Creating a flexible and immersive virtual reality system for psychology research
Project scope
Categories
UI design UX design Software developmentSkills
virtual reality training documentation head-mounted displays (hmd) unity engine psychology software development research computer hardwareCreating immersive virtual reality (VR) systems and environments, as well as flexible software development toolkits, for research. This flexible system will be used to further the research objectives of various faculty members in Psychology looking to study cognition using virtual reality systems.
- Using Unity, develop a flexible VR system and set of environments to be used by faculty researchers in the Dept of Psychology.
- Develop/obtain a library of environmental features as would be useful for researchers to create their own 3D environments.
- Identify training documentation for Faculty and student researchers on how to build virtual environments using the system.
- Identify training documentation as to how Faculty can load their own content into the system (e.g., wallpapers/objects of unique experimental stimuli)
- Develop a system for outputting player/participant data from Unity in a format that would be useable by researchers (e.g., export movement coordinates and player interactions such as clicking on something in the environment, to a csv file).
- Ensure system can be deployed locally on researcher computers (primary) and/or head-mounted display units (VR headsets, secondary, if time)
- Ensure system can be deployed remotely through a researcher-controlled website and is flexible enough to be used on most computer hardware (only if time, after all of the above have been completed).
- Lab space provided through Dr. Eric Legge’s lab. Other lab space can be obtained if more is required through consultations with other faculty in the Dept. of Psychology.
- Student will be asked to check in weekly via email with a short progress report of what they have accomplished relative to the project goals.
- Student will be asked to have one 1-hour mid-project meeting with the faculty supervisor, as well as a 1-hour end-of-project meeting.
About the company
The Department of Psychology is a large and dynamic department, offering both a major and a minor in psychology in both the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees, and a honours degree option. Our 23 tenured and tenure-track faculty members are engaged in research in all areas of psychology, and, in addition to offering a high caliber of classroom instruction, students are encouraged to take advantage of opportunities such as honours and independent studies to add further depth to their educational experience. Field placements in clinical psychology, at a variety of community organizations, is also made available to eligible students.