The CONSIM project investigated the efficacy and implementation of a touch-interactive (haptic) virtual simulation training system for conservation practice. The research has been conducted collaboration with Mark Sandy, course leader in Paper Conservation at Camberwell College of Arts. In professions, such as medicine and conservation, where advanced procedural manual skills are required, training is time-consuming and it is difficult to monitor progress. Moreover, it is problematic for novices to train on real subjects, where the risk of error is high. Such training methods, although already being developed for surgeons, had not been investigated in the context of conservation or other applied arts and this project was the first to advance the field in this domain. The results of the research have been presented at the SIGGRAPH and Eurohaptics international conferences.

In paper conservation training, students are required to gain many hours of experience in specific manual tasks. These skills must be acquired for the successful and safe treatment of delicate and fragile works of art. Haptic virtual environments offer a means of creating an enhanced training tool for conservators. Simulated conservation operations can be performed without risk to the objects, while students are at an early stage of training. Also being explored is the potential of simulation to accelerate training through enhanced feedback such as visual, aural and touch stimuli.

A significant problem for the preservation of works of art on paper is the presence of aged and degraded backing materials adhered to the reverse of original artifacts. The conservation task of removing such backings was the focus for the simulation training prototype. Fragile and delicate watercolours or prints can be damaged by the presence of these, usually poor quality, acidic card backings. Mechanical removal using hand tools, such as scalpels and spatulas, is often the only viable means of safely detaching the backing. Moisture or solvent based treatments can be effective, but are often not appropriate due to the sensitivity of the original object. Mechanical removal, although slow and exacting, allows a greater degree of control and precision. The time available in a typical conservation degree course is limited and typically students begin by training on genuine works of art. The extended period usually needed for students to master backing removal treatments may be shortened by the use of the simulation based training. It can also allow basic manual skills to be developed prior to commencing work on valuable artifacts.

Research in medicine has established methods for the haptic modelling of viscoelastic tissue. However, prior to this study little development had been done for the modelling of complex plastic behaviour of materials. The problems of achieving convincing perceptual modelling of complex multi-layered structures and of a virtual task were addressed in the research. It was also necessary to establish the essential dynamic features of the task required for skill acquisition, such as the degree of displacement of backing material during removal, the flexibility of the tool (scalpel), colour change and other perceptual cues.

The study confirmed the validity of the use of simulation training in conservation by establishing that motor learning does take place in the simulation environment. Additionally, testing revealed new information on novice learning trends and the advantages of haptic training, particularly in the very early stages of skill acquisition when the execution of excessive or ineffectual force is most likely to occur.