Development of Augmented Reality Mobile Application in Physics to
Study the Electric Circuit
Oleksandr V. Kanivets
1 a
, Irina M. Kanivets
1 b
, Tetyana M. Gorda
2 c
and Oleksandr Yu. Burov
3 d
1
Poltava State Agrarian Academy, 1/3 Skovorody Str., Poltava, 36003, Ukraine
2
Poltava Polytechnic College, 83a Pushkin Str., Poltava, 36000, Ukraine
3
Institute for Digitalisation of Education of the National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine, 9 M. Berlynskoho
Str., Kyiv, 04060, Ukraine
Keywords:
Electronic Model, Augmented Reality, Mobile App, Unity3D, Vuforia, Electric Circuit, Physics.
Abstract:
Using the virtual teaching aids with AR technology in different spheres of education, including physics, has
been analysed. The analogy between physical and electronic models has been drawn and the development of
mobile app to study simple electric circuit has been substantiated. The reasonability of creating the technique
of the augmented reality mobile apps has been given. The milestones in the development of the augmented
reality app have been outlined: development of electronic models, installation of the game engine Unity3D,
development of all program scenes, operation testing and demonstration. Using the scenarios for electronic
models rotation and movement has been particularly focused on. Own developed augmented reality mobile
app for mobile devices “Augmented reality program to study the simplest electric circuit” has been presented.
The created mobile app reads, recognizes the designer marker and displays the product electronic model on
the screen. It is established that the augmented reality program developed by the team of authors as the mobile
teaching software can be used to do the tasks for the students’ individual work, as well as for the classroom
studies at the universities.
1 INTRODUCTION
Rapid development of information computer tech-
nologies and their mass use in all spheres of everyday
life and professional activity mainstream the need in
their use in the educational process. Recently, the dig-
ital technology has made a great leap in development
and expansion of the spheres of use. One of the teach-
ing aid to help students in learning physics is the aug-
mented reality (AR). AR is an attempt to combine the
real and virtual world created with the help of com-
puters so that the line between them becomes too fine
(Chena et al., 2015; Nechypurenko et al., 2018). Sim-
ply to interpret, the AR can be defined as a real en-
vironment added to the virtual objects (Ismail et al.,
2019).
At the outset of creation of the augmented real-
ity, it was mainly used in the military and computer
a
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4364-8424
b
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1670-5553
c
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6924-0219
d
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0733-1120
fields. Today this technology has entered virtually
all spheres of social activity of a man: economics,
medicine, education, architecture, advertising, etc.
(Andrea et al., 2019). The tourist mobile apps (mo-
bile tour guides) where the tips and interesting facts
from the modern life and the past are displayed on
gadgets by GEO tags and GPS have become common
(Lu and Liu, 2015).
In its turn, each augmented reality mobile app uses
virtual electronic models. A number of researches
(Alvarez, 2011; Mon and Cervera, 2013; la Torre Can-
tero et al., 2013; Saor
´
ın et al., 2017) show the compar-
ative data of the used physical and electronic models.
3D physical models (figure 1) are used in the
learning of physics to study the electric circuit et al.
The use of physical models also has several dis-
advantages, such as: high cost, which leads to the
purchase of models only from the basic topics of
the discipline. In the process, models wear out and
break their parts, and sometimes, due to inadvertence
and difficulty in moving, entire models are destroyed.
Usually, physical models belong to educational in-
stitutions and require special storage, which in turn
Kanivets, O., Kanivets, I., Gorda, T. and Burov, O.
Development of Augmented Reality Mobile Application in Physics to Study the Electric Circuit.
