A serious game with virtual reality for travel training with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

I would like to thank my advisers, Marco Simões and Professor Fernando Barros, for all the assistance provided during this project. Their guidance and knowledge were crucial to the success of this study. I would also like to express my gratitude to Professor Miguel Castelo-Branco, for welcoming me in IBILI, for all the support offered, and for making sure that all my needs were met. Also essential to this project, was the support of APPDA-Viseu and APPDA-Coimbra, more specifically of Prazeres Domingues and Tânia Morais, who established the connection between me and all the participants that were a part of this study. To these participants, thank you for your time and dedication. Susana Mouga was my connection to Autism Spectrum Disorder, without whom I would not have been able to properly understand this disorder. Hélio Gonçalves was the 3D modeller from the development team, who was always there for me whenever I needed a new, optimized model to replace the heavy ones, downloaded from the internet. To all my friends in IBILI, for all the unforgettable moments, and for making sure that my stay in IBILI is a memory to be fond of. To my family, for always being there for me, everyday, making sure I would come home to a warm and welcoming environment.

Locomotion in virtual reality for room scale tracked areas

“…[7]. Among these training areas, using virtual reality for training individuals with autism has been getting attention recently [8][9][10][11].…”

“…In their study, Bernardes et al examined whether virtual reality could be used as an assistive tool to improve the capabilities of individuals with autism [10]. The tasks were centered on travelling.…”

Virtual Reality Experiential Training for Individuals with Autism: The Airport Scenario

“…Similarly, providing several selected scenarios in VR helps autistic children adapt to new environments and contain anxiety [13]. Some works exploit Virtual Reality for training specific skills needed to travel on buses using serious games paradigms in VR [1,15]. Regarding flights, Miller suggests the efficacy of a training in VR to teach basic air travel skills to young children diagnosed with autism [8].…”

“…In general, it is uncommon for airports to offer pre-planned visits of the structure, even if several airports offer specific info material for ASD travelers. Among others,the airport of Dublin visually describes the different parts of the building and provides tips on how to face all the different situations, together with some general rules to follow during a trip 1 . Also in Italy, Caselle Airport, in Torino 2 as well as Milan Malpensa and Linate Airports 3 offer a similar support, offering a textual and visual description of all the steps to follow in order to take a plane.…”

Transition to College for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Needs and Facilitation Strategies. Is Virtual Reality a Useful Tool in the Transition Process?

“…For instance, it allows individuals to navigate throughout a university campus [56][57][58]. Also can be useful for the use of transportation [59][60][61][62][63], social sites, viewing cafeterias and students clubs [50,64,65], as well as to offer training to help adapt to the environment and dynamics in the classrooms [66].…”