of students, workers and practitioners working with industrial machinery and robots via Virtual Reality (VR). V-Machina consists in the creation of a learning environment that allows users to get a direct, immersive experience with selected activities related to the manufacturing sector.

These experiences are monitored and designed around each user by tailoring the simulations to his/her very profile, taking care of physical and gender diversity, with particular attention to the identification of unsafe interactions and psychological status via activity recognition. The Phase I of this project covers the virtual transposition of practicing with a lathe and of having a first contact with a robot. Such VR experiences (based on visual, auditory and haptic feedback) will be available through the EIT Manufacturing Guided Learning Platform (GLP) as educational nuggets. V-Machina consortium spans to 4 Co-location centers of EIT Manufacturing.