A VR-based wiring learning platform for promoting practice experience of electrical engineering

Abstract

The training room of electrical engineering plays an important role in implementing learners' theoretical electrical knowledge and enhancing their operational skills. When operating in an electrical training room, learners often configure complex equipment with a set of multiple wires, components, and tools, and then debug them to ensure normal operation. It requires a large amount of practice to acquire the skills to configure the devices, and it is hard for learners to configure the device without any experience. Furthermore, it is also difficult to have hands-on practice when there is not enough physical equipment on site or learners cannot be there in person. By applying virtual reality technology, it is possible to offer a greater learning experience for the learners. A VR-based wiring learning platform (VWLP), in this study, is proposed, which targets at offering a resource of assisted learning regarding the electrical equipment. The result of the study reveals that the VWLP constructed in this research can promote learning effectiveness in electrical engineering, especially in the area of wiring skills, and the blended learning mode (a mix of both conventional instructor-led practice activities and VR-based learning platform) enhances the learning effect. Besides this, the result shows that VWLP has a significantly positive effect regarding participants' learning cognition and motivation. By communicating with the virtual objects in the VR environment, the participants can demonstrate a promoted comprehension of the training equipment. Meanwhile, participants in the experimental team also perceive an increase in their learning confidence due to increased practice opportunities, which in turn reduces cognitive load.