Multi-sensory Fluid Mechanics: use of VR and haptic interfaces in education

Virtual reality tools are increasingly accessible in educational settings due to the proliferation of consumer-grade hardware and open-source rendering options. In this study, we develop a multimodal virtual environment for visualising rich fluid dynamic data, here generated from transient three-dimensional research simulations. We include haptic capabilities that allow for tangible interaction with the flow field: a user can change position, orientation and step through time, all while experiencing the associated force fields in a multi-sensory mode. The immersive environment is intended to accelerate student learning and improve retention, crucially fostering the development of expert thinking and intuition, which manifests itself via making judicious assumptions and approximations in order to simplify otherwise highly complex flow phenomena.