DOI: 10.5220/0010927000003364
In Proceedings of the 1st Symposium on Advances in Educational Technology (AET 2020) - Volume 1, pages 653-664
ISBN: 978-989-758-558-6
Copyright
c
2022 by SCITEPRESS Science and Technology Publications, Lda. All rights reserved
653
Figure 1: 3D physical models in teaching physics to study the electric circuit.
makes it impossible for a student to constantly have
free access to objects. These and other factors limit
the possibility of the full use of models in the educa-
tional process. To solve these problems, it is advisable
to use virtual models of products. They are easily us-
ing on mobile Internet devices with AR.
Having analysed the opportunity to replace the
physical (material) model with the 3D electronic
model in the course of learning, the researchers noted
that the students felt comfortable with the electronic
models.
Representation of digital models on tablets and
smartphones is usually built upon the options of the
augmented reality that is attracting the educational
community more and more because it not only in-
cludes the most advanced technology but also helps
the user protect against information overload. In con-
trast to multimedia and virtual reality, the AR rep-
resents the electronic objects as holograms superim-
posed on the real world (Mona and Muninder, 2013).
The augmented reality partially supersedes the physi-
cal world that includes the additional digital informa-
tion (for example, virtual flat and three-dimensional
objects) to expand and simplify the perception of real
models (Hung et al., 2016).
Even today the computer software and virtual lab-
oratories give new opportunities for teachers and stu-
dents in presenting the learning material and organis-
ing the educational process. Such technologies as vir-
tual (VR) and augmented (AR) reality are leading in
this area. They not only transform the abstract learn-
ing material in the interactive knowledge but also rep-
resent the information in the form of visual, voice and
dynamic content (Cai et al., 2017; Dunleavy et al.,
2009; Radu and Schneider, 2019).
Some studies show that using the AR technology
in education can significantly increase the learning ef-
ficiency (Garz
´
on and Acevedo, 2019; Garz
´
on et al.,
2019).
As shown in (Morales et al., 2019), the augmented
reality in the higher education is used in various fields
of knowledge. In mathematics, it makes it easier to
explain abstract models, visualizes mathematical ob-
jects and simplifies understanding their place and lo-
cation in the space; in such subjects as physics, it
helps modelling virtual laboratories reproducing the
physical phenomena; and also promotes learning mo-
tivation in computer studies (Majid et al., 2015). Such
programs are used by students both in classrooms, and
outside.
The augmented and mixed realities have be-
come common in technical sciences as well. In the
(Kanivets et al., 2019), we have demonstrated own de-
velopment for teaching students of technical faculties
in the discipline “Engineering Graphics”.
Cai et al. (Cai et al., 2014) have shown the use
of the AR technology in studying chemistry for vi-
sualization of microscopic world of atoms, molecules
and crystal lattices. Lu and Liu (Lu and Liu, 2015)
describe the learning model on the basis of digital
games that includes the augmented reality technology
for primary pupils on the issues of marine ecology
and water resources. They point out more qualitative
memorizing of new information, better mastering the
AET 2020 - Symposium on Advances in Educational Technology
654
competencies and higher success level of pupils with
low academic performance.
In social sciences, the augmented reality is used
in studying history and subjects reproducing the pat-
rimony. Such technologies make it possible to get
to know about historical and cultural events of the
region, promote for better memorizing of historical
dates and events (Lim and Lim, 2020).
For the Altmeyer et al. (Altmeyer et al., 2020), the
AR seems to be especially applicable for giving infor-
mation during experiments as it can be used for inte-
grating both the physical and virtual laboratory work.
The efficient use of AR technology, including
in physics, is verified by researchers from different
countries of the world. Thus, according to the Ismail
et al. (Ismail et al., 2019), branches of physics, such
as electrics and magnetism, are explicate and the stu-
dents face difficulties in studying even the basic no-
tions, as a result, the students treat physics as difficult
and dull. The authors note that to develop basic under-
standing, it is better to use the information technology
in the form of multimedia or software that gives an
opportunity for the students to visualize the learning
material.
