VR-Based Learning Media of Earthquake-Resistant Construction for Civil Engineering Students

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

This paper presents a research study to describe an immersive VR interface in the education process for aspiring civil engineering careers. The development consisted of three stages, and the results are oriented toward comparing the effectiveness of using this technology in civil engineering learning.

 

The paper is interesting; however, some deficiencies must be improved.

 

-       The abstract must be rewritten. It must briefly present the research summary and the main contribution, describing the statistical analysis.

-       Many acronyms are used in the manuscript without a previous definition.

-       The Introduction Section needs to establish the statement problem and express the importance of the virtual and augmented realities technologies essential in Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0. In conclusion, Section 1 must present the general “research picture,” the main problem aboard, and the hypothesis to solve it. In addition, the section must motivate the intended audience to read the paper.

-       A Section that describes the state-of-the-art or related work concerning these issues must be presented, and a final comparison regarding the proposed approach with the literature review must be provided.

-       It is indispensable to present a complete statistical analysis, describing the results of the 15 participants and correlating some variables to infer and discover developments concerning the effectiveness of virtual reality technology in civil engineering learning.

-      It is necessary to present a more complete statistical analysis, presenting at least results of 15 participants and corelating some variables to infer some results. 

-       Many references need to be updated. Please, update references with literature closer to the theme of this issue.

-       The manuscript must provide a general framework regarding the methodology, tasks, processes, and algorithms implemented to describe the analysis of the virtual reality component. What algorithm was designed to implement the VR? Do you use a standard library such as Vuforia? Do you have a public repository to replicate your implementation?

-       A figure to describe the procedure description is welcome…

-       Section 3 must present the results with tables and more graphics; it isn't easy to understand and follow the statistical analysis of the results. It needs to be improved.

-       The contributions need to be clarified. It is necessary to highlight them and justify what the most critical issue for the state-of-the-art is. Improve the conclusions and future works.

-        A comparison of the research study with others needs to be included in the contribution. Is there any methodology to compare VR use with other works from the state-of-the-art to assert that VR supports and assists civil engineering learning? Otherwise, it is necessary to justify the reason widely.

 

Author Response

Response to Reviewer 1 Comments

 

Point 1: The abstract must be rewritten. It must briefly present the research summary and the main contribution, describing the statistical analysis.

 

Response 1: We have made a massive revision of the abstract. The new abstract is here.

The shaking of the surface of the Earth is what is known as an earthquake, its effects span a wide range, and cause damage total collapse of buildings. It is essential to improve the construction industry to protect buildings from disasters. However, construction development is costly. Therefore, this article focuses mainly on creating an earthquake-resistant construction model using Virtual Reality (VR), which offers new ways to improve user knowledge transfer and communication. There are three stages in generating the model: pre-development, development, and post-development. These stages include need assessment, planning, initial development, validation, analysis and evaluation, and field testing. In the post-development stage, the model is used by Civil Engineering students. The statistics technique examines the implementation of VR. The VR was developed to promote Civil Engineering students while fostering their interest in Information Technology. The result indicates that the VR-based application has a favorable and significant effect on learning. In addition, the mean score of 17.3 represents the average improvement score for the VR-based application compared to traditional education. Integration of virtual reality into civil engineering education can statistically improve learning outcomes, particularly in earthquake-resistant buildings.

 

Point 2: Many acronyms are used in the manuscript without a previous definition.

 

Response 2: Thanks for the correction, existing acronyms have been defined.

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH); Computer-Aided Design (CAD); Virtual Reality Modelling Language (VRML); Hypertext Markup Language (HTML); Safety in Construction Using Virtual Reality (SAVR); Virtual Environment (VE); Head-mounted Displays (HMD); WorldToolKit (WTK); Silicon Graphics Inc (SGI); Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA);

 

Point 3: The Introduction Section needs to establish the statement problem and express the importance of the virtual and augmented realities technologies essential in Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0. In conclusion, Section 1 must present the general “research picture,” the main problem aboard, and the hypothesis to solve it. In addition, the section must motivate the intended audience to read the paper.

 

Response 3: We have added this revision to Paragraph 4 in the Introduction.

