Extended Reality (XR) is gaining momentum in industrial environments. From immersive training and remote expert support to digital guidance for complex tasks, XR can help workers learn, collaborate and operate in new ways. In the MOTIVATE XR project, these possibilities are explored across real industrial contexts where safety, usability, reliability and responsible deployment are essential.
Yet, as XR technologies move closer to daily work practices, important questions emerge. How can we make sure that immersive systems are safe to use? What kinds of data are collected, and how should they be protected? How can users be supported without becoming over-reliant on digital guidance? How can training remain accessible to people with different abilities, learning needs and levels of experience? And how can organisations prepare their safety procedures, legal responsibilities and infrastructure for technologies that are still evolving?
These questions are at the centre of Deliverable 3.2, the second report on the MOTIVATE XR Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) framework. Led by TU Delft, this work builds on the first SSH framework deliverable and moves the project from identifying risks to defining practical safeguards. The goal is to ensure that XR technologies developed in Motivate XR are not only technically advanced, but also safe, inclusive, trustworthy and aligned with social, ethical and legal expectations.
Why D3.2 Matters
XR is not just another digital interface. It can change how people perceive their surroundings, interact with colleagues, receive instructions and make decisions. In industrial settings, this matters greatly. A headset that is uncomfortable, an instruction that is unclear, a delay in remote support or a lack of awareness of the physical environment can affect more than user experience. It can influence safety, productivity, user comfort and confidence in the system.
The same applies to data. XR systems may process information about user movements, task interactions, workplace-related recordings, sensitive technical documentation or communication between workers and remote experts. Some of this information may be personal, sensitive or commercially confidential. Without clear safeguards, such data flows can create risks for cybersecurity, privacy, data governance and, where relevant, intellectual property.
D3.2 therefore plays an important role in the project. It helps MOTIVATE XR move from general awareness of social, ethical and legal issues to a more concrete understanding of what should be prioritised and how those priorities can be addressed in practice.
Building on the First SSH Framework
Deliverable 3.1 established the foundation for the MOTIVATE XR SSH framework. It mapped potentially affected stakeholders and identified an initial set of social, ethical and legal issues related to the use of AI and XR in industrial contexts.
This first step showed that the impact of XR goes beyond the person wearing the headset. Direct users may include technicians, trainees, students, trainers, remote experts and content creators. Other affected groups may include health and safety departments, IT teams, procurement staff, managers, technical support teams and people working in the same physical environment. Beyond the user organisation, value-chain actors, suppliers, standardisation bodies, insurers and wider society may also be affected.
D3.1 also highlighted the values that frequently appear in discussions about XR, including safety, security, accountability, social balance, solidarity, wellbeing, fairness, inclusivity, human dignity and trust.
D3.2 takes this foundation further. It consolidates the earlier findings with additional evidence, partner input and prioritisation activities. Most importantly, it translates the issue map into mitigation measures and recommendations that can inform the design, testing and deployment of MOTIVATE XR technologies.
From Broad Concerns to Focus Issues
A key result of D3.2 is the updated map of social, ethical and legal issues relevant to MOTIVATE XR. To build this map, the work combined three sources of evidence.
The first source was the project-specific risks identified through consortium workshops and surveys. These inputs captured the practical knowledge of MOTIVATE XR partners and reflected the realities of the pilots.
The second source was a large-scale literature-based analysis of XR-related social, ethical and legal issues. This helped connect the project’s work to broader scientific discussions and ensured that the framework did not only rely on internal perspectives. This analysis drew on SurikaS, an AI-driven big-data tool developed by YAGHMA B.V., which was customised to identify values and issue areas in large bodies of XR-related academic literature.
The third source was a literature-based extraction of negative impacts. This provided a more detailed view of concrete harms and challenges discussed in scientific publications, later organised into categories such as health and wellbeing, social impacts, infrastructure, governance, environmental sustainability and economic issues.
By bringing these sources together, D3.2 created a consolidated issue base for the project. The issues were then prioritised by partners according to likelihood and impact. This resulted in eleven focus issues that should receive particular attention in MOTIVATE XR:
- Ill-fitting XR devices and productivity loss
- Health, safety and mental workload issues
- Cybersecurity issues
- Discomfort and reduced awareness
- Gaps in safety protocols for immersive environments
- Network limits and latency
- Infrastructure barriers to adoption
- Inadequate legal frameworks for disputes and virtual property
- Limited organisational agility in updating safety standards
- Lack of different modes in XR training
- Accessibility disparities for differently abled users
Together, these focus issues show that responsible XR development is not only about privacy or technical performance. It also requires attention to physical comfort, safety, accessibility, infrastructure readiness, legal uncertainty, organisational capacity and inclusive training design.
Safety Must be XR-Specific
One of the strongest messages from D3.2 is that safety procedures need to reflect the specific features of immersive technologies.
XR can affect users physically and cognitively. Users may experience motion sickness, eye strain, visual fatigue, physical discomfort or reduced awareness of their surroundings. In industrial environments, these effects may become more serious, especially when users perform complex tasks or share a physical space with other workers.
