Design patterns for Immersive Tech

Immersive Training patterns

Audio feedback

Description

Audio can be used in many useful ways to enhance immersive training:

  • Audio feedback during interactions to confirm an action
  • Audio to draw the user’s attention to something
  • Audio to increase the realistic simulation of a task (ambient sounds)
  • Audio to increase the realistic simulation of a task (interactive)

Let’s expand on the last point on the list. In real life the audio channel may be critical to simulating how a task is actually done in reality. The audio event is triggered by some user interaction or reaching a certain point in the task.

Examples

Fire alarm sound when the fire alarm is triggered. This can be a stress inducing sound and the user must be able to complete the rest of the training under the condition of a loud alarm ringing in their ear.

 

Audio communication over a radio or telephone. In real life the user will need to hear and interpret instructions sent as an audio telecommunication, so it’s important to simulate this in the task.