Even though the development cost is low, it can be expensive for the students. The students have to spend more money, even for only a prototype. Therefore, VR-based learning media is needed to overcome this problem. The essential of virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) technology in education and industry 4.0 includes immersive learning experiences [5]; increased skills [6], motivation, and interest [7]; increased efficiency and productivity [8]; and speed up the process and reduce costs [9]. So that VR/AR technology has great potential to strengthen and expand learning and work in the era of education and industry 4.0.

 

Point 4: A Section that describes the state-of-the-art or related work concerning these issues must be presented, and a final comparison regarding the proposed approach with the literature review must be provided.

 

Response 4: Thank you for the suggestion, we have added it to paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Introduction.

The most popular method today to protect the construction from earthquakes is to use seismic dampers [11][12]. This system includes elastic materials such as gas or active damper piles attached to the building to absorb earthquake energy. However, building the structure is costly and not suitable for developing countries. Another popular method is structural engineering techniques, such as the base isolation method [13]. In this method, the building is separated from the foundation by using elastic materials such as foam or cushions to reduce the impact of earthquakes on the building. This structure is low-cost [14], which is more affordable for developing countries.

Even though the development cost is low, it can be expensive for the students. The students have to spend more money, even for only a prototype. Therefore, VR-based learning media is needed to overcome this problem. The essential of virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) technology in education and industry 4.0 includes immersive learning experiences [15]; increased skills [16], motivation, and interest [17]; increased efficiency and productivity [18]; and speed up the process and reduce costs [19]. So that VR/AR technology has great potential to strengthen and expand learning and work in the era of education and industry 4.0.

 

Point 5: It is indispensable to present a complete statistical analysis, describing the results of the 15 participants and correlating some variables to infer and discover developments concerning the effectiveness of virtual reality technology in civil engineering learning.

 

Response 5: In the manuscript it is explained that there are 15 civil engineering students in each class, in this study 2 classes were used, namely first and second class. So, the total participant is 30 civil engineering students. The demographics of civil engineering students can be seen in Table 1. Table 1 shows the demographics of civil engineering students in the two classes. In the first class, there are nine male and six fe-male students. For the second lass, there are ten male and five female students.

 

Table 1. Demographics of Civil Engineering Student

Class	Male	Female
First	9	6
Second	10	5

 

 

 

Point 6: It is necessary to present a more complete statistical analysis, presenting at least results of 15 participants and corelating some variables to infer some results.

 

Response 6: Thank you for the advice given. Next, we present a more statistical analysis in Table 4 of a total of 30 participants. From Table 4, in order to make the display more pleasant to look at, we present the revised manuscript by displaying the statistical results of the values in Figure 4.

One of the evaluation methods for the product or service is "easy to use". "Easy to use" is a subjective evaluation of a product or service's usability and user experience. It refers to how intuitive and straightforward a product or service is to use and how well it meets the needs and expectations of the user. A 5-point score system that is used in this research is: (1) Minimal to use, difficult or impossible to use for many users; (2) Limited to use, some users may have difficulty using the product/service; (3) Some useful features are provided, but improvements are needed for some users; (4) Good-to-use features are provided, but some improvements are possible; (5) Excellent-to-use features are provided, accessible to all users.

 

Table 4. Students’ Perceived Ease of Use on VR-based application.

No	VR Component	Students’ Perceived Ease of Use (%)
1	The VR-based application can convey material in the field of building construction	91.67%
2	The contents of VR can explain the learning content correctly	90.63%
3	Proper animation in VR	86.46%
4	Proper text in VR	89.58%
5	The design of VR can make it easier for students to learn	87.50%
6	The visual design of VR can make it easier for students to study	87.50%
7	Audio appeal designed to facilitate teaching understanding	84.38%
8	Text design and text in teaching materials make it easier for students	86.46%
9	Design combination, arrangement, and color selection in VR are convenient	85.42%
Average		87.62%

A product or service can be rated on each criterion using this 5-point score system. An overall "easy to use" score can be calculated by averaging the scores across all criteria. Details of the 5-point score system from 30 participants to the nine assessed VR components can be seen in Figure 4. Figure 4 shows the different results obtained from the assessments given by each participant. It can be seen that most participants gave 5 points for each VR component tested. This means that the VR system built for earthquake-resistant construction learning media has outstanding features to be used, provided, and accessible to all existing civil engineering students.

