DrAngad Nayyar

Dr Angad Nayyar's research sits at the intersection of spatial computing, Human Building Interaction (HBI), user experience, and the built environment. His work explores how immersive and interactive technologies can be used to understand, prototype, and improve the ways people experience, navigate, and interact with complex physical and digital spaces. His research spans extended reality (XR), Building Information Modelling (BIM), game engines, interaction design, parametric and computational design, engineering design, Drones in architecture, engineering and construction (AEC), and emerging approaches to digital twins and spatial simulation. He has particular interests in AI-enabled design workflows, real-time rendering technologies such as 3D Gaussian Splatting and Neural Radiance Fields (NeRFs), and immersive visualisation for architecture, infrastructure, education, healthcare, and cultural heritage. A central theme of his research is the application of immersive technologies to real-world challenges. Current projects investigate virtual reality training for dementia care, spatial communication and proxemics in healthcare, evidence-based healthcare facility planning and design, human-centred digital workflows for the built environment, and the use of XR and BIM to support decision-making, education, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Methodologically, Dr Nayyar combines qualitative and computational approaches to investigate spatial user experience, drawing on Human Computer Interaction (HCI), Human Building Interaction (HBI), qualitative analysis using NVivo, and data visualisation techniques using tools such as Flourish Studio to understand complex behavioural and spatial relationships. Dr Nayyar is also actively involved in the development of Deakin University's Extended Reality (XR) Lab within the School of Architecture and Built Environment. Working alongside School Manager Andrew Strachan, he supports the laboratory's infrastructure planning, system architecture, and applied XR capabilities, creating research and teaching environments that advance immersive learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, and digital innovation across the built environment disciplines.