New Mexico Tech’s cutting-edge Virtual Preparedness and Explosive Response (ViPER) center is setting a new standard for how first responders are prepared. This facility, overviewed in this brief promotional video, is designed to deliver an incredibly immersive and realistic training experience.
Housed in a 90×80 ft. warehouse within New Mexico Tech’s explosives range, ViPER boasts ample physical space as well as a very large virtual reality (VR) platform with robust environments allowing users to explore various spaces, open and close doors, and even move between levels of a structure using stairs or elevators. The VR platform allows New Mexico Tech to author training scenarios using existing environments such as a movie theater, school gymnasium, outdoor parking lot scene, or strip mall, to name just a few. These scenarios could involve simple recognition exercises to complex tactical scenarios involving the use of force, and can simulate any “call for service” required by a first responder. While other VR training facilities would need to contract out the builds of different scenarios, the sky is the limit for New Mexico Tech. Thanks to VR Engineer Jared Upshaw, they can build any scenario imaginable.
The core of the facility is a 70×50 ft. VR scenario area, fully outfitted with 80 OptiTrack cameras mounted to a custom truss system. These cameras use infrared tracking to capture participants’ movements down to the millimeter, enabling unparalleled precision in a simulated environment.
The training system uses Meta Quest 3 headsets, with the capacity to place up to eight participants into a scenario simultaneously, depending on class size. Each participant is equipped with five motion-tracking “pucks,” devices placed on the wrists, ankles, and back — allowing the system to capture full-body motion relative to the space. This setup ensures that every movement, from tactical positioning to reaction timing, is recorded and reflected in real time. It is worth noting that the cameras and headsets are commercial off-the-shelf devices.
Training participants can be equipped with a full array of simulated tools and weapons, including handguns, long guns, flashlights, chemical spray, Tasers, and body-worn cameras to name just a few. Instructors can role-play as key scenario figures, whether portraying a civilian in crisis, a hostage, or a terrorist threat actor. For training courses focused on explosive threats and precursor identification, instructors can also be outfitted with various objects from innocuous items like a briefcase to more sinister items like a pipe bomb or a switch for a suicide-type improvised explosive device to create lifelike high-risk scenarios.
ViPER relies on three core software systems:
- Motion, which calibrates and configures the camera tracking network.
- Unreal Engine, which runs and allows for dynamic editing of training scenarios.
- Dispatch, a user interface developed by V-Armed, integrates all system elements into a seamless experience.
Every scenario concludes in a dedicated After Action Review (AAR) room, where another instructor leads a comprehensive debrief. Each session is recorded, allowing for detailed playback of the participants’ actions. The AAR includes analysis of audio communication, visual focus, weapon discipline, use of force decisions, and overall task performance — all key indicators of effective, safe response behavior.
This advanced VR training facility is not just a leap forward in simulation technology — it is redefining how law enforcement, tactical teams, and emergency responders are prepared for real-world threats. Upshaw comments, “I believe we are barely scratching the surface on our capabilities with the VR training system, as it is one of the most immersive VR simulations out there and continuing to get better.”