Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) for Education and Training in the AEC Industry: A Systematic Review of Research and Applications

Abstract

With updated equipment and maturing technology, the applications of augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) technologies in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry are receiving increasing attention rapidly. Especially in education and training, an increasing number of researchers have started to implement AR/VR technologies to provide students or trainees with a visual, immersive, and interactive environment. In this article, a systematic review of AR/VR technologies for education and training in the AEC industry is conducted. First of all, through comprehensive analysis, 82 related studies are identified from two databases, namely Scopus and Web of Science. Secondly, the VOSviewer is used to analyze the current status of AR/VR for education and training in the AEC industry. Thirdly, the identified studies are classified into different categories according to their application domains by qualitative analysis. Fourthly, after a further filtering, 17 out of the 82 studies are included in the meta-analysis to quantify the actual impact of AR/VR. The results indicate that there are some limitations in the applications of AR/VR for education and training in the AEC industry. Finally, to further explore the reasons for the existence of limitations, the 82 studies are summarized to analyze the current challenges of AR/VR for education and training in the AEC industry. This study also provides insights into future trends in AR/VR for education and training in the AEC industry.

Keywords

• augmented reality (AR)
• architecture, engineering, construction (AEC)
• education
• training
• virtual reality (VR)