360-degree Video: Safety Training in the Round

In safety-criticalindustries, ensuring that workers get home safely to their families at the endof every working day is of paramount importance.  

In sectors wherecompetency can mean the difference between life and death, the challenge becomesfinding ways to be much more efficient and streamlined without compromising onthe employees’ safety.

The key challenge foremployers and HR teams—in industries such as oil and gas, construction,aviation, manufacturing, petrochemicals, and many others—is how to keepemployees engaged and motivated to learn and complete CPD (continuingprofessional development) without becoming distracted by increasing workloads orother engagements, which all too often take priority over training andcompetency.

One of the ways tocombat these hurdles is to harness new technology to create digital learningexperiences that truly enhance the quality of engagement and knowledgeretention for the individual learner.

The latesttechnological trend in video is 360-degree video, which started gainingtraction throughout 2015 as both Facebook and YouTube launched viewingsolutions that allow everyday users to experience full-circle content.

An immersivetechnology, 360-degree video changes the way learners interact with coursecontent. It captures a full panoramic view by taking simultaneous images frommultiple perspectives (Figure 1). This offers the learner greater exposure tothe environment and full control of panning and rotating the viewpoint toprovide a more engaging experience. 

Figure 1: A stillimage from a 360-degree video illustrates the panoramic view the technologyprovides

Creating a 360-degree video

There are generallyfour key stages in creating a 360-degree video: planning, shooting,post-production, and delivery.

Planning

Compared totraditional video, planning such an immersive experience as a 360-degree videoproject requires different approaches. Adapting everything from a brief, ascript, and a storyboard is essential for success in this medium.

Deciding upon the bestlocation for filming in order to take viewers on a seamless 360-degree video journeyis crucial. From a digital learning point of view, this means choosing a place thatis familiar to learners but that doesn’t allow them to feel too comfortable, encouragesthem to explore further, and ultimately enhances the experience.

Shooting and technology

You can capture thecontent using a multiple-camera system or an omnidirectional camera.

A multiple-camera systemsuch as the GoPro Odyssey offers a professionalsetup, capturing 4K (ultra-high-definition) resolutions through its 16individual cameras. (The Odyssey rig is not currently being sold to the generalpublic.)

As the name suggests,omnidirectional cameras look in all directions. They are all-in-one cameras,small and easy to use, with a 360-degree field of view. The Ricoh Theta is one of the latest models to capturean entire 360-degree space with a single shot. More and more options like this arenow available to consumers.

Generally, the onlyarea that you cannot view is the angle toward the camera support. However, inpost-production, you can easily edit it out with “patching” by covering thearea up with a still shot.

The technologies aresimple enough and sufficiently available that you don’t necessarily require aprofessional videographer or photographer, and you can do the filming in-house.

Post-production

You’ll need softwareto bring the separate footage clips seamlessly together in post-production, oftencalled “stitching,” although some of the new consumer models do thisautomatically. You can carry out additional work at this stage to enhance thevisuals—for example, by improving color grading and visual overlays beforepublishing.

Delivery

You view the resultingcontent via virtual reality headsets such as Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR, andGoogle Cardboard. Alternatively, you can view it via supporting applicationsand online providers like Facebook and YouTube, which have become ambassadorsfor this rapidly evolving medium.

As with all newtechnologies, companies have a responsibility to prove a practical applicationbefore offering this as a stand-alone service. Ultimately, we need tounderstand whether 360-degree video will improve the learning experience, butit certainly does appear to have the capacity for driving real change.

Development

We are all familiarwith the traditional video format of directed single viewpoint, storyline, andnarrative. This linear approach has allowed us to deliver video content andlearning objectives in a set sequence and at a pre-determined pace to theviewer; the director is in control of what the viewer sees.

The introduction of 360-degreevideo means that video production workflows and deliverables need a completerethink. The power no longer lies with the director to guide the audience; thepower is now in the hands of the audience as they determine where to look andwhat storylines to engage with. This obviously creates new challenges fordirectors shooting scenes that require accurate timings and that need guidancefor the viewer to follow.

Applications

So, how can you use thistechnology within safety-critical industries to get the best results? At mycompany, Atlas Knowledge Group, we are exploring various potential applicationsthat may suit the requirements.  

Hazard identificationis one such task. Much like taking the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle LicensingAgency) Hazard Perception Test in the United Kingdom, the learner will needto spot risks within a certain amount of time. By having the full 360-degreerange of vision, the learner will experience a true risk-perception pressure.Real-time video also highlights the importance of identifying these risksbefore it is too late. This approach could either involve learners’ movingwithin a video scenario or remaining in a fixed location while the video playsaround them.

This fixed-positionfilming would lend itself well to incident investigation reconstructions, as itwould allow learners to act as observers or, alternatively, to play key roles,enabling them to take in the full scene and understand the actions of allinvolved. You would incorporate tools to ensure that the learners are guided tosuccess, such as visual prompts, narration, or an actor to draw the learners’focus to the necessary action. Directional sound would also be a key element.Following the video, a series of questions would encourage learners toestablish how much they learned.

Affordability and practicality

It is encouraging tosee both consumer and professional 360-degree video solutions other than OculusRift populating the market. As with most technologies, the cost of theequipment will reduce with time as new products continue to emerge. Additionalthings to consider are the scripting of multiple storylines for multiple actors,the advanced audio recording setup required, and the extended filming timeneeded to ensure that the simultaneous storylines are in sync.

With 360-degree video,there is literally nowhere to hide during filming. Therefore, staged storylinesbecome more complex to record convincingly, as they require multiple stories tobe acted out at the same time. As with the majority of applications so far, thefilming and review of real events as they unfold would be the most practicaluse of the technology. A 360-degree video of real people reacting to real-worldor simulated events, followed by the ability for learners to review or have anassessment of their experience, would provide a vivid, immersive learningexperience.

The production costsare currently high compared to traditional video, but these are likely to comedown. You should consider other factors as well, such as ways to minimizetendencies for viewers to feel motion sickness—fortunately, there are specialtechniques that you can employ to ensure a viewing experience free of this. It’sclear that 360-degree video will become a viable and highly beneficial tool forcompanies wanting to review multiple behaviors and activities in a setenvironment and time frame.

So how can it help?

According to HermannEbbinghaus’s “forgetting curve,” a concept he developed in the 1880s, thetypical individual learner would forget 90 percent of a training course within justsix days after completing it. Given the nature of safety-critical industries, workers’forgetting 90 percent of their training can have catastrophic consequences, notjust for the individuals but potentially all those they work with, too.

It is imperative,therefore, that digital learning solutions in these sectors evolve to becomeincreasingly engaging, with memorable and resonating content.

Using emerging technologies such as 360-degreevideo, developers can create truly immersive and engaging learning experiences thatcan drastically increase knowledge retention. This increased quality oftraining leads to enhanced learner enjoyment, and it puts digital learning and continuingprofessional development back on the list of priorities, keeping the people in safety-criticalsectors safe.