Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
INTRODUCTION
ment is important. We want to show all of these
in 3D, and we want to allow the students to move
and manipulate the models. The goal is to teach
them spatial intuition and a 3D understanding of
the chemical structures, a key skill for the students
to understand and solve Inorganic Chemistry
problems.
We thus introduce an AR system for teaching
university-level Inorganic Chemistry. Our system
renders material and compound structures as well
as other inorganic models for better understanding
by the students. The system allows multiple users
and different 3D models of chemical structures.
The system is used to teach both theory and
laboratory classes. During the laboratory classes
problems are solved that require the students to
develop a good 3D spatial understanding. Our
experiments demonstrate that the students like the
system. They even want to take it home, so they
can use it as a self-assessment tool and as a tool for
online learning in real time. They also suggested
improving the system by adding stereo imaging.
Although our system was developed for In-
organic Chemistry, other disciplines may benefit
from it. For example, it can be applied to math-
ematics, organic chemistry, theoretical physics,
astronomy, applied physics and engineering. Its
simplicity and ease of use make it suitable for
university students and younger students, like
secondary, junior-high and high-school students.
Moreover, we have used our system to teach
Chemistry classes to 11-12 year old students. We
did that as part of a program aimed at bringing
younger students to our University. The experience
was highly positive, and students showed great
interest since they were able to interact with the
structures as a game, learning and playing at the
same time.
Summarizing, our goal is to introduce Aug-
mented Reality into Inorganic Chemistry educa-
tion. There are two reasons why: improve the
students' understanding of materials structures
using AR, and provide the professor with a tool to
better explain those structures that require a good
Nowadays, there is a change in the learning-
teaching process and how people understand
it. Students are no longer mere receptacles for
information and knowledge, but they are also an
active part of the process. New advances in In-
formation Technologies have become significant
contributors to this change.
For example, recent advances in Computer
Graphics and Computer Hardware have introduced
Information Technologies into the classroom.
PowerPoint presentations, for example, are being
used pervasively in classrooms around the world.
The problem of this technology is that the student
remains a passive element of the learning process.
Information Technologies must be used to better
and more effectively involve the students in their
own education.
Augmented Reality (AR) is a fairly new area of
Computer Graphics that relies on other computer-
related disciplines like hardware, computer vision,
and sensing and tracking. It allows the user to
view the real world with superimposed computer
generated annotations and graphics. AR systems
may be used by multiple users at the same time.
This provides the opportunity for collaborative
applications, like engineering design, architecture,
multi-user games, and education, among others.
AR can be used in education to show the
students models that cannot be seen in the real
world. Two examples are: planets and galaxies
that are too big, and atoms and molecules that
are too small. Another example is multiple types
of chemical, physical and engineering processes
like reactions, explosions, computational fluid
dynamics, and motion simulations that cannot
be easily taught to the students using traditional
means like transparencies and the chalkboard.
We are interested in applying AR to Inorganic
Chemistry education at the university level. Spe-
cifically, we want to show the students different
material and compound structures, symmetry and
unit cells, and modes of vibration where move-
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