The Virtual Systems Research Centre encompasses six research groups that are active in the area of virtual systems, such as product- and production simulation, virtual human centred product design, social psychology, computer gaming and virtual training. By joining these research efforts in one research center, major synergistic effects are achieved.
What is a virtual system?
A virtual system is a system in which one or more models, often computer based, are used. These models represent real systems. These "real systems" can be already existing systems, but they can also be planned systems. Likewise, they can be physical systems or abstract systems. In many cases, there is a mixture of real systems and virtual systems; depending on the situation expressions like “augmented reality” or “augmented virtuality” can be used. Thus, there is a continuum that spans from real environments to purely virtual environments. An example of this is a fire-fighter who uses physical equipment in a virtual building for training purposes. Another example is the use of a virtual model of a car to analyse if this car can be produced in an existing manufacturing plant. In gaming, in particular serious gaming, the intention is to create realistic scenarios in which the user(s) must solve emerging problems and execute certain tasks.
Who we are
The six research groups that participate in the Virtual Systems Research Centre are:
These groups are a mix of relatively young, developing groups and groups that have a long and solid track record and that are recognised as leading research groups nationally and internationally. Furthermore, the groups belong to different disciplines and it is this pluriformity that makes the work of the Virtual Systems Research Centre exciting and innovative.
The research and its organisation
Our vision is to be an internationally recognised research center in the area of modelling, simulation and perceptualisation for training, learning, entertainment and decision support. The beneficiaries from our research include the private and public sectors, as well as individuals. The research as carried out in the six groups forms a strong foundation for the research carried out in the research center. The synergistic effects within the research centre are achieved by carrying out joint research projects. These projects can be of theoretical nature and deal with common questions such as (i) theoretical frameworks and standards for virtual systems, (ii) methods, tools and algorithms for virtual systems, (iii) infrastructures (hard- and software) for virtual systems, and (iv) the role of people and organisations for virtual systems as well as the implications of the use of virtual systems for people and organisations. Examples of the latter are the potential that virtual systems have for a radically new way of communication in global product and production development processes and virtual training including virtual co-location of geographically distributed teams, for instance as preparation for international peacekeeping missions. Other projects will be more problem oriented; in these projects, genuine problems emanating from for instance society or industry are tackled in an interdisciplinary way in close cooperation with the organisations that will benefit from the projects' results. For solving these real-life problems, the pluriformity of the research center makes a difference: Problems can be tackled in a truly interdisciplinary way instead of studying some isolated aspects from within separate disciplines. The research center has a wide local, national and international network which makes it easy to identify and involve additional research competences and resources if needed. Whilst these problem oriented research projects address identified problem-based research questions, their results will also contribute to better understanding regarding the aforementioned theoretical topics. Likewise, these projects will benefit from results generated in other research projects that address similar problems in different sectors; an example is the use of production simulation tools to carry out studies for healthcare providers.
Location
Most of us are now holding office in the new research building Portalen (3rd floor), Building 8 on the Campus Map. Address: Kanikegränd 3A, Skövde, Sweden. GPS N 58.39342, E 13.85797.