Traditional workplace safety procedures may not fully cover these risks. A standard risk assessment may not consider how wearing a headset affects field of view, balance, posture, fatigue or the ability to notice hazards in the surrounding environment. D3.2 therefore recommends that XR-related risks should be explicitly included in safety assessments, user briefings, training materials and pilot procedures.
Practical safeguards may include preventive ergonomic testing, brief user training on safe device use, controlled exposure times, enforced session breaks and post-use cooldowns, SSQ-based screening, staged acclimation through test sessions, and clear procedures for monitoring or responding to discomfort. These measures can help users benefit from XR while reducing avoidable risks.
Trust Depends on Data Protection and Transparency
Another important area is cybersecurity, supported by clear data protection and transparency measures. XR systems can create new vulnerabilities because they combine sensors, devices, networks, cloud services, user profiles and sometimes sensitive organisational information.
In industrial contexts, data may include workplace images, technical manuals, recordings of tasks, user behaviour, performance information or communication with remote experts. If such data is not properly protected, risks may include unauthorised access, cybersecurity incidents, misuse of recordings, privacy concerns and, where relevant, intellectual property issues.
D3.2 highlights cybersecurity as one of the most important issues for MOTIVATE XR. It also points to the importance of transparency. Users should understand what data is collected, why it is needed, how it is used, who can access it and how it is protected.
This is not only a technical matter. Trust also depends on clear communication and organisational responsibility. If users are unsure whether XR tools may be used to monitor them, assess their performance or capture sensitive information, they may be reluctant to use the technology. Responsible deployment therefore requires both technical safeguards and clear governance.
Accessibility Should be Built in from the Start
D3.2 also identifies accessibility as a high-priority issue. XR is often presented as a way to make training more engaging and flexible, but this potential can only be realised if systems are designed for different users.
A one-size-fits-all XR experience may exclude some people or prevent them from reaching proficiency. Users may differ in visual ability, physical comfort, prior experience, learning pace, familiarity with XR and support needs. Without adaptable interfaces and training paths, XR may reinforce existing inequalities instead of reducing them.
Inclusive XR design may require adjustable visual settings, voice commands, audio guidance, haptic feedback, alternative navigation methods, personalised calibration and testing with diverse user groups. It also requires early involvement of users who may otherwise be overlooked.
For industrial training, this is especially important. The goal is not only to create impressive immersive experiences, but to support real learning, safe performance and confidence across different user groups.
Organisations Need Readiness and Guidance
Responsible XR deployment also depends on organisational readiness. Even a well-designed tool may fail if the surrounding organisation lacks the infrastructure, skills, procedures or legal clarity needed to use it responsibly.
D3.2 identifies infrastructure as a major barrier. Network bandwidth, latency, IT support, skilled personnel, suitable physical spaces and affordable resources can all affect the success of XR adoption. In some cases, even small delays or unstable connections can degrade the user experience and affect confidence in the system.
Legal and governance issues are also important. XR can raise questions about liability, remote instruction, intellectual property, disputes around virtual objects, certification and responsibility when something goes wrong. Organisations may need support to understand how existing rules apply and where new guidance is needed.
This means that responsible XR is not only a design challenge. It is also an implementation and governance challenge. Health and safety departments, IT teams, trainers, managers, legal experts and end-user organisations all have a role to play.
From Analysis to Mitigation
A major contribution of D3.2 is that it does not stop at identifying risks. It also develops and prioritises mitigation measures.
These measures were identified through literature analysis and partner workshops. They were then assessed according to expected impact, ease of implementation and coverage of priority issues. The result is a practical roadmap that can support Motivate XR partners as they develop and test the project’s technologies.
The recommendations are organised into three broad groups.
The first group consists of quick wins. These are measures that can be implemented relatively easily while still offering meaningful benefits. Examples include pre-use safety briefings, preventive ergonomic testing, brief user training on safe device use, enforced session breaks and post-use cooldowns, SSQ-based screening, staged acclimation through test sessions, and clear communication of data-handling responsibilities.
The second group consists of development-focused measures. These address the technical robustness and usability of the XR systems themselves. Examples include improved headset fit, better weight and heat balance, calibration support, eye-tracking-assisted fit checks, adjustable visual settings and pilot-specific interface profiles.
The third group consists of use-related measures. These focus on how XR is introduced, taught, monitored and improved in real organisational settings. Examples include onboarding, hands-on training, controlled exposure during pilots, feedback collection and iterative updates to training procedures.
Together, these measures help translate social, ethical and legal reflection into concrete action.
What Comes Next
The findings from D3.2 will inform the next stages of the MOTIVATE XR project. In particular, the recommendations will support the revision of user requirements in Deliverable 3.4. This means that social, ethical and legal considerations are not treated as separate from technical development, but are connected directly to the project’s design and deployment work.
This is important because responsible innovation is most effective when it is embedded early and continuously. By translating SSH insights into requirements, safeguards and implementation measures, MOTIVATE XR can better ensure that its technologies are safe, inclusive, responsibly governed and suitable for real-world industrial use.
Author
YAGHMA
Rie Brammer Larsen, PhD, is researcher and project lead at YAGHMA, specialising in the assessment of risks and impacts of emerging technologies, with focus on the ethical consequences of artificial intelligence. Rie Brammer Larsen holds a PhD in control theory and its application to logistics systems from Delft University of Technology.
