A HoloLens 2 smartglasses app supports learning and accelerates induction for new employees

Together, Softability and Savonia UAS implemented holographic work instructions for HoloLens 2 smartglasses using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Guides (D365 Guides) to support students’ transition to internships in working life and to speed up the induction of new employees, regardless of time or place. The project was carried out as part of the Future Technologies in Education (FutureEdu) project funded by the ESF and coordinated by Savonia UAS. The project involves the development of working life-based virtual learning environments that can be used by health care industry students and employees for learning and induction, and to manage research and work processes.

 

Holographic work instructions and smartglasses enable hands-free work

Providing induction for clinical laboratory employees takes up organisations’ time and resources. Due to the job rotation, a single person has to manage many tasks and follow work instructions precisely. The aim of the work instructions that run on the HoloLens 2 smartglasses is to accelerate induction for new employees and to make it easier for scientists, who rarely work at set workstations, to manage their tasks. The smartglasses also enable hands-free working when carrying out tasks with multiple phases.

One of the project’s use cases was carrying out morning maintenance on the Cobas U601 urine test strip analyser at the Lappeenranta Unit of the HUS Diagnostic Center. Carrying out morning maintenance on the Cobas U601 automatic urine test strip analyser and analysing control samples are tasks that are carried out every morning by a clinical laboratory scientist working at a clinical chemistry laboratory workstation. The morning maintenance of the device involves multiple steps which are difficult to remember off by heart. Reading paper instructions takes time, and the scientist is unable to work while reading. The aim of the smartglasses was to improve this task and make work more efficient.

HoloLens smartglasses utilise mixed reality (MR), and it is possible to place holographic work instructions in the real environment and directly in the scientist’s field of view. The technology enables hands-free working and scientists are able to concentrate on carrying out their work while following the work instructions. The smartglasses app also reduces the time and resources required for induction, as the employees undergoing induction can independently follow the work instructions, teaching videos, and guides using the smartglasses. Studies have shown that experiential learning is an effective learning method, where learning takes place faster and with a more consolidated memory trace.

“Inclusion of the smartglasses in the learning process has been enthusiastically received by the students. Students who have grown up in a digital world are able to use the smartglasses when learning practical skills both before and during an internship in working life. These same technologies benefit both students and employees,” explains Project Manager Anssi Mähönen.

 

Digital practice prepares the user for real-life work situations

Another of the project’s use cases was practicing the preparation of an anaesthesia workstation using virtual instructions before the patient arrives in the operating theatre. One challenge in training nurses is to provide induction into the role of an anaesthetic nurse in the operating theatre before the students actually intern in an operating theatre.

Holographic instructions and the smartglasses offer a solution to this challenge. These help the students to become more familiar with an anaesthetic nurse’s job description and to learn more about an anaesthesia workstation before and during an internship. Digital practice is a safe and effective way to support students’ transition to working life, as situations can be repeated over and over again. This accelerates and facilitates learning of activities, promotes patient safety, and reduces errors in real-life patient situations.

In addition to students, anaesthetic nurses working in surgery departments can also use holographic instructions and smartglasses to provide induction for new employees, and they can also be used to carry out routine daily tasks by acting as a holographic checklist, for example.

“Holographic instructions and smartglasses will completely overhaul how things are done in working life. The smartglasses can be used to forward all the necessary information and instructions concerning the different steps of a surgical procedure and use of equipment, for example, to a specialist. They also allow for a real-time view of the procedure, plus flexible and real-time interaction with the remote specialists,” says Kimmo Pakarinen, RDI Specialist.

 

“The cooperation between Softability and the Savonia Future-Edu project has been very efficient and smooth. They have good expertise and knowledge in the subject area.”

Anssi Mähönen, Project Manager, Savonia UAS

 

More information:

Mikko Luukkonen, Solution Sales, mikko.luukkonen@softability.fi, +358 50 554 3652

Anssi Mähönen, Savonia UAS, anssi.mahonen(at)savonia.fi

Kimmo Pakarinen, Savonia UAS, kimmo.pakarinen(at)savonia.fi

 

More information about the “Future Technologies in Education” project (in Finnish):

https://www.savonia.fi/yrityksille/tutkimus-ja-kehittaminen/projektit-ja-hankkeet/hankelistaus/?id=1186

Keywords:

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Guides Microsoft HoloLens 2 mixed reality reference Savonia UAS