HOUSTON – In a few months, a group will gather in Houston to test-drive some cutting-edge technology. It’s a fully immersive virtual reality experience designed to give law enforcement the best chance to save lives in an active shooter emergency.
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The first public demonstration was held at The Ion in Midtown, presented by Imeropex, a start-up company created by Jim Dear, a retired military and former defense contractor.
Two Humble I.S.D. Police officers volunteered for the assignment to engage with an active shooter in a virtual school. They dressed up in what’s known as Full Dive Virtual Reality which goes beyond what most people think of VR.
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In addition to the VR goggles or headset, these officers wore full-body haptic suits, and gloves, and were secured to a 360-degree treadmill to make the experience as life-like as possible.
“In the demo, the shooter is an A.I.-enabled, non-player character with four randomized states: aggressive (actively shooting at anyone), searching (walking between rooms and doors), fleeing (running away from the police officer), and surrender (arms up),” said Dear.
While the officers responded to the various scenarios, an audience watched on a video dome in the next room, able to see what the officers see and hear, what they saw and heard.
Dear said, “Observers get the experience that the operators are getting without wearing the equipment.”
It’s almost like being in the VR world with them.
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Dear believes this immersive experience will help law enforcement and others gather important data to better respond to emergencies.
The goal is to “find out what works and train against that,” said Dear.
His background in the military and decades of work leading simulation experiments led him to the idea of creating a virtual world where you can test out any number of variables. From response tactics to safety equipment to the weapons involved, it’s all customizable. Try it. See what works. Then train on that.
“We’re focusing primarily looking at experimental factors,” said Dear. “What factors make a difference?… I want to emphasize that we’re experimenting.”
It’s about gathering data they can take from the virtual world into the real world, and put that knowledge to use in training, knowing what has the best chance of success.
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The first public demonstration was a modest one. Just the two officers who only had a day to practice on the machines and get used to wearing all that technology.
Corporal Joe Gonzales of Humble ISD Police said it took some adjusting to get used to moving around on the treadmill. And he definitely broke a sweat in that haptic bodysuit, designed for the user to physically feel the virtual environment.
Corporal Gonzales said, “[the suit] is pretty tight, but it has to be tight so you can feel the sensors… whenever we get shot from the scenarios, we get the sense of shock to whatever area that we get shot at.”
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It’s important to the data gathering that the whole virtual simulation is as real as possible.
“We want them to have the feeling, a touch with gloves, a body suit. They have a full body experience in travel, so they move around,” said Dear.
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Imeropex is launching a pilot program this spring with Houston Community College, back at The Ion. It will feature more than 30 VR users including law enforcement again.
“The behavior of the shooter and police will be more complex and sophisticated and will be fully interactive,” said Dear, “including dynamic physical behavior and verbal communication. In addition, the shooter avatar will be operated by either a real human being or an advanced A.I. application.”
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Dear hopes the pilot program produces some usable, actionable data for future training and important feedback for him to refine the simulations to make them as effective as possible.
