ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023

TECHNICAL ISO/IEC TR
REPORT 23844
First edition
2023-02
Information technology for learning,
education, and training — Immersive
content and technology
Reference number
ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
© ISO/IEC 2023

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ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
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© ISO/IEC 2023
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ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Abbreviated terms . 2
5 Understanding immersive technology . 2
5.1 Immersive technology . 2
5.2 Industrial trends and outlook . 2
5.2.1 Market trends and outlook . 2
5.2.2 Standardization trends of ISO and IEC . 3
5.2.3 De-facto standard organizations . 3
6 Implications of immersive technology in LET domain . 3
6.1 Prospect of immersive technology in LET domain . 3
6.2 Types of immersive content . 4
6.2.1 VR-based content . 4
6.2.2 AR-based content . 4
6.2.3 Education beyond the constraints of time and space . 4
6.2.4 Higher emotional engagement . 5
6.2.5 Self-directed learning . 5
6.3 Issues about immersive technology . 5
6.3.1 Age of use . 5
6.3.2 The effect on the body or/and mental/emotional . 5
6.3.3 Ambiguity regarding how to use AR/VR/MR in LET . 6
7 The items for standardization to suggest . 6
7.1 Human factor guidelines for VR content in the LET domain . 6
7.2 Catalogue model aligned to the curriculum and AR/VR learning resources . 7
Bibliography . 8
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ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are
members of ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical
committees established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical
activity. ISO and IEC technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the
work.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance
are described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria
needed for the different types of document should be noted. This document was drafted in
accordance with the editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives or
www.iec.ch/members_experts/refdocs).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject
of patent rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent
rights. Details of any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the
Introduction and/or on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents) or the IEC
list of patent declarations received (see https://patents.iec.ch).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to
the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) see
www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html. In the IEC, see www.iec.ch/understanding-standards.
This document was prepared by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information technology,
Subcommittee SC 36, Information technology for learning, education, and training.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards
body. A complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html and
www.iec.ch/national-committees.
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ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
Introduction
In recent years, many people have widely spoken about virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR).
As the terms have not yet been standardized, media and IT companies use various words such as VR,
AR, and mixed or merged reality (MR). This document refers to VR and AR as immersive technologies.
Immersive technologies are now becoming popular. At an early age, it grew in the entertainment
industry, such as games, but now it is expanding its scope into education and training. Various
standardization organizations have also begun to study the standards required for 360° video, virtual
environments, and rendering technologies and the problems associated with using these technologies.
Due to the sense of immersion and practicality, immersive technology in the learning, education, and
training (LET) domain is expected to improve learning efficiency. At the same time, however, there are
some concerns, such as the age of the device's available use and VR sickness or fatigue. It is essential to
consider several issues carefully, as some problems can have a more severe effect when applied to the
education sector.
Immersive technologies are emerging technology addressing a diverse group of stakeholders and
covering a wide range of applications. The following issues were identified and captured as general
requirements for Immersive content and technology in the LET domain.
— Human factors guideline for the utilization of VR and MR content
— A catalogue information model for the utilization of VR and MR content
Therefore, this document gives a trend and outlook description of the immersive technology related
to LET. This document specifies the understanding of immersive technology implications of using
immersive technologies; and provides suggestions for items that could be standardized.
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TECHNICAL REPORT ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
Information technology for learning, education, and
training — Immersive content and technology
1 Scope
This document specifies potential directions for using immersive technologies in learning, education,
and training (LET) and provides suggestions on what can be standardized for this purpose. For the
purposes of this document, immersive technologies include augmented reality (AR), virtual reality
(VR), mixed reality or merged reality (MR).
This document does not apply to technologies such as metaverse, digital twin and extended reality (XR).
2 Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
virtual reality
artificial environment presented using computer technologies
Note 1 to entry: Virtual reality has a high level of immersiveness, fidelity of information representation, and
degree of active learner participation compared to other forms of mixed reality.
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC TR 18121:2015, 3.6]
3.2
mixed reality
display continuum in which both real and virtual images are combined in some way and in some
proportion
Note 1 to entry: Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are considered to be on the mixed reality
continuum
3.3
immersive technology
tools that enable the integration of virtual content and the physical environment in a manner that
supports user engagement with the resulting blended reality
Note 1 to entry: Some types of immersive activities and experiences include virtual reality, augmented reality,
pervasive games, digital twins, telepresence, and holography.
Note 2 to entry: Supportive technologies that are used to support these activities and experiences may include a
combination of different items such as speech recognition, haptics, cameras, 3D displays, headsets, audio, gesture
recognition, omnidirectional treadmills, etc.
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ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
3.4
augmented reality
virtual objects superimposed upon or composited with the real world
Note 1 to entry: Virtual and real-world objects co-exist in augmented reality systems.
4 Abbreviated terms
AR augmented reality
AV augmented virtuality
HMD head mounted display
LET learning, education, and training
MR mixed reality or merged reality
VR virtual reality
5 Understanding immersive technology
5.1 Immersive technology
The Virtuality continuum represents all the technological possibilities between the real and virtual
[10]
worlds, as shown in Figure 1. The space in between these two extremes could characterize as
MR. At the two ends of the sub-continuum making up this mixed reality are the AR (closer to the real
environment) and AV (closer to the virtual environment). Adding elements of virtuality to the real
world is the nature of AR, while adding elements of the real world to virtuality is that of AV. Immersive
technologies integrate virtual content into the real environment by leveraging these technologies (AR,
VR, MR) to allow users to participate in mixed reality naturally.
Reality virtuality (RV) continuum
Key
1 real environment
2 augmented reality (AR)
3 augmented virtuality (AV)
4 virtual environment
5 mixed reality (MR)
[10]
Figure 1 — Simplified representation of a RV Continuum
5.2 Industrial trends and outlook
5.2.1 Market trends and outlook
[5]
According to Gartner's Hype Cycle report, which analyzes the development and maturity of various
emerging technologies, AR and MR technologies have entered a "difficulty of disillusionment" as of
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ISO/IEC TR 23844:2023(E)
2018. These technologies are poised to become part of mainstream technology within the next 5 to
10 years. Gartner predicts that MR will outperform AR and VR in terms of technology, and MR will be
[4]
an essential interface technology connecting humans and machines. Their report, published in 2022,
predicted that metaverse, based on immersive technologies such as AR and MR, would become the
mainstream technology, which entered the innovation trigger stage.
Related industries are also still growing, and many new players have appeared in this field. According