Ib
´
a
˜
nez et al. (Ib
´
a
˜
nez et al., 2014) show the ex-
periment with senior pupils on checking the good
influence of mastering knowledge in physics when
the AR mobile app is used. As a result, the pupils
that used the AR technology perceived the obtained
knowledge better and quicker. In their turn, Akc¸ayır
et al. (Akc¸ayır et al., 2016) studied the influence
of using the AR on practical skills of students and
proved that this technology had helped them to im-
prove their knowledge and skills after doing relevant
laboratory works. Most recently, Fidan and Tuncel
(Fidan and Tuncel, 2019) found out that the problem-
based learning integrated with the AR had improved
the success level of pupils and promoted their better
attitude to physics.
Therefore, physics as the discipline has been al-
ready focused on the augmented reality, and the re-
searchers are common in developing the literature and
AR software (Cai et al., 2021).
The literature review showed that the AR in the
learning process of different countries had become
widely used. The operation principles of mobile
apps, their influence on qualitative indicators of the
knowledge mastered by the students are described,
but the basic instructions on development of similar
programs are not given. That is why the objective of
our research is to consider the method of creation of
mobile app in physics to study simple electric circuits
with the use of the AR technology.
2 STUDY RESULTS
The AR mobile app was developed on the PC with the
following characteristics: Intel Core i5-4440, RAM
16 Gb, video card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti,
network card, external universal webcam, installed
Windows 10 (64-bit version).
The AR app is developed with the use of the AR
platform Vuforia (Vuforia, 2020). In the Target Man-
ager account, we create a new database and upload a
target image (figure 2) that is the electric circuit dia-
gram with QR code being of practical value and used
for program installation on mobile device.
The target image is processed by computer vi-
sion aids and assessed according to the rating. The
best images have 5 stars. They are quickly and qual-
itatively recognized by the application. Minimum
recommended value is 3 stars. The database is up-
loaded from target images to Unity3D (Katsko and
Moiseienko, 2018).
In these researches, we use Version 2018.4.15f1
(64-bit) Unity3D (Unity, 2020) for which installation
we made additional settings of Android SDK (devel-
oper.android.com, 2020) and JDK by Oracle (Oracle,
2020). These applications are necessary for proper
compilation of the Android mobile apps.
At the initial stage of the mobile app develop-
ment, we design the electronic models. These mod-
els are displayed on the screen of the mobile gad-
get when the program is in operation. According to
the electric circuit diagram (figure 2), the models of
rheostat, amperemeter, voltmeter, current-controlled
switch, incandescent lamp on pedestal, accumulator
and connecting wires have been produced. Each elec-
tronic model consists of several parts that will interact
when the mobile app works. For example, the rheo-
stat model (figure 3) consists of ceramic base 1 with
wire 2 wound. The base is attached to two supports 3
by bottom bar 5. Slider 4 moves along the top bar 5.
Clamps 6 with washers 7 are intended to connect the
connecting wires.
The electronic model of voltmeter (figure 4) is
built in a similar way and consists of housing 1, glass
2, grade 3, pointer 4, magnetic and electric system 5,
clamps 6, washers 7, plus 8 and minus 9 signs.
Such complicated models should have been devel-
oped in order the rheostat slider can move along the
bar and the voltmeter pointer can go at relevant angle
when the mobile app works. The glass is made trans-
parent, and when the pointer goes, the grade values
can be seen.
All electronic models for mobile app were de-
signed in Kompas-3D (Ascon, 2020) and then saved
in the OBJ format. To make the models, other CAD
Development of Augmented Reality Mobile Application in Physics to Study the Electric Circuit
655
Figure 2: Target image recognition system in Vuforia.
Figure 3: Electronic model of rheostat.
programs, such as AutoCAD, Inventor or Solidwork,
or 3D modelling programs, such as 3ds Max, Cin-
ema4d, Maya, Blender, can be used.
