［ Solution・Supporting Service ］

Factory Inspection Tour Supportby Actively Using Virtual Reality( VR)
Keywords

VR, Digitalization, Plant tour, 3D data

Abstract

58

Makito Tominaga,
Nobuo Okazaki

Many products produced at our Computer System Factory are installed withvery speciﬁc conditions. In many cases, they are used as module units and are
combined with equipment to form a system. For a factory inspection tour, we
inform visitors the purpose of this particular product. We need an innovativeeasy-to-understand explanation.
We developed a system to support a factory inspection tour by activelyusing Virtual Reality (VR) technology. This system is enabled to change thestandard virtual viewing positions accordingly for a factory inspection tour orcommercial negotiation. In a virtual space, product installations are reproduced
realistically so that its functions can be effectively and visually explained. The
ﬁrst to be adopted was the Overhead Catenary System (OCS) inspection system“CATENARY EYE” VR system. With the development of this system, the challenges of routine conventional factory inspection tours were solved, and thesystem is helping visitors better understand and experience the product.

1 Prefaceand VR CATENARY EYE which is the ﬁrst contents.

Our Computer System Factory is developing,producing, and maintaining the Supervisory Control
and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, remotesupervisory control equipment (Tele-controller),
Overhead Catenary System (OCS) inspection system “CATENARY EYE”, computer-applied systemproducts, and protection relay products. In a factoryinspection, we often use real machines (our products) for the explanation of our product machines. If
an actual machine cannot be used, panels are usedfor explanation. Due to the nature of the equipment,
our products are used as modular units and are
installed in special speciﬁc ways. A conﬁguration iscompleted at the project site by combining it withsystem equipment. Consequently, it is difﬁcult for
visitors to fully comprehend the ﬁnal vision of thesystem by simply looking at our individual module
products. It is therefore necessary to devise a favorable method of providing clear explanations to interested visitors from other business arenas.
For an adequate solutions, we developed afactory inspection tour supporting system that fully
utilizes Virtual Reality (VR). This paper introduces
the outline of the VR factory inspection tour system

2 Outline of the VR Factory Inspection
Tour System

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2.1 VR Technology
VR technology is a general term for a computer-generated virtual environment simulating areality in order for a human being to perceive it as a
virtual reality. Currently, this technology is a Head
Mounted Display (HMD) visual experience. Though
this technology has been available in the last
decade, it has recently received increased interest
due to its enhanced “sense of immersion” from theimprovement of computer graphic processing capability and device functions.

2.2 Challenges
Since the sense of immersion is intensiﬁed,
some people experience “Virtual Reality sickness(VR sickness)”. This type of discomfort stems froma sensory shift or gap between the sense of sightand information in the semicircular canals, much
like motion sickness. There are differences amongindividuals in their adaptability to VR and a favorable device is necessary to meet the needs of asBase station (Infrared
rays are irradiated todetect the position.)
Irradiationof infrared
rays

Base station (Infraredrays are irradiated todetect the position.)

Large-sizedmonitor

Irradiation ofinfrared rays
Computer

Receptionof infraredrays

DisplayPort
cable

Reception ofinfrared rays

Controller

Fig. 1

Synchronization(Infraredrays)

Wirelesspairing(Bluetooth)

HMD

Headsetcable

KVM

USB3.0cable

Link box

Overall Configuration of VR Factory Inspection Tour System

Conﬁguration and external appearance of the VR factory inspection tour system are shown. At the large sized monitor, an aspect of virtual
space can be checked from the outside.

many people as possible. Another challenge is providing for a real space that is comparable to a virtual space for allowing people to walk around in theVR space. Because of speciﬁc restrictions wherevisitors are allowed to walk, a limit line to restrict
access is needed. To conduct the tour with ease, itis essential to establish a realistic scenario.

2.3 System Conﬁguration

In our system, we adopted a “seated experience” due to possible motion sickness and restricted areas so plant visitors can experience the VR
tour sitting in chairs. Fig. 1 shows an overall conﬁguration of the VR factory inspection tour system.
The respective composing elements are as follows:( 1) Computer
In VR presentation, it is necessary to computethe space coordinates by continually tracing themovement of each visitor and maintain real-time
drawing of a virtual space. This process requires ahigh-speed graphic processing capability. Our system employs the ALIENWARE computer producedby Dell Inc. with its computing ability to support VR
game playing. For faster computation, we use theGeForce RTX 2080 by NVIDIA Inc. for the Graphics
Processing Unit (GPU). Table 1 shows the computer speciﬁcations.
( 2 ) HMD
This display device is worn on the head covering the eyes of the person experiencing the VR. For
the HMD of this system and the base station andcontroller to be described later, we adopted theVIVE Pro by HTC Corporation. The provided display
shows the projections of a VR space to both eyes
respectively so that a stereoscopic VR view canpresent a 3D. The computer and HMD are connect-

Table 1 Computer Specifications
Computer speciﬁcations used for this plant touring system areshown.
ItemSpecifications

Name

ALIENWARE AURORA R7

OSWindows10

CPUCore i7-8700

GPUGeForce RTX 2080

Memory16 GBStorage

C Drive: 238 GB SSD
D Drive: 1.81 TB HDD

ed through a headset cable.
( 3 ) Controller
Using a hand-held chargeable device, “grip,pull trigger, and move/push the slide pad”, actions
can be detected. These hand actions can be virtually linked with motions in the VR space, and a 3D
object can be freely manipulated. The 3D object forthe controller can be displayed in the VR space.
( 4 ) Base station
The irradiation of infrared rays can be utilized
to detect position and direction of the HMD and controller. One or two base stations are installed so thatthe moving space can fall within the scope of theinfrared ray irradiation. Fig. 2 shows an image of thebase station installation.
( 5 ) Software
For our VR development, the Unity made byUnity Technologies, Inc. was adopted because thisdevice is known for its versatility and easy handling.
The Unity is a current product of the de facto standard in the ﬁeld of xR※1 development including theVR. Manufacturers of various HMD and peripheral
equipment are releasing the Software Development
Kit (SDK) for the Unity. With this kit, VR machines
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Trolley wire(catenary)Base station

Rooftopequipment

Scope ofinfrared ray
irradiation

Data accumulation
HMD

Scope ofvirtualmovement

Image of Base Station Installation

Error
promptreportControlMeasured data
Car Car onboard unit

OfficeAnalysis

Portable disk

Analyzer unit

RailFig. 3

Fig. 2

Pantograph

System Configuration

An outline of CATENARY EYE system conﬁguration is shown.
Measured data accumulated in a railroad car are carried in a
portable disk and brought into an ofﬁce.

Each sensor is located about 2 meters or more above the ﬂoor
level. It is tilted downwards by 30°to 45°. Each one irradiates
infrared rays within the range of 120 degrees. HDD tracking begins when the action area is contained at least within either
range of infrared ray irradiation.

can be easily developed. Since high reality expressions of Computer Graphics (CG) can be easily produced, it is possible to establish a VR system with aheightened sense of immersion.

3 Contents
For the ﬁrst contents for our VR system, weselected CATENARY EYE from our products related to this plant because this product can provide acomparatively easily understandable VR effect.

3.1 Outline of CATENARY EYECATENARY EYE is an inspection system
intended to carry out maintenance and inspection ofcatenary-related systems for electric railroad facilities. Facility status can be analyzed into highly
accurate numerical data by using image processing
technology with this equipment. It is composed of arooftop unit equipped with a camera, lighting, andsensors, a car onboard unit to control and accumulate images and data, and an analytical unit installed
in an ofﬁce. Fig. 3 shows a system conﬁguration
and Fig. 4 shows an example of the rooftop equipment conﬁguration.

3.2 Virtual Space Inside
Fig. 5 shows an image of the virtual spaceinside. The inspection car is stopped on an existingrailroad track as shown in (a) and the rooftop unit ofCATENARY EYE is installed on the rooftop of thecar as shown in (b). The touring visitors can observe
the rooftop unit sitting in chairs installed on the roof-60

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Fig. 4

Example of Rooftop Equipment Configuration

An external appearance of the rooftop equipment is shown. Acamera, sensors, lighting, and associated devices are accommodated.

top of the car. In a virtual space, a view of catenary,pantograph, and surrounding environment is reproduced in a 360-degree mode and the visitors
can enjoy the realistic feeling of full immersion. For
the experience, an instructor gives oral explanations based on a previously produced scenario.

3.3 Features
For the VR, the absolute coordinates of theHMD and controller are generally detected by thebase station and the detected coordinates areregarded as the standard point for the virtual space.
The actual amount of movement is detected at thebase station and the detected movement is converted into a movement from a standard point in thevirtual space for the tracking of the visual ﬁeld. If theactual position is not identical with the correct VR
experiencing position, the objective experiencing
position (display ＝ visual ﬁeld) may be shifted. In

Real space
Virtual space

A personmoves ina real space.

Ordinary VR
A person isrelatively
moved bymoving thevirtual space.

