Rhys Gardner: GFactor Edge co-founder on their VR simulators, Fieldays

Fieldays has opened at Hamilton's Mystery Creek, with 100 thousand visitors expected over the next four days. 

1200 vendors will be plying their wares at the Southern Hemisphere's largest agribusiness event, displaying the latest farming innovations. 

GFactor Edge co-founder Rhys Gardner is bringing his company’s VR driving simulators to the event – the technology allowing people to learn how to drive heavy machinery in a controlled environment. 

He told Ryan Bridge they’re recreating real accidents and near misses and allowing people to experience the outcomes of their decisions.  

LISTEN ABOVE 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thousands of visitors are expected in Hamilton today, attracting a
big international crowd. This year, the Germans are coming for
the first time apparently. I'm sure there have been one
or two Germans who have attended before, but there is
some contingent coming. Former sheep farmer Reece Gardner is going
to be at the event with his VR driving simulation
company and he's with us now.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hey Reese, Yeah, morning, bron How are you good?

Speaker 1 (00:21):
Thank you? You excited about today? What do you think
the farmers will have their wallets out?

Speaker 2 (00:27):
I don't know. Yeah, I'm not sure. There's a lot
of rain overnight, so maybe everyone's keen to sort of
get cracking this morning and get into it. I'm not sure.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
What is the you've obviously there now? Is the weather
being quite bad? How bad overnight? How much rain? We're
talking lots.

Speaker 2 (00:47):
I drove down from Walkland last night and kind of
a monsoon it seemed, so I don't know, it's probably
it felt like sort of Gimbridge kind of weather last night.
But yeah, I'm not sure. It seems to happen some years,
doesn't it. It just gets it just gets really wet hair.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
Yeah, what are you offering at Field Days this year.

Speaker 2 (01:08):
So we're bringing some of the some of the reality
stuff that we've been doing in the States with ATVs.

Speaker 1 (01:17):
Okay, and what it to explain what that is.

Speaker 2 (01:20):
I guess sort of virtuality is a way that you
can that you make mistakes and not get hurt. I'm
one of those sort of people that struggles to learn
from people telling me what to do. I kind of
need to do it myself. Often I'll be told what
to do and then and then kind of do the
opposite and then realize what I was supposed to do,

(01:42):
what the sort of expert or the experienced person is suggesting.

Speaker 1 (01:46):
You learned by doing so you're I think I've seen
you in one of your exhibitions. Your virtual reality headsets
basically allow you to do the driving the truck or
the tractor or whatever it is in a controlled environment
and then hopefully go out and do it better in
the real world.

Speaker 2 (02:08):
Yeah. What we're doing now is recreating sort of actual
accidents or near misses and actual locations and putting those
together into scenarios where someone sort of makes a decision
or presents the situation and gives them a chance to
make a decision and then experience the outcomes of that.

Speaker 1 (02:29):
How does what does the experiencing the outcomes feel like?
Obviously not like a real accident, but does it simulate that.

Speaker 2 (02:36):
What we do is you make the decision from the
in the cab of the vehicle or whatever that vehicle
happens to be, and then sometimes we'll shift you outside
that vehicle so that you can see how that decision
is going to play out.

Speaker 1 (02:50):
Interesting stuff, Reese. I appreciate your time this morning. I
have a great date Field Days. It's Reese Garden, a
former sheep farmer co founder of g Factor. Edge for
more from Early Edition with Iron Bridge. Listen live to
news talks. It'd be from five am weekdays, or follow
the podcast on iHeartRadio