The mobile app development is started with the
main menu scene. In the hierarchy window, the stan-
dard cam is changed for AR, ImageTarget and com-
ponent Canvas are uploaded. At own discretion, the
following frame parameters are set: position, size,
colour and transparency. By the Button command,
we add the future menu buttons. We move, scale and
rename them as shown in figure 5.
In the program test run in Unity3D using the Play
button, we will see the same image as given in fig-
ure 5. Once the button clicked, they are animated but
no response occurs. For correct work of any objects
(buttons), it is necessary to add a new component – a
scenario to indicate which action is to be performed
Figure 4: Electronic model of voltmeter.
when activated. Switching between program scenes
is implemented by the SceneManager script:
public class LoadScene : MonoBehaviour {
public void SceneLoader(int SceneIndex){
SceneManager.LoadScene (SceneIndex);
}
}
This code has the derived public class LoadScene.
The public method Public void SceneLoader() de-
scribes the variable int SceneIndex that makes the
script universal for switching between all program
scenes by specifying the relevant scene number. Once
the Button clicked, the SceneManager command is
activated and implements switching to the specified
scene number.
This mobile app has three work areas:
1) theoretical training;
2) theory checks (tests);
3) practical training.
AET 2020 - Symposium on Advances in Educational Technology
656
Figure 5: Main Menu.
Each area is implemented in the form of individual
scene.
The development of the first scene is started by
uploading the Canvas component. The color and
transparency of the Panel tool are set. Using the
Button command, the buttons of theoretical informa-
tion about the lamp, amperemeter, voltmeter, rheostat,
current-controlled switch and accumulator are added.
We move, scale and rename them as shown in figure 6.
The theoretical information about each element
of the diagram is given in the ScrollView compo-
nents. By default, the ScrollView components are lo-
cated outside the scene and invisible for viewer. The
effect of ScrollView displaying from the top to the
mid-screen once the relevant button is clicked is im-
plemented by the Animator component. To do this,
two animations for displaying and hiding the theoret-
ical information were recorded. For each ScrollView,
the Animator component was added and the Scrol-
lViewHL animation controller responsible for anima-
tions was selected (figure 7).
In order the program understands that once the
required button is clicked, the proper theoretical in-
formation is displayed in the scene, it is necessary
to select Animator.Play in the button settings in sec-
tion On Click () and upload the displaying object,
for example, the ScrollViewHL(Animator) compo-
nent containing information about the lamp, as well as
to write the displaying animation ScrollViewHLOpen
(figure 8).
The hiding effect of the ScrollView components is
implemented in a similar way once the “Back” button
is clicked.
The next development stage of the application is
scene design based on the theory checks. Figure 9
shows the test scheme. This scheme is activated by
the information button
i
.
The operation principle of the theory checks sec-
tion is as follows: the buttons with conventional sym-
bols of the electric diagram elements are to the right
of the screen. Once the button is pressed, the list with
equipment images drops down from the top part of the
screen. The equipment image corresponding to the
conventional symbol can be selected using the slider.
Once the selected image is clicked, there can be two
options:
1) incorrect answer appears on the screen of the
gadget and there remains an option to continue se-
lecting the equipment to correspond to the con-
ventional symbol;
2) correct answer appears on the screen of the
gadget; the list with equipment images is hidden
in the top part of the screen, and the electronic
model of the device is displayed in the proper
point of the scheme.
Designing the theory checks scene is similar to the
theoretical information scene. The development was
started with uploading the electronic models of ta-
bles and figure of the electric diagram. The electronic
models of rheostat, amperemeter, voltmeter, current-
controlled switch, lamp on pedestal and accumulator
were uploaded to the diagram. All models, after be-
ing scaled up, were placed according to their sym-
bols. By default, the models are inactive, that is in-
visible. Then, the Canvas component is added and
Development of Augmented Reality Mobile Application in Physics to Study the Electric Circuit
657
Figure 6: Scene of theoretical training.
the transparency of the Panel tool is set. Using the
Button command in the Canvas right part, the buttons
are added and the conventional symbols of the elec-
tric diagram elements superimposed on them. The
displaying effect of ScrollView with equipment op-
tions is implemented by animation according to the
above method. The equipment images in ScrollView
are made via the Button command. Figure 10 shows
the Button settings in section On Click () by the ex-
ample of the correct answer.
