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Features
2006 Campus Technology Innovators: 3D
7/22/2006
OSTRANDER (LEFT) AND HIS TEAM:
Finding ways to think outside of the box
while using off-the-shelf technology.
Challenge Met
Administrators at Darton College (GA), a two-year institution in the University System of Georgia, wanted to take study materials in their Cardiovascular Technology and Anatomy & Physiology programs out of the lab environment— and bring them to life for students. They found their inspiration in 3D stereoscopy (which creates the illusion of depth by presenting a slightly different image to each eye, viewed through polarized glasses).
“I’m always seeking ways of improving teaching and learning with technology,” says Darryn Ostrander, director of instructional technology and distance learning at the school. “No one else was really using 3D technology in the classroom, so we decided to be the first. It seemed natural to apply 3D to the study of anatomy and physiology.”
By integrating modern 3D rendering programs with stereoscopic techniques, the Darton 3D Project portrays virtual objects in three-dimensional space; some models are still images, others incorporate full-motion animation and integrated multimedia. Ostrander notes that the school can make as many copies of the digital models as necessary, which means that students are no longer limited to one set of traditional anatomical models in a study lab. “The models are easier and more interesting to study,” he says, “thus improving student success.”
How They Did It
Ostrander realized that a system of 3D model development and projection could be developed using off-the-shelf technology, and aimed to build a repository of 3D learning objects using as few proprietary sources as possible. His team started exploring and developing a dual projection system using polarized lenses, and simultaneously developed stereoscopic 3D models with Autodesk’s rendering software, 3D Studio Max.
The team worked with faculty to select a heart model for development as their first 3D learning object. Starting with a CAD drawing of the heart purchased from Zygote Media Group, the school’s technicians created an animated 3D stereoscopic image that literally projects from the video screen. They added audio of actual heart valve sounds, carefully synchronized with the opening and closing of the valves in the animation. Faculty and students in preliminary focus groups were amazed, says Ostrander.
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