In mass production manufacturing, factories require a great number of tools and equipment, as well as the floor space to house them.
In the video above, we discuss how virtual reality (VR) devices are becoming the key to factory floor planning, cell development and maybe even the future of manufacturing trade events, with David Maa, Ph. D., general manager of the Industry 4.0 division at Fair Friend Group.
“Our virtual reality software is optimized for inspection of machine tools that are too big to be displayed in an event booth,” said Dr. Maa. “We can recreate models of these machine tools for our customers to explore in a virtual reality experience and not only see how it looks, but how it works.”
Virtual reality systems like the Oculus Rift can support the system, providing users an opportunity to interact with the virtual environment using goggles for sight and handheld controllers to manipulate virtual objects within their environment.
The environments themselves are created with original CAD files.
“We export the original CAD files and do some modifications and rendering,” Dr. Maa explained. “This type of VR experience can also be very useful for educational and training purposes.”
Customers can even create a virtual layout of a proposed floor plan.
“When a customer visits us, they can propose their ideas and needs, and using computer design we can simulate possible floor plans in the virtual world,” Dr. Maa explained. “Afterward, we can export a file to the VR environment for our customer to review everything from general floor plans to production lines.”
For more information, watch the video above and visit the Fair Friend Group website.