In the last decade, the rapid development and the price reduction of
immersive Virtual Reality (iVR) devices allow its application to a wide range of
applications. The sense of immersion and presence that these iVR devices produce
surpasses any other display. These unique characteristic opens up new ways of
training in Occupational Risk Prevention (ORP). iVR can create applications in
collaborative training environments that mimic real situations and reinforce collaborative work and avoids unnecessary risks to the user in their training, as well as to
other people or equipment that would exist if working with real equipment. Overhead cranes are one of the most interesting elements for the application of iVR
training simulators. Firstly, because they are present throughout the production
space and their movement involves the displacement of heavy loads that are not
always well balanced. In addition, these movements occur in areas where other
operators might be present and, in some cases, their collaboration is necessary
during the movement stage. This research presents the design of a collaborative
iVR application for training the movement of loads with overhead cranes. This
developed application focuses on providing the user with the ability to proficiently
operate an overhead crane. The usefulness of the iVR application was tested with 3
experienced overhead crane operators and 29 undergraduate students. These users
reported that the experience was enjoyable and felt that the iVR environment was
realistic and that the application would be useful to train how to handle an overhead
bridge crane.
