Abstract:

The 3D Laboratory Service of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid was created in 2012, it is a platform that allows students to perform their laboratory practices virtually, that is, from anywhere with internet connection and at any time of the day. Virtual laboratories emulate face-to-face or real practices with several purposes: to facilitate their realization through the Internet, to virtually accelerate processes that in real life require long deadlines and to improve the use of facilities, classrooms and physical resources available.

This type of virtual practices can be categorized as serious games, a type of video games that not only seek entertainment but also the acquisition of skills and knowledge. In addition, their format and interactive design encourage student motivation and allow them to put their knowledge into practice, thus fixing and retaining the skills acquired after their use. On the one hand, this occurs in a safe environment, since neither the users nor the materials are exposed to the possible risks involved in the practice, and on the other hand, it is efficient, due to the better organization of resources and economic and time savings. It is also worth mentioning its convenience in situations such as Covid-19, where presence has been restricted, these laboratories would still allow training related to practices.

Virtual mineral recognition laboratory has the objective that the student acquires fundamental knowledge for the recognition of minerals and rocks. Mineral identification is a core competency in geological studies and is useful for characterizing rocks.

The aim is to contribute to improve the learning process of geology through motivation, personalization and active participation of the students, as well as to carry out a methodological renovation of the teaching of Geology with new processes and technologies and making use of the existing ones.

For this purpose, 3D models of different minerals and rocks (more than 50 samples) have been included, as well as the tools used in their identification process, offering a simulation very close to reality. The tests that have been developed are: Magnetism testing, Hardness testing, Color testing, Breakage testing, Density testing and Effervescence testing. The video game engine Unity has been used for its development.

Keywords:

Education, serious game, virtual laboratories, mineral recognition, 3D application.