ABSTRACT
As mass casualty incidents continue to escalate in the United States, we must improve frontline responder performance to increase the odds of victim survival. In this article, we describe the First Responder Virtual Reality Simulator, a high-fidelity, fully immersive, automated, programmable virtual reality (VR) simulation designed to train frontline responders to treat and triage victims of mass casualty incidents. First responder trainees don a wireless VR head-mounted display linked to a compatible desktop computer. Trainees see and hear autonomous, interactive victims who are programmed to simulate individuals with injuries consistent with an explosion in an underground space. Armed with a virtual medical kit, responders are tasked with triaging and treating the victims on the scene. The VR environment can be made more challenging by increasing the environmental chaos, adding patients, or increasing the acuity of patient injuries. The VR platform tracks and records their performance as they navigate the disaster scene. Output from the system provides feedback to participants on their performance. Eventually, we hope that the First Responder system will serve both as an effective replacement for expensive conventional training methods as well as a safe and efficient platform for research on current triage protocols.
ABSTRACT
We report new classes of wearable sensors that monitor touch between fully-abled and disabled players in order to empower collaborative digital gaming between the two. Our approach relies on embroidered force-sensitive resistors (FSRs) embedded into armbands, which outperform the state-of-the-art in terms of sensitivity to low applied forces (0 to 5 N). Such low forces are of key significance to this application, given the diverse physical abilities of the players. With a focus on effective gameplay, we further explore the sensor's touch-detection performance, study the effect of the armband fabric selection, and optimize the sensor's placement upon the arm. Our results: (a) demonstrate a 4.4-times improvement in sensitivity to low forces compared to the most sensitive embroidered FSR reported to date, (b) confirm the sensor's ability to empower touch-based collaborative digital gaming for individuals with diverse physical abilities, and (c) provide parametric studies for the future development of diverse sensing solutions and game applications.
