Virtual Reality VR Applications in Manufacturing Engineering
(Part 2 of 3)
Introduction
The concept of Virtual reality (VR) is a fast-growing idea in the 21st century. With only few years since its entry into the tech world, the use of VR is fast gaining popularity. The statistics show that most of the consumers as of 2018 accounted for the largest share of the Consumer hardware accounts for the largest share (15.6%) the VR market globally. This is a clear indication that the inception of the VR to ordinary consumers is fast growing. This is also a good sign for the developers that would like to use the VR for custom industrial application since its fast gaining popularity. This has led to promising prospects of the use of the VR that is to the various industries. One such industry is the gaming, manufacturing and the design industries. The enthusiasts would term the VR as a believable, interactive 3D and realistic environment that is computer generated. The US is one of the countries that has had a lot of excitement over the launch of the VR. The sales of the Oculus Go’s 2018 was recorded for that year with higher sales recorded for that moment for the overall VR sales.
VR Applications in Manufacturing
The use of VR in the engineering field has led to greater advancements in the field. The VR would be incorporated with augmented reality (AR) to form the simulations of the various designs that can be sued for the illustration of concepts to the other users. Software giants like Autodesk for instance in the current versions of Fusion 360 have made the platform to have the option of the use of VR for the illustration of the final design. this can be seen below. the use of VR, in this case, would incorporate the use of the hardware that would also include the VR glasses. This has made the designs to be more realistic and also interactive for ordinary users with less technical knowledge.
The use of assembly designs like investor means that the designer can build up the various components and put them together for easier visualization of the users. The manufacturing process for the assembly plans can now be simulated for the process to illustrate the various process and products as well. This has made the concept adoption of the newer production methods to be easier through the realistic illustrations for the same.
The use of the VR has also played a huge role in the assembly designs where the various tolerances of the designs can be tested. the smaller clearances and the possible effects can be seen through the VR output. This has led to a feedback-based design that cuts down on the cost of designs for the model design.
VR for Interior Design & Architecture
The design for architectural designers and civil engineers has been also made easier. The adoption of the virtual environment has led to the creation of realistic tours and also walks. It is possible to have a virtual tour around the design of a building before the actual commencing of the building. This has also led to the education of time and resources wastage that would be required to build the various models that would have to be shown to the investors in the past. The architecture would just need to have software that is compatible with the VR kits and then the consumer would be able to have a virtual tour for the same design in a 3D environment. As fascinating as it sounds this has also led to the captivation of the attention of the investors who no longer have to wonder how it will look like but can have a peek of the design in advance.
VR in Bioengineering
Bioengineering is one of the most modern and fast-growing sectors. The sue of engineering components to develop limbs and even. The modern surgeons are able to train in the VR through surgical operations and later use the same knowledge in the modern world to perform wonderful and successful operations on subject patients. This has become a learning platform where the trainee doctors can share the knowledge with the experienced elite from different points of the world in real-time. The sue of the Vr has also made the sharing of the prosthetics for those with corrective surgery to be easier. The patients can have a look at the application of the various prosthetics in a Vr environment before they decide to adopt the same. This has made the acceptance of the new replacement prosthetics to be easier explained and also adopted for the patients.
VR Challenges In Manufacturing
Despite the many praises for the VR, it also has numerous setbacks that have smeared the good effort and market entry for the sue by both the consumers and the engineers. Customarily, most of the users associated the sue of the VR with the gaming community and despite the growing numbers in the use of the VR kits, it’s still lower and hence would require special training for the use in the manufacturing designs. This is both time-consuming and costly for most ordinary users.
Moreover, the VR kits are very expensive, the oculus of instance is still retailing at nearly $400 that would make it not readily available for many users. The other main setback is the power demands that would render the aspect of portability for the kits in the field to be difficult. Finally, like any computer-based system, the VR simulation is prone to attacks from both malware and external intrusions. This would require the need of both expertise and resources to ensure the security and well-running for the systems.
Conclusion
The world of virtual reality is upon us and is changing life in every facet of our lives – personally and professionally. The application of virtual reality within manufacturing, architecture, and construction industries is certainly exciting but does offer some challenges – especially when it comes to design and updates between systems.
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