Once the Button is clicked, the first lime of com-
mands is activated – animation of ImageTrue, symbol
(ImageTrue (Animator)) in Animator.Play. Ac-
cording to the animation, the picture is scaled up to
normal sizes varies and scales down to invisible sizes.
After the first animation is completed, the second line
of commands is activated – the program refers to set-
tings GameObject.SetActive of the object Lampa and
displays (represents) it in the scene. Then, the third
line of commands is activated – the AnimScrollView-
Close is implemented to provide hiding of Scrol-
lViewHL(Animator) to the top part of the screen.
The result of successful passing of all tests is
the representation of electronic models in the correct
symbols of the scheme (figure 11).
The last part in the application development is
scene design based on the practical training. The
purpose of this stage is: to show the sequence of
the equipment connection in the simple electric cir-
cuit, as well as modelling of the lamp voltage, current
and light intensity change in different positions of the
rheostat slider.
The operation principle of the last part of the ap-
plication is as follows: the observer sees the displayed
electronic models of the electric circuit equipment
placed on the table. There is a prompted button in the
right top part of the screen advising what is performed
at this step. By clicking the buttons, the red connect-
ing wires to be connected to the relevant terminals of
the equipment gradually appear. In case of repeated
connection of the circuit, there will be an inscription
on the button offering to close it. At this step, the
current-controlled switch goes back to the horizon-
tal position, and the slider will appear under the but-
ton. By moving the slider to the right, the rheostat
slider will also move along the upper guide. At this,
AET 2020 - Symposium on Advances in Educational Technology
658
Figure 7: Implementation of displaying the ScrollView component.
Figure 8: Setting the displaying button for the Scrol-
lViewHL component.
the voltmeter and amperemeter pointers are deflected
from their initial positions, and the light intensity will
increase. The made electrical circuit of the program
is shown in figure 12.
The development of the practical training scene is
started by loading the electronic models of tables and
components of the electric circuit. All the equipment
is scaled up and placed as shown in figure 12. Connect
the clamps of each device in series using the red con-
necting wires. By default, the wires are inactive, that
is invisible. The Canvas component is added and set
up. The information button
i
is activated by the But-
ton command that includes the display of the Panel
tool with the instruction on the section operation. The
“Back” button operates via the SceneManager script
and forwards the user to the main menu. In the right
part of the Canvas, using the Button command, the
buttons for in-series connection of all elements of the
diagram are added. The first button “Connect battery
to lamp” is active and visible for the observer. Other
buttons, such as “Connect voltmeter to lamp”, “Con-
nect lamp to amperemeter”, “Connect amperemeter
to rheostat”, “Connect rheostat to switch”, “Connect
switch to battery” and “Close the circuit”, are super-
imposed and inactive. The operation principle of the
buttons is as follows: once the active button “Connect
battery to lamp” clicked, the commands of On Click ()
are activated (figure 13).
The first line of commands refers to the settings
GameObject.SetActive of the object Kabel1 (con-
necting wire from the battery to the lamp) and dis-
plays (represents) it in the scene. The second line
of commands also refers to the settings GameOb-
ject.SetActive of the object ButtonLampa-Voltmeter
only (the button “Connect voltmeter to lamp”) and
also represents it in the scene. According to the
same principle, the last line of commands inactivates
the button ButtonAcum-Lampa (“Connect battery to
lamp”). In a similar way, other buttons for connection
of the electric circuit with the connecting wires are set
up.
The click set-up of the last button “Close the cir-
cuit” is shown in figure 14.
