Inclusive Augmented and Virtual Reality Experiences

Blog Article

Student silhouetted in darkness using a virtual reality headset

Augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) hold significant potential to transform how we work, learn, and engage with others. However, there has been a lack of work exploring the challenges associated with these technologies for disabled people. In particular, it is unclear the extent to which significant future uptake of this technology across the wider population could have a negative impact and further exacerbate the digital divide. As such, there is an urgent need to understand the potential of these technologies to both support disabled people, but also to investigate the wider implications around the proliferation of AR and VR.

To address the limited work in this area, we were awarded a grant from Meta Reality Labs to investigate both the barriers that disabled people currently experience with AR and VR (across a spectrum of visual, physical, auditory, and cognitive impairments), as well as the opportunities these innovative technologies present to support wider societal inclusion. The outcomes of this work were recently published in two leading journals, capturing the access barriers disabled people experience (Inclusive AR/VR: Accessibility Barriers for Immersive Technologies) and a research agenda for the field (Inclusive Augmented and Virtual Reality: A Research Agenda). 

This work is now informing multiple ongoing research projects across the Human Computer Interaction Research Centre investigating novel technological solutions to support more inclusive immersive experiences for disabled people.

Project Impacts:

  • A comprehensive mapping of access barriers that disabled people experience (across a range of impairments) when using immersive technologies.
  • The development of a research agenda for industry, academia, and other stakeholders to accelerate activity towards producing more inclusive AR/VR experiences.
  • The development of innovative solutions to address current accessibility issues to support the design of more accessible immersive systems for disabled people.

Project Team:

Contact:

For more information on the project, contact Professor Chris Creed (chris.creed@bcu.ac.uk).

What should you do next?

Come to a Postgraduate Open Day

Come to one of our Postgraduate Open Days to meet our subject academics, find out more about your course in detail and learn more about postgraduate finance.

Book your place

Download our postgraduate guide

Our Postgraduate Guide provides details of all our postgraduate taught and research courses. It also provides information about the research environment at Birmingham City University

Download the guide

Apply for a course

So, you’re interested in applying for postgraduate study? Here’s a step-by-step guide covering all you need to know to apply. Unlike undergraduate degrees where you will apply via UCAS, you can apply straight to the University for a postgraduate degree.

Find out how to apply

Sign up to find out more

Our emails are a great way to learn more about the University and find out what it's really like to study with us.

Sign up to hear from us

Get advice on your personal statement

Not sure what's required of you in a postgraduate personal statement? Don't worry, our guide has top tips, examples from real students and all the guidance you'll need.

Download the guide