Planogen: A Procedural Generation Framework for Dynamic VR Research Environments

This paper introduces Planogen, a modular procedural generation plug-in for the Unity game engine, which is composed of two primary components: a character generation module (CharGen) and an airplane generation module (PlaneGen). Planogen facilitates the rapid generation of varied and interactive aircraft cabin environments populated with diverse virtual passengers. The presented system is intended for use in research experiment scenarios, particularly those targeting the fear of flying (FoF), where environmental variety and realism are essential for user immersion. Leveraging Unity’s extensibility and procedural content generation techniques, Planogen allows for flexible scene customization, randomization, and scalability in real time. We further validate the realism and user appeal of Planogen-generated cabins in a user study with 33 participants, who rate their immersion and satisfaction, demonstrating that Planogen produces believable and engaging virtual environments. The modular architecture supports asynchronous updates and future extensions to other VR domains. By enabling on-demand, repeatable, and customizable VR content, Planogen offers a practical tool for developers and researchers aiming to construct responsive, scenario-specific virtual environments that can be adapted to any research domain.