Once the Button is clicked, the first lime of com-
mands is activated animation SwitchClose of the
object (Electric Knife switch (Animator)) in Anima-
tor.Play. According to the animation, the handle of
the current-controlled switch rotates around the axle
and closes the electric circuit.
The second line of commands refers to the set-
tings GameObject.SetActive of the object Point Light
(point light of the lamp) and makes it active. There-
fore, now we can turn on, change the light intensity
and turn off the light.
The third line of commands refers to the settings
GameObject.SetActive of the object ButtonStart (the
button “Close the circuit”) and represents it in the
scene.
In a similar way, the last line of commands acti-
vates the Slider.
At this development stage, nothing occurs when
the Slider moves. For proper settings of the slider, the
following tasks should be solved when it moves:
1. Synchronous movement of the rheostat slider.
2. Rotation of the voltmeter and amperemeter point-
ers to the required indications.
3. Change of the light intensity using the Point Light
aids.
The movement of the rheostat slider when the
Slider moves is implemented as follows. The slider
Development of Augmented Reality Mobile Application in Physics to Study the Electric Circuit
659
Figure 9: Operation scheme of the theory checks scene.
Figure 10: Button settings with correct answer.
consisting of two parts, a carriage and a contact, was
taken from the electronic model of the rheostat as-
sembly. The positions of these parts were set so that z
axes were directed along the rheostat and the follow-
ing script was written:
using System.Collections;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using UnityEngine;
public class Karetka : MonoBehaviour
{
public GameObject ReostatKaretka;
public GameObject ReostatKontakt;
public void Slider_Change(float
newValue) {
Vector3 posKaretka =
ReostatKaretka.transform.localPosition;
posKaretka.z = newValue;
ReostatKaretka.transform.localPosition =
posKaretka;
Vector3 posKontakt =
ReostatKontakt.transform.localPosition;
posKontakt.z = newValue;
ReostatKontakt.transform.localPosition =
posKontakt;
}
}
Writing the scenario on movement of the rheo-
stat slider is started by writing public class Karetka
and introduction of two public GameObject Re-
ostatKaretka and ReostatKontakt. In the pub-
lic method public void SliderChange(), the pa-
rameters are specified in the form of float data
with the data name newValue. Local coordi-
nates of the carriage of the rheostat slider Re-
ostatKaretka.transform.localPosition are saved as the
coordinates Vector3 named posKaretka. The object
ReostatKaretka will move exclusively along the z
axis, that is why this coordinate posKaretka.z has
a new assigned data value newValue. The new co-
ordinates for ReostatKaretka.transform.localPosition
are saved as posKaretka. The similar line of
the script is also written for the second part of
the rheostat slider the contact (ReostatKontakt).
As the Slider is the Canvas object, the script is
added to this component and the public objects Re-
ostatKaretka and ReostatKontakt are assigned. In the
settings Slider, section On Value Changed (Single)
for the script Canvas (Karetka), the relevant func-
AET 2020 - Symposium on Advances in Educational Technology
660
Figure 11: Successful theory checks results.
Figure 12: Operation of the practical training scene.
Figure 13: Button settings to connect the connecting wires
to devices.
tion Karetka.SliderChange is selected Now, when the
slider moves to the right, the rheostat slider will also
change its position along the rheostat.
When the rheostat slider moves, the electric cir-
cuit resistance changes and the amperemeter and volt-
meter pointers are deflected from their initial values.
