Virtual Reality for Industrial Assembly Training: The Impact of Tool Interaction Realism on Learning Outcomes

Virtual Reality is a transformative technology with potential for industrial training. By offering immersive, safe, and cost-effective simulations, Virtual Reality can greatly enhance learning outcomes and operational efficiency in industrial settings. This paper investigates the use of Virtual Reality to improve manual assembly process training in industry. To date, little research has been done on the impact of realistic tool simulations, especially with the use of standard controllers instead of specialized equipment. To address this research gap, a user study compared two versions of a Virtual Reality application: one with realistic tool interactions and one without. Participants actively engaged with these variants, allowing for a detailed analysis of performance and learning outcomes. The findings reveal no significant difference in learning outcomes between those variants. This challenges the assumption that increased realism automatically improves learning in Virtual Reality for industrial training. However, the qualitative evaluation reveals more user engagement and entertainment when realistic tool interactions were incorporated. In summary, Virtual Reality training offers immersive and cost-effective solutions for industrial applications. These insights contribute to exploring optimal implementation strategies for Virtual Reality trainings in industrial settings, where the balance between realism, complexity, engagement, and learning effectiveness is being investigated.