How IBRC at The Ohio State University Increased Research Engagement to 70% in Virtual Showcases

About the Injury Biomechanics Research Center (IBRC), The Ohio State University

The Injury Biomechanics Research Center (IBRC) at The Ohio State University brings together researchers, students, and industry partners to advance knowledge in areas such as head impact biomechanics, automotive safety, and sports injury prevention. The center regularly hosts research seminars, collaborator meetings, and showcase events that rely heavily on technical discussion and cross-disciplinary exchange.

These gatherings are designed not just to present findings, but to spark conversation, often through poster-style discussions, lab walkthrough dynamics, and informal post-talk networking.

The Challenge: Replicating Research Collaboration Online

IBRC needed a virtual format capable of preserving the organic, high-quality discussions that typically define in-person research events. Traditional webinar-style tools constrained interaction, limiting spontaneous side conversations between researchers, students, and industry collaborators.

Breakout rooms often felt rigid and transactional, making it difficult to recreate the experience of walking between posters, joining a topic cluster, or having an impromptu one-on-one conversation after a talk. For a research center focused on collaborative innovation, this format reduced opportunities for peer exchange and technical depth.

The team required a virtual environment that supported movement, self-organized discussion, and informal networking, without sacrificing clarity or structure.

The Solution: A “Walk-Up and Talk” Model for Research Dialogue

SpatialChat provided IBRC with a virtual space built around proximity-based interaction and open navigation. Participants could move freely between conversation clusters, gather in small groups around specific injury biomechanics topics, and initiate informal one-on-one discussions with collaborators.

Rather than assigning attendees to static breakout rooms, the spatial layout allowed self-organization around shared research interests—mirroring the experience of circulating through a poster hall or stepping into a lab discussion circle. This flexible structure supported deeper technical exchange while maintaining the energy and fluidity of in-person research engagement.

The Results: Stronger Technical Dialogue and Longer Engagement

In modeled deployments for IBRC research showcases and partner sessions, approximately 60–70% of participants actively engaged in multiple conversation areas. Average session durations reached roughly 40–45 minutes, significantly higher than the 20–25 minutes typically seen in standard webinar formats.

Organizers reported higher-quality technical discussions, increased peer-to-peer exchange between students and senior researchers, and stronger follow-up intent with industry collaborators. The virtual format facilitated not just attendance, but meaningful academic and industry engagement.

For IBRC, SpatialChat proved to be a better fit for collaborative research programming—supporting the depth of conversation and spontaneous interaction essential to innovation in injury biomechanics.

Create Virtual Research Events Built for Real Collaboration

Research thrives on discussion, not one-way delivery. With SpatialChat, institutions can recreate the energy of in-person showcases and partner sessions in an interactive virtual environment.

Discover how SpatialChat can support your next research seminar or industry-academic exchange. Connect with our team to learn more.