Figure 4. The detailed of Statistical Data of Students’ Perceived Ease of Use on VR-based application.

 

Point 7: Many references need to be updated. Please, update references with literature closer to the theme of this issue.

 

Response 7: Thanks for the correction. We have updated the references that we use with literature closer to the theme of this issue.

 

Point 8: The manuscript must provide a general framework regarding the methodology, tasks, processes, and algorithms implemented to describe the analysis of the virtual reality component. What algorithm was designed to implement the VR? Do you use a standard library such as Vuforia? Do you have a public repository to replicate your implementation?

 

Response 8: Thanks for the comments. Information about the general process of the virtual reality framework for this research can be seen in Figure 2. For now, we don't have a public repository to replicate our project.

The framework setup of the VR environment and the Context-Aware architecture is depicted in the Figure 2. Figure 2 shows information about the equipment of the VR environment utilizing the unity 3D engine and the oculus system. The cycle is building data by making an earthquake-resistant design using unity. The kind of google for VR was used google cardboard. The type of oculus used is Oculus Rift S. This application is built for learning media and not for commercial purposes.

Figure 2. The framework setup of the VR environment and the Context-Aware.

 

Point 9: A figure to describe the procedure description is welcome….

 

Response 9: Yes, it is provided in Figure 2.

 

Point 10: Section 3 must present the results with tables and more graphics; it isn't easy to understand and follow the statistical analysis of the results. It needs to be improved.

 

Response 10: Thank you for the advice that has been given. In accordance with the response we gave at point 6, the response at this point is also the same, that is, we have created a graphical visualization which can be seen in Figure 4.

 

Point 11: The contributions need to be clarified. It is necessary to highlight them and justify what the most critical issue for the state-of-the-art is. Improve the conclusions and future works.

 

Response 11: We have made a improvement revision of the conclusion. The new conclusion is here.

Creating earthquake-resistant construction is complex and expensive, which not all students afford it. Using a VR environment can answer the problem. Students feel the virtual environment is the real world. They can make the virtual building anytime without worrying about spending too much money. The use of VR as learning media shows that the proposed approach's performance is excellent. However, the proposed approach style is far from perfect. In the future, the result must be focused on constructing more complect buildings such as capital, skyscraper, factory, and hospital. The results can also be applied to the method of building earthquake-resistant using seismic dampers for future research.

 

Point 12: A comparison of the research study with others needs to be included in the contribution. Is there any methodology to compare VR use with other works from the state-of-the-art to assert that VR supports and assists civil engineering learning? Otherwise, it is necessary to justify the reason widely.

 

Response 12: Thank you for the review. We have added a comparison research study with others.

While another study focuses on using VR for general construction, this study focuses on the VR model for earthquake-resistant construction [42].

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The topic of the manuscript entitled: “VR-Based Learning Media of Earthquake-Resistant Construction for Civil Engineering Students” is partly in line with the topics presented in the Sustainability journal. The considered topic is up-to-date and interesting. However, the article is quite overall and it not analysed enough carefully and in-depth the presented research. I believe that it can be corrected by the authors. The manuscript requires the following supplementations:

·        Abstract: Research methods should be clarify.

·        Abstract: Try not to repeat (line 11).

·        Introduction (line 32): Could you mention the consequences of this earthquakes?

·        Introduction (lines 45-52): What kind of methods are the most popular today to protect the construction against earthquakes?  

·        Method: This chapter should be reorganised; there is a lack of described methodology and detailed question / criteria of assessment of the student (the questionnaire may be enclosed as an appendix to the article).

·        Method: Lack of information about programs / equipment, for example, what kind of google for VR was used. Is this application available for commercial purposes?

·        Results and Discussion (lines 148-157): please try to be more detailed, this consideration are too overall.

·        Table 1: Explain why for VR time is unlimited?

