The research group focuses on Digital Innovation in product development and related services. The group has played a leading role in advancing research on Extended Reality (XR) technologies, supporting a wide range of activities—from conceptual and detailed design to project evaluation, maintenance, interaction and ergonomics, and training. Methods, tools, and enabling technologies have been developed, tested, and applied across various industrial sectors, including automotive, aerospace, home appliances, fashion and accessories, medical, and bioengineering, as well as in rehabilitation fields.
The Virtual Prototyping Group was among the pioneers in developing and implementing tactile interfaces for interacting with virtual environments and objects, and it remains one of the most active research teams in this domain and in human-machine interaction.
Another key area of research is Reverse Engineering, which has led to significant advancements in both industrial applications and the preservation of cultural heritage. Finally, the group is actively engaged in studying and simulating innovative human-machine collaboration, with applications spanning industrial, medical, and social domains.