to an estimate by Goldman Sachs, AR and VR are expected to grow into a $95 billion market by 2025.
[13]
 Today's most sustainable demand for technology is in the gaming, live events, video entertainment,
and retail industries, but over time, applications utilizing immersive technology will emerge in various
areas, such as healthcare, education, the military, and real estate.
5.2.2 Standardization trends of ISO and IEC
The VR and MR related standards are usually in the purview of ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 24 (Computer Graphics,
Image Processing, and Environmental Data Representation) and ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 (Coding of Audio
Picture, Multimedia, and Hypermedia Information). VR and MR applications relating to LET come under
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 36 (Information Technology for LET). Recently, through the cooperation of ISO/IEC
JTC 1/SC 24 and ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 36, ways to utilize immersive technology in the field of education
have been discussed.
5.2.3 De-facto standard organizations
The IEEE and Khronos group are the two leading organizations associated with de-facto standards on
VR and MR technologies.
[6]
The IEEE P2048 is developing 12 standards for VR and AR. They are working on standardization with
[7]
a focus on the technical side. IEEE P3079 is setting technical guidance to resolve VR sickness caused
by the visual mechanism of the head-mounted display (HMD).
1)
The Khronos Group also released a VR Initiative called OpenXR™ (open standard for virtual and
[8]
augmented reality). First, the Application Interface, which application developers and middleware
providers write to, and which serves to define and combine common, cross-platform functionality.
OpenXR™ enables application developers to write code that will run everywhere, focus on innovating
in their applications, and not have to support multiple interfaces for various devices. Next, the device
layer allows VR/AR runtimes to interface with various devices. If a hardware manufacturer wants to
add support for a new device, they implement code that conforms to the device layer specification, and
their hardware will be immediately compatible with the applications written for the application layer.
6 Implications of immersive technology in LET domain
6.1 Prospect of immersive technology in LET domain
As the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) progresses around the world, attempts to introduce
new technologies such as robots, VR, and artificial intelligence (AI) into learning, education, and
training are growing. The educational content market is only a fraction of the VR and MR markets. But
someday, when devices are available at a large scale, investment in learning, education, and training
applications using immersive technology will increase, driving the entire industry's growth.
The role of VR in the LET domain enables activities that are difficult to experience in the real-world
(airplane piloting, surgery, archaeological experience, etc.,) which can be classified as personal
[2]
experiences. In contrast, multi-user accessible VR environments help design active learner-centered
[11]
teaching and learning strategies such as problem, project, and game-based learning . VR technology
is positioned as an educational tool to create immersive environments, driving learner-centered,
experiential, and col
...