·        Results and Discussion (Part 3.3.): The description of the result is very generic. There is lack of information what was really investigated (research question? Aim? etc.). Two groups are mentioned: ‘control and experimental class”, but there is a lack of comparative analysis obtained in this two groups.  Table 2 presents only very generic data without proper explanation given the numbers. What it means in practice?

·        Table 3. Please explain who participates in this research? Only one of the mentioned groups What was the purpose of this research? What about the assessment criteria? What exactly is ‘easy to use” given in %?

·        Author contributions and other part should be filled in.

·        All article: I recommend also supplementing this article at 1-2 figures – photos or print screens from the test or investigated application.

 

Author Response

Response to Reviewer 2 Comments

 

Point 1: Abstract: Research methods should be clarify.

 

Response 1: All done, we have made a massive revision of the abstract. The research methods is here.

There are three stages in generating the model: pre-development, development, and post-development. These stages include need assessment, planning, initial development, validation, analysis and evaluation, and field testing. In the post-development stage, the model is used by Civil Engineering students.

 

Point 2: Abstract: Try not to repeat (line 11).

 

Response 2: Thanks for the correction, the repetition is deleted.

 

Point 3: Introduction (line 32): Could you mention the consequences of this earthquakes?

 

Response 3: The consequences have been written in the manuscript.

These impacts have led to post-traumatic stress disorder [5], the death of many individuals [6], and property destruction [7].

 

Point 4: Introduction (lines 45-52): What kind of methods are the most popular today to protect the construction against earthquakes?

 

Response 4: We have added this revision to Paragraph 3 in the Introduction.

The most popular method today to protect the construction from earthquakes is to use seismic dampers [11][12]. This system includes elastic materials such as gas or active damper piles attached to the building structure to absorb earthquake energy. However, building the structure is costly and not suitable for developing countries. Another popular method is structural engineering techniques, such as the base isolation method [13]. In this method, the building is separated from the foundation by using elastic materials such as foam or cushions to reduce the impact of earthquakes on the building. This structure is low-cost [14], which is more affordable for developing countries.

 

Point 5: Method: This chapter should be reorganised; there is a lack of described methodology and detailed question / criteria of assessment of the student (the questionnaire may be enclosed as an appendix to the article).

 

Response 5: Thank you for the review comments. We have described the part of the methodology in more detail.

In the first stage, a needs assessment is conducted to gain the required information for the development. Needs assessment is an essential component of every project's pre-development phase since it ensures that the eventual product or service satisfies the needs and requirements of its intended consumers. Here are many fundamental reasons why need assessment is crucial: understanding user needs, providing clear guidance, avoiding expensive errors, and enhancing user pleasure. In conclusion, need assessment is a crucial aspect of the pre-development phase since it ensures that the eventual product or service fits the needs and requirements of its intended consumers. By doing user research and analysis, the project team may thoroughly understand the users' needs and preferences, guiding the design and development process, reducing the likelihood of costly errors, and enhancing user satisfaction. This preliminary stage conducts a literature study to discover the material that will be developed into media through a review. The materials are adjusted to the civil engineering syllabus to ensure that the VR is suitable for learning. Further, the needs assessment is also used to determine technical needs such as software, hardware, content, etc.

 

The planning was arranged for the development stage based on the needs assessment. The planning stage is essential for the success of the project. By defining the project's scope and objectives, generating a thorough plan, identifying risks and limits, establishing roles and duties, and defining success criteria, the project team may set the project up for success and reduce the probability of costly delays, errors, or failures. The following process is initial development. The initial development stage, also known as the design phase, is the second phase of the development process in the development procedures. During this stage, the project team takes the requirements and specifications from the previous stage and begins designing the system or software. The primary goal of the initial development stage is to create a design that meets the project's requirements, is efficient, and is easy to maintain. At the initial development stage, the VR is built to produce the initial version of the media. Next, the initial VR version will be validated both from the media and material aspects. The validation phase, often known as the testing phase, is the third step in the development methods. During this phase, the project team evaluates the system built in earlier phases to ensure that it satisfies all project criteria and is error-free. Before deploying the system to students, the primary objective of the validation phase is to discover and resolve any bugs.

