The experimental teaching of surveying is an effective method for students to acquire basic surveying skills and solve practical problems. By contrast, the traditional experimental teaching mode of surveying presents students with insufficient experimental opportunities and difficulties to achieve independent learning and interactive operation due to limitations in the allotted time for experiments, sites, instruments, and external environmental conditions. This study developed a virtual

more »

... ental system by combining network virtual reality technology and surveying experiment. The proposed system intends to provide students with additional experimental opportunities to achieve computer desktop-like virtual experimental devices and engineering construction scenes, thereby accomplishing the indoor simulation of field surveying. This virtual surveying experimental system mainly comprised four modules, namely, classroom teaching, classroom practice, teaching practice, and production practice. This system realized equipment, operation, and data virtualizations, as well as various highly realistic measurement experiments, such as topographic surveying, engineering setting out, and road surveying. Application results demonstrated that the proposed system was convenient for the independent study of students, stimulates their enthusiasm for learning, strengthens their operational ability, and achieves good teaching effect. Furthermore, this system provides a novel experimental teaching mode for surveying courses.