This effect can be implemented in the mobile app as
follows. The electronic models of the amperemeter
and voltmeter pointers are taken out of the assemblies
and set in the required place of the scene. At this,
Figure 14: Button settings to close the electric circuit.
the centres of coordinates of each pointer go from the
centers of the axes of rotation, and the axes match the
axes of rotation. The pointers are rotated by the fol-
lowing script:
using System.Collections;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using UnityEngine;
public class VoltAmmRotate : MonoBehaviour
{
public GameObject Voltmeter;
public GameObject Ammeter;
float angleVolt;
float angleAm;
void Start() {
angleVolt = -41f;
angleAm = -41f;
}
public void Slider (float speed) {
angleVolt = -41 - speed * 90 / 155;
Development of Augmented Reality Mobile Application in Physics to Study the Electric Circuit
661
angleAm = -41 - speed * 60 / 155;
}
void Update () {
Voltmeter.transform.rotation =
Quaternion.Euler(0, angleVolt, 0);
Ammeter.transform.rotation =
Quaternion.Euler(0, angleAm, 0);
}
}
Writing the scenario based on rotation of the am-
peremeter and voltmeter pointers at the specified an-
gle is started by writing the public class VoltAmmRo-
tate inheriting the basic class MonoBehaviour.
To upload the pointer models in the game en-
gine, two public objects Voltmeter (for the voltmeter
pointer model) and Ammeter (for the amperemeter
pointer model) are written.
Two variables “float angleVolt and angleAm” that
define the numerical value of pointer rotation are en-
tered. In the method Start(), the coefficients of initial
values of the pointer rotation that depend on the turn
of the coordinate system of the pointers relative to the
global coordinate system of the scene. In our case,
they represent -41f. Therefore, the pointers in both
cases will indicate zero values on the grade.
For slider operation, the method Slider() is written
for which the parameters are specified in the form of
float data with the data name “speed”. In this method,
the pointer angles of rotation will be calculated de-
pending on the slider value. The formulas for calcu-
lation of the pointer angles of rotation are as follows:
for voltmeter angleVolt = -41 - speed * 90 / 155;
for amperemeter – angleAm = -41 - speed * 60 / 155.
These formulas were obtained through the experiment
according to the data of the real electric circuit (fig-
ure 1).
To rotate any GameObject, the quaternion sav-
ing the Transform rotations in the space should be
changed in the Transform properties. Turning the ob-
ject at the specified angle is made using the Euler
quaternion (Quaternion.Euler). In our case, the ob-
jects (the voltmeter and amperemeter pointers) turn
around the Y axes only, that is the angles of rotation
around the X and Z axes make 0 degrees. Therefore,
the line of script for turning the voltmeter pointer ap-
pears to be as follows:
Voltmeter.transform.rotation =
Quaternion.Euler(0, angleVolt, 0);
The similar line is also written for turning the am-
peremeter pointer:
Ammeter.transform.rotation =
Quaternion.Euler(0, angleAm, 0);
Enter these two lines into the function Update(). Now,
the voltmeter and amperemeter pointers will turn at
the specified angle after each movement of the rheo-
stat slider.
The last task on changing the light intensity while
the rheostat slider is moving is implemented by the
means of the Point Light object. The point light is
an internal Unity3d object and its properties have al-
ready contained the light intensity parameters. There-
fore, it is sufficient to link the light intensity to the
Slider object. To do this, one more line to be per-
formed is added in the settings Slider, section On
Value Changed (Single), and then the Point Light is
added where the Light.intensity is selected.
Hence, when the Slider moves, the rheostat slider
is moving in the proper direction, the voltmeter and
amperemeter pointers are deflected at the specified
angle and indicate the effective voltage and current
values, and the light intensity also changes depending
on the indicators.
According to the above method, the last scene
with information about the mobile app authors is cre-
ated, and the installation file for Android is compiled.
The operation and main options of the mobile
app can be seen in the demo video Augmented re-
ality program to study the simplest electric circuit”
(YouTube, 2020).
