Shepperton Studios, London, 25 January 2016 – Arithmetica has created a fully interactive virtual reality simulation of a hazardous working environment using a SphereVision 360 degree video recording and production system.
Designed to support health and safety training at Cape plc, an international leader in the provision of critical industrial services to the energy and natural resources sectors, the immersive training presentation is intended to improve hazard awareness, increase perception of risk and support decision making. The Spherevision solution includes 360 degree video of a coal-fired power station with commentary from Cape, and is delivered using specially developed Spherevision presenter software (app) for controlling multiple Samsung Gear VR headsets.
“When people are working in the same environment for long periods of time, their perception of risk can be lowered,” commented Marc Allert, Risk Coach at Cape. “They can even lose respect for the hazards they face every day. In order to counter, this we wanted to create something completely different.
“Working with Arithmetica, we have been able to revolutionise our health and safety training. The use of 360 degree imagery of a real working environment presented using Virtual Reality technology is having a genuine impact on trainees throughout the organisation. We are now looking to widen the scope of our training programme and even offer this solution to our customers and partner organisations as a service.”
Working alongside Cape personnel, Arithmetica, with support from sister company Transmission TX which provided its 360 video production expertise in turning Cape’s storyboard into the immersive training tool, captured 360 degree video of the Eggborough Power Station over a period of two days.
Arithmetica processed the raw 360 video footage and, in conjunction with feedback from Cape, delivered a fully interactive 360 degree visualisation of the environment from the perspective of a member of staff working on site. A commentary from Cape was added to the video to draw attention and focus to specific features and working practices.
In order to deliver the solution to multiple personnel, Arithmetica also developed VR software for Cape so the resulting experience could be delivered in an interactive and immersive way, using Samsung GearVR headsets in a classroom or lecture theatre environment whilst giving the trainer full control of the training experience.
“To date we have trained several hundred members of staff using the SphereVision solution,” continued Allert. “The feedback has been unanimously positive, as relevant messages are communicated in a realistic, hard-hitting way yet still easy to comprehend.”
Cape is a leading player in the provision of critical industrial services, such as the traditional services of access, insulation, coatings and mechanical, and a range of specialist services including oil and gas storage tanks, heat exchanger replacement and refurbishment, and environmental services, to the energy and natural resources sectors. With safety a top priority, Cape invests significant resource into training, providing all employees with relevant technical and safety training in a format suited to specific needs.
About SphereVision
SphereVision is Europe’s leading brand for spherical and 360 degree video solutions. 360 video systems are able to record a real-world environment in all directions at the same time, capturing every aspect of the scene in one go. When the video is played back – on a laptop, mobile device or over the Internet, viewers can pan around the image, moving through and exploring the site as if they were there. Footage can be integrated with floor and site plans using the company’s innovative software, and the high-resolution
360 imagery can also be integrated with online mapping.
www.spherevision.com
About Arithmetica
Arithmetica is an innovator in 360-degree imaging solutions and automated laser scanning data processing software. Located at the world famous Shepperton Studios near London, Arithmetica is the company behind SphereVision and Pointfuse. Arithmetica is an inventive software house that develops ground breaking software solutions to solve real world scientific, medical and engineering problems. Arithmetica builds on more than thirty years of television and film production to develop software for clients around the world. Arithmetica solutions handle complex data rich information and are simple and easy to use. Arithmetica’s wide-ranging experience and capabilities include: image analysis and computer vision for industrial and biomedical fields, massively parallel computation, multimedia data compression, data mining and machine learning, Monte-Carlo methods, traffic simulation, mathematical optimisation used in conceptual aircraft design, statistical estimation, computational fluid dynamics applied to aerofoil optimisation, nonlinear variable demand economics models involving millions of variables, finite element electromagnetic analysis, spherical image processing and 360-degree video presentation. www.arithmetica.com
About Cape
Cape is an international leader in the provision of critical industrial services principally to the energy and natural resources sectors. Cape provides a multi-disciplinary service offering including the traditional services of access, insulation, coatings and mechanical, and a range of specialist services including oil and gas storage tanks, heat exchanger replacement and refurbishment, and environmental services. Cape employs over 17,000 people working across 21 countries, and in 2014 reported adjusted revenue of £698.3 million. www.capeplc.com