 

In the last, there are post-development procedures. Based on the previous validation, the developed VR will be analyzed and evaluated at the final stage. The analysis and evaluation stage is a step of the post-development phases of the development process. During this phase, the project team conducts a comprehensive study and evaluation of the system deployed in earlier phases to evaluate whether it has accomplished the project's objectives and to identify areas requiring improvement. This stage's primary objective is to collect input from users, stakeholders, and other relevant parties to enhance the system and inform future development efforts. Then, the field testing stage is the final phase in the post-development stages of development procedures. It will be tested on the civil engineering student in the learning process. The primary objective of this phase is to verify that the system performs as intended in a real-world setting and to identify any flaws or enhancement opportunities that were not discovered during previous testing phases.

 

Point 6: Method: Lack of information about programs / equipment, for example, what kind of google for VR was used. Is this application available for commercial purposes?

 

Response 6: Thanks for the comments. Information about the system of the virtual reality framework for this research can be seen in Figure 2.

The framework setup of the VR environment and the Context-Aware architecture is depicted in the Figure 2. Figure 2 shows information about the equipment of the VR environment utilizing the unity 3D engine and the oculus system. The cycle is building data by making an earthquake-resistant design using unity. The kind of google for VR was used google cardboard. The type of oculus used is Oculus Rift S. This application is built for learning media and not for commercial purposes.

Figure 2. The framework setup of the VR environment and the Context-Aware.

Point 7: Results and Discussion (lines 148-157): please try to be more detailed, this consideration are too overall.

 

Response 7: Thank you for the review, we have added detailed information regarding the minimum specifications of the Oculus Rift S that we use as shown in Table 2.

The following specification is the minimum requirement of Oculus Rift S (Table 2).

 

Table 2. Specification of Oculus Rift S

Component	Minimum Spesification
Operating System	Windows 10
Processor	Intel i3-6100 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200, FX4350
Graphics Card	NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 470
Memory	8GB+ RAM
USB Ports	1x USB 3.0 port
Video Output	Compatible mini-DisplayPort video output

 

Point 8: Table 1: Explain why for VR time is unlimited?

 

Response 8: Thanks for the correction, we replace it with “Anytime and Anywhere”.

In VR, time and space are not limited by the physical constraints of the real world, which means that users can experience a sense of presence in any place or time, regardless of their actual physical location. In this sense, VR allows users to transcend the boundaries of time and space and create experiences that are not possible in the physical world, making it a technology that can be used anytime and anywhere.

 

Point 9: Results and Discussion (Part 3.3.): The description of the result is very generic. There is lack of information what was really investigated (research question? Aim? etc.). Two groups are mentioned: ‘control and experimental class”, but there is a lack of comparative analysis obtained in this two groups.  Table 2 presents only very generic data without proper explanation given the numbers. What it means in practice?

 

Response 9: Thank you for your thoroughness in the review provided. Providing support for Table 2 is ineffective, and it’s not directly correlated to the research aim because the data consist of accumulation and comparison between all respondent, which will be detailed explanations in future research. That’s why we deleted Table 2 and also its explanation. 

 

Point 10: Table 3. Please explain who participates in this research? Only one of the mentioned groups What was the purpose of this research? What about the assessment criteria? What exactly is ‘easy to use” given in %?

 

Response 10:  Table 3 changes the order to Table 4.

Table 4 shows the students' perceived ease of use of VR-based applications from 30 civil engineering students. The purpose is to create a learning aid, a VR-based development tool primarily for civil engineering education students. It consists of essential information related to the VR application in civil engineering education. In order to create a good user experience, it is essential to consider the usability aspects of the system. The higher the proportion representing ease of use (%), the easier the system is designed to be used by the user and the higher the level of user satisfaction with the final result. Based on the result, it can be concluded that most students give a positive impression of the VR application related to the content, animation, utilization, and so on because the value is above 80%.

 

Point 11: Author contributions and other part should be filled in.

 

Response 11: Thanks for your reminder. Author contributions and other part have we filled.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization, Tri Kuncoro.; methodology, Tri Kuncoro.; software, Muhammad Ichwanto.; validation, Tri Kuncoro.; formal analysis, Muhammad Ichwanto.; writ-ing—original draft preparation, Tri Kuncoro.; writing—review and editing, Muhammad Ichwanto and Dzul Muhammad.; visualization, Dzul Muhammad.; supervision, Tri Kuncoro. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding: This research received no external funding.