(a) A view of railroad cars installed on the trackand environmental circumstancesFig. 6

Movement of Environmental Coordinate System

The absolute position of a VR experiencing person does notchange, but the virtual space can be moved. In this arrangement, the VR experiencing personʼs relative position and ﬁeld ofsight can be moved.

nitor screen

Pantograph mo(b) CATENARY EYE installed on the rooftop of a railroad car

Fig. 5

Image of Virtual Space Inside

An image of virtual space inside of CATENARY EYE is shown.

the case of an approach adopted for our system,
however, the system is established on the assumption that plant touring visitors and commercial talks
are made to experience on multiple chairs. To attaina solution, we provided functions to reset the standard point arbitrarily and amend each visitorʼs position forcedly in the VR to a preset position anddirection. By doing so, optimal VR experience canalways be achieved without depending on the position of the chair. Fig. 6 shows the movement of theenvironmental coordinate system. The absolutecoordinates of a person are not moved but the virtual space is moved. As a result, the person feels as if
there were a mutual movement.

Fig. 7

Display of Overlay

An image taken from rooftop equipment is displayed in the VRspace. A cameraʼs viewing angle that cannot be checked realistically is projected in a space.

Pantograph monitor camera

3.4 Displayed Images
Points are introduced below to enable viewing
with the VR CATENARY EYE. Fig. 7 shows a display of the overlay. It shows that an image takenwith a camera displayed in a virtual space. Fig. 8
shows a view where the name of equipment is dis-Fig. 8

Display of Equipment Name

The name of a device accommodated in rooftop equipment isdisplayed in the VR space. These letters are controlled to pointat the faces of the visitors. They are made readable even if therooftop equipment and visitors should move.

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Fig. 9Image of Light Irradiation

The display indicates how the light is irradiated from a lighting
device in the rooftop equipment and where the lighting is pointed. An image of the trace of light that cannot be seen realisticallyis virtually expressed.

A blue spot is displayed in the center of the VR space. It is used
as a communication tool for visitors and the instructor.

Fig. 10 Rooftop Equipment Lifting Up

Fig. 12 Multi-Language Application

Since the rooftop equipment is located at the ﬂoor level of thevisitors, the instructor virtually lifts it up to the eye level of thevisitors to help easily see it. The direction of the rooftop equipment can also be adjusted.

Letters shown in the virtual space can be switched over between
Japanese and English.

played. It is possible to give explanations by showing the name of equipment in the virtual space.
Fig. 9 shows an image of light irradiation. The traceof light irradiated from a lighting device is conveyed.
Fig. 10 shows a scene where rooftop equipment islifted. It is possible to adjust the height and directionof the rooftop equipment. Fig. 11 shows a pointer for
point of sight. A pointer to show a visitorʼs point ofsight is shown in the ﬁeld of sight. Fig. 12 shows amulti-language application. The name of equipment
is shown in English. Fig. 13 shows a concept model.
Even for a cover design without any experience ofan actual production, its image can be displayed.

62Fig. 11 Pointer for Point of Sight

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Fig. 13 Concept Model
The cover is designed in a streamline shape while maintaining
the regular functions. This is a realizable model though there is
no former experience of manufacturing it. If VR technologies areeffectively used, an image of the installation in a working environment can be viewed without realizing any trial production.

5 Postscript
With the aid of VR technologies, it is possible
to give a virtual illusionary experience to a user byshowing “something not actually present” as an“illusion that it is present. ” Furthermore, these technologies show “something that cannot actually beseen” in a real space.
Utilizing such features, we have developed andstarted presenting a VR factory inspection tour system that greatly innovates the conventional factoryinspection method. Reactions from both inside andoutside of the company are very positive and thedegree of satisfaction for factory inspection tour visitors has increased considerably.
From now on, we will try to apply the VR technologies to other ﬁelds, such as, design supportand instructional education. At the same time, wewill work on improving the contents of the VR
presentation of our products.

・ALLENWARE is the trademark and/or service mark of U.S.
Dell, Inc.
・GeForce is the trademark and/or service mark of NVIDIA
Corporation in U.S.A. and other countries.
・Unity is the trademark and/or service mark of Unity
Technologies or its afﬁrmative companies in U.S.A. andother countries.
・Bluetooth is the trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc.
・DisplayPort is the trademark of Video Electronics Standards
Association.
・Windows is the trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
・Core is the trademark of Intel Corporation.
・VIVE is the trademark of HTC Corporation.
・All product and company names mentioned in this paper are
the trademarks and/or service marks of their respective owners.
(Note)※1. xR (xReality): General terms of technologies such as VirtualReality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (MR), andSubstitutive Reality (SR).

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