Operator training in 3D

Operator training systems are pretty commonplace in plants because plant managers want to train operators in a safe environment. But a new approach to virtual reality could change the way we train teams to respond in critical situations.
Traditional virtual reality has seen technology limitations because rendering equipment views in real time puts high demands on processors and requires expensive hardware, making the outcome slow and oversimplified.
Invensys Process Systems (IPS) today unveiled its immersive training simulator (ITS), which they said could transform traditional training and the virtual plant environment.
With the new simulator, operators can train on the same models as control room operators at the same time, enforcing teamwork, said Tobias Scheele, IPS vice president of advanced applications during today’s press conference.
Known as the immersive virtual reality process, the IPS system creates a 3D computer-generated representation of either a real or proposed process plant. Via a stereoscopic, stereophonic headset, users enter a totally immersive environment in which they can move around the plant in any direction they choose. This freedom is possible because the virtual environment is rendered at 60 frames per second, much faster than what a traditional, non real-time rendering can achieve.
“The sophistication of the immersive virtual environment includes a feeling of real 3D, where you can interact with the three-dimensional environment and have the optical feeling of 3d,” Scheele said.
A CAD file is the basic source of material for the 3D environment. This file can either be in standard 2D or advanced formats, such as those created by COMOSFEED, SMARTPLANT and AUTOCAD. These programs generate a 3D CAD file that is then used to speed up the conversion process required for photo-realistic, real-time graphics.
The next level of sophistication is augmented reality, “taking virtual reality and overlaying it with pictures and information from the real world,” he said. “You can see reality, express and show in a virtual environment, or cross check your virtual environment with augmented reality. What it means for process simulation is in this photorealistic virtual environment, you can get information of process conditions like temperatures, pipes, fluid in the pipe or the actual value of a valve.”
Augmented reality increases process understanding of the operation efficiency, Scheele said. “What we can do more than the traditional approach is training based on an action or competency aimed at the individual. The total human factor in training is to broaden the individualized focus by looking into team training. How do individuals interact with each other?” This becomes important during training in a refinery, where there is a lot of teamwork involved with a lot of individuals, but you want to train them in an operator environment, he said.
ITS comprehensive training solution is linking the control room operator to the theater operator, which brings to light a comprehensive training solution, linking both worlds using the same logic. “It’s training in a similar environment, and interactive environment for complete plant crew training,” Scheele said.
“A 3d model can see use in a walkthrough experience, giving assistance with maintenance feasibility tasks,” he said. “What is the health condition, maintenance of this equipment?”
You can also perform safety tasks and train a team to improve their skills during critical events or a high-stress situation. “The expected results of optimizing training of all aspects of operations is providing a more realistic environment for training,” he said.
Operators can also practice training sessions and define training tasks and sessions they need to work through, such as high-stress situations, he said. “You can perform these procedures first in safe environment before you apply them in reality.”
-- Ellen Fussell Policastro