The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) Naval Personnel and Training Group (NPTG) recently created a new, state of the art Naval leadership training Center (HMCS Venture). As part of its mission to develop training and personnel capabilities for the RCN fleet, it is host to a new center for innovation and research for Naval training, known as iNeXXt.
Imagine 4D (through its subsidiary Simthetiq) was selected by RCN NPTG to install an Immersive Classroom at the heart of the iNeXXt building at CFB Esquimalt that was focused around the Station IX® visual system and a series of networked VR training pods.
The Immersive Classroom can function both as a Classroom for the delivery of training, as well as a focal point for research, testing and innovation by RCN personnel as they develop new training methods and define new requirements in support of the RCN’s Future Naval Training Strategy.
The Naval Personnel Training Group supports the training and development of all RCN personnel, directly linked to Naval Fleet Operational needs and is expected to develop a pipeline of competent, and highly flexible trainees to meet the critical operational needs of the RCN.
The increased demand on Naval personnel has encouraged the RCN training infrastructure to think outside the box and look to industry partners for assistance in bridging gaps in their roadmap to developing a 21st Century Naval Force.
Defence, Training
Faced with personnel shortages and a need to train personnel to a high degree of competency in a short time frame, the RCN actively seeks out innovative and efficient solutions to their training needs. The RCN devised a Future Naval Training Strategy, as part of their broader Digital Navy Initiative, that recognized the important role that innovative and immersive technologies - such as immersive visualization and digital twins - could play to improve their operational capabilities. For this project, the RCN sought to address new capabilities for learning by adopting a truly next generation technological solution that fully immerses trainees in the virtual world.
In the development of the Future Naval Training Strategy, the RCN personnel discovered the power of Station IX®
through its ability to provide true depth perception, multiuser immersion, increased situational awareness and an open architecture:
Immersion: With near retinal resolution and unparalleled depth of view, RCN recognized that Station IX® was a game-changer in terms of the type of training and the ways in which it could be conducted – furthermore it could act as a test bed for future innovative courseware.
Visual Functionality: Supporting large groups of trainees in a fully immersed environment for prolonged periods of time, without the potentially negative effects of head mounted virtual displays, offered a unique opportunity for RCN to increase high quality training throughput.
Reconfigurable and Open: Based on its open architecture, RCN understood that they would not be tied to a single contractor for support of their innovative work and that previous investments in immersive training content could be brought into the Station IX® environment.
Once work with the customer commenced, we defined the functional requirements of the system they would be using and examined the training courseware that could be provided for the initial testing and evaluation of the system. The RCN was keen to identify virtual courseware that had been developed by Imagine 4D as well as third parties that would clearly demonstrate the benefits of the immersive classroom experience.
At the request of the RCN, Imagine 4D integrated a navigational and positioning training application from another Canadian Subcontractor, benefiting from the Station IX® immersive environment and improved situational awareness. Imagine 4D supported the RCN’s subcontractor with integration of their courseware into the Immersive Classroom, further demonstrating the Station IX®’ ability to support a wide range of training courses.
The RCN was able to assess and confirm that the Immersive Classroom:
If your organization is looking to implement an immersive, multi-user, headset free training environment, whilst also balancing a need to increase training throughput for complex tasks that are either impractical or too dangerous to conduct in real life – then reach out to Imagine 4D to discover how our scalable and network capable Immersive Classroom solution can help bring your training ever closer to reality.
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Imagine 4D specializes in digital twin technologies and immersive visualization solutions. Our integrated software suite provides organizations with the tools to visualize, understand, monitor, and optimize complex systems, processes and assets.