The next stage in the development of any program
is testing. The developed mobile app was tested on
the following Android-based mobile devices:
1. Samsung Galaxy A5 A520F Android 8.0.0;
5.2” screen; 1920x1080 pixel; 8-core processor
Exynos 7880 Octa; 16MP cam; 3 GB RAM
2. Xiaomi Redmi Note 4x Android 7.0; 5.5”
screen; 1920x1080 pixel; 8-core processor Qual-
comm Snapdragon 625; 13MP cam; 2 GB RAM=
3. Xiaomi Redmi 4x Android 7.1.2; 5.0” screen;
1280x720 pixel; 8-core processor Qualcomm
Snapdragon 435; 13MP cam; 2 GB RAM
4. Lenovo S8 A7600 Android 5.0; 5.3” screen;
1280x720 pixel; 8-core processor MT6592M;
13MP cam; 1 GB RAM
5. Lenovo A6010 Pro Android 5.0; 5.0” screen;
1280x720 pixel; 4-core processor Cortex-A53;
13MP cam; 2 GB RAM
The correct representation of all scenes and their
components, models movement and rotation, proper
button activation by screen touching should be tested.
According to the test results, it can be concluded
that the program operates correctly on the phones
both based on Android 5.0, and on the newer systems
irrespective of the processor type, screen matrix and
memory capacity.
AET 2020 - Symposium on Advances in Educational Technology
662
Therefore, the mobile app Augmented reality
program to study the simplest electric circuit” devel-
oped by us reads and recognizes the electric circuit
marker and displays the main menu on the mobile de-
vice screen. At this, the virtual object is correctly
located relative to the marker, and once the buttons
of sections clicked, the relevant scenes for theoretical
training, assessment of received knowledge and ac-
quired practical skills for making the simple electric
circuit are loaded.
The described mobile app development method
makes it possible to implement a number of chal-
lenges of the modern educational process for compre-
hensive learning. It is possible to learn the electronic
models design after studying such disciplines as “En-
gineering Graphics” or “Descriptive Geometry, Engi-
neering and Computer Graphics”. Advanced Math-
ematics” is the basis for script writing. It is possi-
ble to learn reading the electric circuits and make the
electric circuits when studying the course “Physics”
(Gorda et al., 2018). This Instruction can be the foun-
dation for successful future professional activity of
the students of technical specialties in the electronic
model development; promote learning motivation and
individual work efficiency by making the learning
process attention-getting and interesting, especially
after development of own learning aid of new gener-
ation; and the mobile app provides the students with
the opportunity to master practical skills and research
experience by using own gadget.
3 CONCLUSIONS AND
PERSPECTIVES OF FURTHER
RESEARCH
The literature review has shown the wide use of the
AR technology both in social spheres of the human
activity, and during study. The scientists all over
the world give the research results where the AR im-
proves the performance of students in humanitarian
and technical disciplines. It appears that the most
common areas of use of the AR technology are math-
ematics, chemistry, physics, ecology, astronomy, en-
gineering graphics, history, etc.
Many researches show the reasonability of using
the electric models as learning aids, as a man equally
perceives physical and electronic models. However,
the electronic models have a number of advantages in
contrast to the physical models, thus proving the rea-
sonability of description of methodology and creation
of applications for mobile devices using the AR tech-
nology.
The analysis performed for the 3D modelling pro-
grams has given an opportunity to substantiate the
choice of digital product with open code. The main
steps of installation of the game engine and additional
components, including the Vuforia Augmented Real-
ity platform, have been demonstrated. The stages of
the scene development have been provided. Writing
scenarios (scripts) with detailed decoding of each line
has been particularly focused on. The ready program
has been tested by students on mobile phones with
different specifications while preparing for classroom
learning in physics on the topic of the simple electric
circuit. The demo video demonstrating the program
operation and main features has been also created.
The demonstrated experience in the development of
the augmented reality program in physics will be use-
ful for teachers in writing own applications.
This article describes the methodology of devel-
opment of the mobile app using the AR technology
only on the one topic of physics. In the future, we are
going to create a full-pledged electronic complex (vir-
tual physics laboratory) to include the theoretical part,
tests and exercises for modelling physical phenomena
and experiments.
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