Institutional Review Board Statement: Not applicable.

Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable.

Data Availability Statement: The data belongs to Universitas Negeri Malang

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

 

Point 12: All article: I recommend also supplementing this article at 1-2 figures – photos or print screens from the test or investigated application.

 

Response 12: Thanks for your suggestion. Including the photo, in our opinion, has not necessary since we are already added the minimum required specification system (Table 2), and more detailed results (Table 4 and Figure 4).

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

The changes are performed in this version.

However, it is necessary to improve the quality of images according to the guidelines of the Journal.

Please, review the format of Table 4, because it is inconsistent with the rest tables.

 

Author Response

Response to Reviewer 1 Comments

 

Point 1: However, it is necessary to improve the quality of images according to the guidelines of the Journal.

 

Response 1: Thanks for your suggestion. We already change and improve the quality of Figure.

Figure 2. The framework setup of the VR environment and the Context-Aware.

 

Point 2: Please, review the format of Table 4, because it is inconsistent with the rest tables.

 

Response 2: Thanks for the correction, we already update the Table 4 in accordance with the format.

Table 4. Students' Perceived Ease of Use on VR-based application.

No	VR Component	Students' Perceived Ease of Use (%)
1	The VR-based application can convey material in the field of building construction	91.67%
2	The contents of VR can explain the learning content correctly	90.63%
3	Proper animation in VR	86.46%
4	Proper text in VR	89.58%
5	The design of VR can make it easier for students to learn	87.50%
6	The visual design of VR can make it easier for students to study	87.50%
7	Audio appeal designed to facilitate teaching understanding	84.38%
8	Text design and text in teaching materials make it easier for students	86.46%
9	Design combination, arrangement, and color selection in VR are convenient	85.42%
Average		87.62%

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The article entitled: “VR-Based Learning Media of Earthquake-Resistant Construction for Civil Engineering Students” was significantly improved. It requires only slight changes, as follows:

·        Introduction (line 32): Could you mention the consequences of this earthquakes (in Japan)? The given text is connected too generic and too overall. 

·        Method: Please give also some details about methodology of the research on the student grup (questionnary?)

·        Table 4: Please correct subtitle.

Author Response

Response to Reviewer 2 Comments

 

Point 1: Introduction (line 32): Could you mention the consequences of this earthquakes (in Japan)? The given text is connected too generic and too overall.

 

Response 1: Thanks for your review. We already add the consequences of this earthquakes from our literature in the Introduction.

The Japan earthquake caused 15,000 deaths, soil liquefaction, landslides, ecosystem destruction, relocation of nearly 300,000 people, infrastructure damage, supply chain disruption, and productivity loss.

 

Point 2: Method: Please give also some details about methodology of the research on the student grup (questionnary?)

 

Response 2: Thanks for your suggestion. We already add some details about the used methodology of the research on the student grup.

The data was obtained from a student’s assessment of questionnaire score. Survey research uses several survey questions (Table 4) to acquire quantitative data from a pool of respondents. This study recruits, collects, and analyzes data to reveal new features or trends of using VR among civil engineering students.

 

Point 3: Table 4: Please correct subtitle.

 

Response 3: Thanks for the correction, we already update the Table 4 in accordance with the format.

Table 4. Students' Perceived Ease of Use on VR-based application.

No	VR Component	Students' Perceived Ease of Use (%)
1	The VR-based application can convey material in the field of building construction	91.67%
2	The contents of VR can explain the learning content correctly	90.63%
3	Proper animation in VR	86.46%
4	Proper text in VR	89.58%
5	The design of VR can make it easier for students to learn	87.50%
6	The visual design of VR can make it easier for students to study	87.50%
7	Audio appeal designed to facilitate teaching understanding	84.38%
8	Text design and text in teaching materials make it easier for students	86.46%
9	Design combination, arrangement, and color selection in VR are convenient	85.42%
Average		87.62%

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf