Developing an interactive digital reality module for simulating physical laboratories in fluid mechanics

Fundamental engineering units such as fluid mechanics are usually challenging for students to learn since they are practical and linked with mathematics. Traditional physical laboratories are useful for enhancing students’ learning; however, they are expensive and require large space. New technologies such as virtual reality (VR) could benefit students without limiting enrolment capacity or laboratory availability. This paper presents a case study focusing on the development of VR experience for the Fluid Mechanics unit at the School of Engineering, Macquarie University. The VR module is an extension of the physical laboratory session where students use wind tunnel facilities to understand the flow features around an object. 3D computational fluid dynamics simulation datasets for a wing are incorporated into the VR platform that uses SteamVR, Oculus and Ansys/EnSight. A survey is conducted to assess students’ opinions about the VR experience. Preliminary feedback was highly positive, as most students (>86%) indicated that the VR module was enjoyable, engaging, and interactive. 37% of students agreed that the VR session directly helps them to improve their performance in the Fluid Mechanics unit, while most students (>93%) like to see more VR sessions in Fluid Mechanics.