What is the relevance of VR and AR In Defence ?
Virtual Reality is a technology that simulates real-life experiences and allows people to don their own cyber avatars in a virtual world and interact with it like they would in the real world. The application of VR technology in the military paradigm is to make trainees and officers better at using equipment, navigating a mode of transport, gaining experience of potential combat situations, medical training and more
One of the advantage of VR training in the military is that it offers the functionality to immerse users in a virtual yet safe world. This feature is what makes it so relevant in the defence sector, as it offers militaries and defence contractors a way to gain invaluable experience of dealing with high-stress, life threatening environments from the safety of a training room. On the other hand , AR is often used to solve challenges or for training purposes. AR is effective for warfare simulations, military sand tables, battlefield visualisations, and other applications that require a realistic representation of defence activities.
What Training Challenges Does VR/AR Help Tackle for the Defence & Military?
Technologies like Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality resolve multiple pain points that have plagued military training for years, besides negating specific obstacles to training. Here’s how:
Providing ‘First-Hand’ Experience to Trainees:
Unfortunately, most training ranges don’t offer opportunities to train in such an environment. This is where VR comes into the picture. VR training solutions can give soldiers the experience of being in battle-like situations under complete safety. VR takes computer-based training to another level by providing personnel a chance to interact with real machines, guns, vehicles and environment to train in a safe, controlled environment with fully immersive, multi-user experiences.
Consistent & Scalable Training:
The military sector requires scalable training that can train large numbers of troops or personnel at the same time . Hence, it is crucial to build capacity for practical training at that scale, which is what VR and AR offers. Besides, these platforms ensure consistency of training across thousands of personnel, while also allowing for effective monitoring and evaluation of individual performance.
Training in The Covid-19 Era:
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic if not all, most physical training exercises have been put on hold because of the obvious restrictions on movement. VR and AR training platforms, naturally, offer the most logical and practical solution for this pain point.
Cost-effective Training:
Training in VR and AR brings down the cost of training drastically because the replicas of weapons or vehicles that are simulated in a virtual training application cost way less than actual inventory. For instance, training flights for fighter pilots are more expensive than a VR flight simulator or actual weapons are more costly to train than a simulated weapon training simulator
Measurement and Performance Tracking:
With Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality training platforms, instructors can receive real-time information on their trainees’ performance in a simulated scenario, allowing them to pass on instant, detailed feedback to each trainee. This helps trainees identify their personal strengths and work on their weaknesses a lot better.
Better engagement:
Both AR and VR training modules provide an engaging environment that feels like a serious games. So soldiers and personnel find the training more enjoyable. More often than not, this translates into higher engagement and greater understanding of what they are learning.
Uses & Applications of VR and AR In Military and Defence Training
VR training and AR training both have a plethora of use cases for military training in the Army, Navy and Airforce that enhance the quality of personnel training and increase their chances of carrying out successful missions. Some of these applications are common to all 3 branches of the military while some have a specific use case in a particular branch.
Uses of VR and AR in the Army
Firearm Training:
Electronic Warfare training
Sniper Training
Situational Awareness & Experience:
Armoured Vehicle Simulator
Vehicle Repair and Maintenance in the Battlefield
Uses of VR and AR in the Air Force
1) Flight Simulation
2) Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Training
3) Medical Training
Uses of VR In the Navy
1) Virtual Ship Bridge:
2) Virtual Submarine Simulator:
Final thoughts
The huge potential of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) is being tapped to create large volume simulation environments for military and paramilitary domains. The VR training and AR training platform is not restricted by the availability of training sites, weather conditions, or the consumption of equipment. This means training can be provided efficiently in a short period of time. As we discovered in this article, VR training and AR help military and defence to combat many training challenges.
Virtual reality takes battle training to the next level by:
Allowing trainees to practice and improve their skills in safety
Simulating real life situations with precision to help soldiers develop cognitive skills
Fostering teamwork, situational awareness and increased stress resistance
Training personnel to use weapons, navigate aircraft and naval vessels
Facilitating situations to train medical military personnel
Resolving logistical roadblocks to training
Minimizing costs incurred on real world training
Tecknotrove is Asia’s premier Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) company with a specialization in developing applications for mining, aviation, automotive and military, defence and nuclear training. Our team of experts will develop bespoke scalable and immersive VR applications that will elevate the efficiency of your personnel training programs. Get in touch with us to discuss your VR integration plans and to deploy revolutionary VR training applications for your personnel.
For more information you can connect with Tecknotrove on sales@tecknotrove.com or visit www.tecknotrove.com
Contact:
Name: Payal Gupta
Email Address: payalgupta@tecknotrove.com
Website URL: http://tecknotrove.com/virtual-reality-vr-in-defence/
