A Virtual Campus Based on Human Factor Engineering

Abstract

Three Dimensional or 3D virtual reality has become increasingly popular in many areas, especially in building a digital campus. This paper introduces a virtual campus, which is based on a 3D model of The Tourism and Culture College of Yunnan University (TCYU). Production of the virtual campus was aided by Human Factor and Ergonomics (HF&E), an application which provided a convenient, comfortable, practical and simple environment for users. TCYU, in Lijiang, China, occupies approximately 800 acres. Set in a parkland environment, it is a modern campus with a rich architectural style based on local Naxi houses with gray tiles and white painted walls. Because it is very large for a virtual campus, the scale and complexity of models have been simplified. They have also been reduced for ease of loading the computer program by three means: Object-Oriented Modeling (OOM), textures and portal-connectors, and many easy-to-use tools have been created which support different input hardware and avatars to help the user tour the campus from different perspectives. Testing results show that the virtual system can run smoothly on the general personal computer.