PhD Position Application of eXtended Reality for Inclusive Wayfinding and Infrastructure Design

Are you passionate about making public transportation and public space more accessible? Join the BRIDGE-XR project and design inclusive wayfinding systems using XR to help make urban travel accessible for all.

PhD Position Application of eXtended Reality for Inclusive Wayfinding and Infrastructure Design

Job description

As cities become denser and more intricate, wayfinding and navigating urban environments during travel is becoming increasingly challenging for people with disabilities. Outdoor spaces, indoor areas, and transport facilities connecting them can become formidable barriers for people with disabilities during a travel journey.

The diverse needs of individuals with different types of disabilities further complicate this issue, as each group may face unique obstacles during wayfinding and navigation. There is an urgent need for innovative approaches and methods to design and test accessible and inclusive infrastructure and wayfinding systems.

This PhD position is part of the NWO-funded BRIDGE-XR project, which aims to provide a comprehensive examination of accessibility barriers in the Dutch public transportation and public space context. You will focus on employing Virtual Reality technologies to design and test inclusive wayfinding systems and infrastructure.

In this role you will:

• Develop a theoretical framework for designing accessible and inclusive infrastructure and wayfinding systems.
• Develop VR simulators for people with visual, hearing, motor, and cognitive disabilities.
• Conduct VR experiments to evaluate the effectiveness of inclusive infrastructure and wayfinding systems.
• Employ real-world testing to evaluate inclusive solutions in real-world urban settings.
• Collaborate closely with other PhD researchers and project partners across different work packages to ensure that findings contribute to the shared goals of creating accessible and inclusive travel journeys.

Your home base will be the Mobility in eXtended Reality Lab in the Department of Transport & Planning within the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences. Our diverse team of researchers, project managers, and professors shares the ambition to create smart, sustainable, and equitable mobility systems. In our 12 collaborative labs we apply advanced technologies such as sensing, data analytics, modelling, and AI to turn scientific research into real-world impact. You’ll join an open, supportive environment that fosters learning and professional growth.

Job requirements

Must haves:

• Master’s degree in a relevant field (e.g., transportation, human-computer interaction, architecture, cognitive science, or related disciplines).
• Experience with XR technologies, including development in Unity or Unreal Engine.
• Demonstrable experimental and analytical skills, including designing and conducting studies, programming (e.g., Python, C#), and statistical analysis.
• Proficiency in both qualitative and quantitative research methods.
• Excellent communication and writing skills in English and ability to collaborate with diverse stakeholders.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience in serious game development or interactive simulation design.
• Curiosity-driven mindset with openness to interdisciplinary research across mobility, HCI, and urban planning.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences

The Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences (CEG) is committed to outstanding international research and education in the field of civil engineering, applied earth sciences, traffic and transport, water technology, and delta technology. Our research feeds into our educational programmes and covers societal challenges such as climate change, energy transition, resource availability, urbanisation and clean water. Our research projects are conducted in close cooperation with a wide range of research institutions. CEG is convinced of the importance of open science and supports its scientists in integrating open science in their research practice. The Faculty of CEG comprises 28 research groups in the following seven departments: Materials Mechanics Management & Design, Engineering Structures, Geoscience and Engineering, Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Transport & Planning, Hydraulic Engineering and Water Management.

Conditions of employment

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1.5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2.5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, increasing from €3059 - €3881 gross per month, from the first year to the fourth year based on a fulltime contract (38 hours), plus 8% holiday allowance and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.

As a PhD candidate you will be enrolled in the TU Delft Graduate School. The TU Delft Graduate School provides an inspiring research environment with an excellent team of supervisors, academic staff and a mentor. The Doctoral Education Programme is aimed at developing your transferable, discipline-related and research skills.

The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, discounts on health insurance, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

Additional information

For more information about this vacancy, please contact Dr. Yan Feng (y.feng@tudelft.nl).