Image used for representational purpose only.
Image used for representational purpose only.

A virtual view of reality

Three final year students of engineering, who work as project managers at the socio-entrepreneurial initiative of Gram Tarang, showcased how Virtual Reality can be used for training farmers.

Times have changed. Dreams are no longer the vehicles carrying you to a world of fantasy and imagination. It's the era of Virtual Reality. You can land on moon, face a tiger in the forest, walk barefoot over a meandering river or do anything that's impossible. Virtual information is fed into a live camera and headset that enables the user to experience the three-dimensional images in an imaginary environment. Not just for entertainment, the concept was used to up-skill students, professionals and farmers at an exhibition held on the sidelines of the recently-concluded India Skills Regional Competitions, 2018 in Bhubaneswar.

The event was held on the campus of SOA (Sikha 'O' Anusandhan University) from July 15 to July 17. Three final year students of engineering, who work as project managers at the socio-entrepreneurial initiative of Gram Tarang, showcased how Virtual Reality can be used for training farmers on vermicomposting. The user is transported to a virtual farmland, where there's an unit for vermicomposting. Be it the lush green vegetation in the farmyard or the composting units, everything looks real after the user wears the hi-tech headset. The user can change his virtual path of exploration by moving the paddles that he has asked to hold. On hitting a tree or wall in the farmyard, the user faces a psychological jerk or bump.

The digital farming experience is expected to acquaint the farmers with the concepts and techniques of vermicomposting. Theoretical knowledge is of little help to the illiterate farmers. This programme will let them experience how vermicomposting units are developed. The cost of training the farmers is reduced as you don't need to make a composting unit for real, said Krushnashish one of the Project Associates.

Krushnashish Sahoo, Abhi Mitra and Sibil Sarjam Soren are the Three Musketeers who developed this module using software like Blender, Maya and CATIA. "There are some set of instructions that have been fed into the system. These information help the farmers in understanding what amount of soil, earthworms and vegetable wastes are required to prepare a vermi compost. The process is displayed in Virtual Reality", said Soren.

"First, we prepared a process plan for the content. For instance, in the vermicompost unit there are several components like various sheds, plants, earthworms and barrels. After finalising the components, we start modelling those using Blender or Maya. It takes three to four months to make the entire project. After we incorporate all the objects into Unity Game Engine, we start making the environment. A prototype with VR is created. A single person can't work in all the aspects. So, each one has a separate responsibility," Krishnasheeh explained.

His team had showcased the project at various exhibitions, including Agri Vikas 2018, Kishan Mela 2018, Agri Fest in IIT Kharagpur in 2018 and Skill Odisha Conclave. The team said programming was the most difficult thing to do. A Delhi-based start-up firm, Veative, also showcased how Virtual Reality can be used for classroom teachings. The firm has developed more than 500 modules for various subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Languages and designed educational tours. It is a first-of-its-kind VR solution for schools. Veative VR content works with all major VR standalone consoles like Oculus Go, PICO VR, Samsung Gear VR, Google Daydream and Veative All-in-One VR.

"Handheld controller enables navigation and engages the student in the Virtual Reality module," said Rohan Malhotra, Manager Operations at Veative. Some of the interesting modules displayed at the event included anatomy of heart, simple machines, axial skeleton system, friction and its causes, etc.

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