Recognizing the need for a highly intuitive alternative to existing operator training tools, Invensys Process Systems this week announced a next-generation human machine interface (HMI) that runs on a virtual reality engine.
The Immersive Virtual Reality Process technology will modernize the way engineers and operator trainees see and interact with the processes they control and the plant in general, the company said. More important, it will help get new employees up to speed quickly by enabling them to experience skills typically learned on the job, without risk to plant performance or safety issues related to highly sophisticated chemical plants or refineries.
As the manufacturing workforce shrinks and a new generation of computer-savvy workers comes on the job, immersive virtual reality technology can accelerate the transfer of knowledge, improve plant safety and security, and ensure environmental and regulatory accountability, while maintaining — or increasing — production efficiency, Invensys officials said.
The Immersive Virtual Reality technology uses a 3D CAD system to render photorealistic graphics synchronized with IPS’ high-fidelity dynamic simulation program, called DYNSIM, which links process models and properties — the temperature of a valve or the level of fluid in a pipe, for example — with physical-spatial models to create various types of training scenario.