ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020

TECHNICAL ISO/IEC TR
REPORT 23842-1
First edition
2020-10
Information technology for learning,
education and training — Human
factor guidelines for virtual reality
content —
Part 1:
Considerations when using VR content
Technologies de l'information pour l'apprentissage, l'éducation et la
formation — Lignes directrices relatives aux facteurs humains pour
les contenus en réalité virtuelle —
Partie 1: Éléments à prendre en compte lors de l'utilisation de
contenus en réalité virtuelle
Reference number
ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020(E)
©
ISO/IEC 2020

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ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO/IEC 2020
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
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Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO/IEC 2020 – All rights reserved

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ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Abbreviated terms . 2
5 Considerations before use . 2
5.1 General . 2
5.2 Device, usage environment and hygiene safety . 2
5.3 Select content considering educational purpose . 3
5.4 Check user’s health and mental conditions . 3
6 Considerations in use . 3
7 Considerations after use . 3
Annex A (informative) Examples of guidelines for users . 4
Bibliography . 6
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ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020(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).
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 http:// patents .iec .ch).
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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.
This document was prepared by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information technology,
Subcommittee SC 36, Information technology for learning, education and training.
A list of all parts in the ISO/IEC 23842 series can be found on the ISO website.
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.
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ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020(E)

Introduction
Virtual reality (VR) technology is expected to be introduced into the world of primary and secondary
[1]
education in the next two to three years. However, there are some concerns, such as health-related
side effects for learners who use VR technology in their development period. These issues can be raised
in any environment that uses VR content.
Concerns related to health conditions:
— Discomfort: When using VR, some people experience symptoms of discomfort, such as dizziness,
headache and nausea. These symptoms are called various terms such as 'VR sickness', 'simulator
sickness', 'motion sickness' and 'cyber nuisance'. When actual physical movement does not occur
with respect to the visual stimulus generated in the virtual environment, discomfort can be caused.
— Eyesight problems: Many devices are located very close to the user's eyes. As a result, some people
feel visual fatigue after wearing them for a long time, and some users experience blurred vision,
diplopia and mechanical near-sightedness.
— Photosensitivity Syndrome: Also known as Pokemon Shock or Nintendo Syndrome, this is a condition
in which seizures (epilepsy) occur due to rapid flashing light stimuli.
— Musculoskeletal disorders due to repetitive tasks: If someone repeatedly takes the same posture for
a long period of time to operate the machine, pain or fatigue can be caused by continuous stimulation
of the musculoskeletal system.
— Hygiene problems: If many people use the same device jointly, or even if one person uses the same
device repeatedly, problems such as infectious disease or skin irritation can occur.
Concerns related to safety:
— Limitations of the user’s field of view: When using a device that blocks physical surroundings from
view, a user may not be able to remain aware of their physical surroundings which can lead to
accidents such as collisions, falling, etc. Even if someone uses a see-through or semi-transparent
device that overlaps a virtual object with reality, such distraction physical surroundings could
increase the risk of having an accident, such as falling.
— Safety accidents caused by confusing reality with the virtual world: Accidents can occur in scenarios
such as users trying to sit or lean against a virtual world chair or wall that does not exist in real life.
Concerns related to social aspects:
— If users cannot distinguish between the real world and the virtual world by excessive immersion
into virtual reality, they may attempt to restart a real-life situation as if they were able to simply
push the ‘reset button’ in VR.
Annex A provides examples of guidelines for users.
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TECHNICAL REPORT ISO/IEC TR 23842-1:2020(E)
Information technology for learning, education and
training — Human factor guidelines for virtual reality
content —
Part 1:
Considerations when using VR content
1 Scope
This document presents considerations for using VR content in the learning, education and training
(LET) domain for reducing reality and virtual reality crossover confusion among users and assisting
users to effectively use these emerging technologies.
This document addresses VR content that uses a head-mounted display (HMD) in the LET domain. It
does not address VR content using immersive technology and does not address augmented reality,
mixed or merged reality content.
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 terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at ht
...