Understanding user interactions in stereoscopic head-mounted displays

2022 Spring.Includes bibliographical references.Interacting in stereoscopic head mounted displays can be difficult. There are not yet clear standards for how interactions in these environments should be performed. In virtual reality there are a number of well designed interaction techniques; however, augmented reality interaction techniques still need to be improved before they can be easily used. This dissertation covers work done towards understanding how users navigate and interact with virtual environments that are displayed in stereoscopic head-mounted displays. With this understanding, existing techniques from virtual reality devices can be transferred to augmented reality where appropriate, and where that is not the case, new interaction techniques can be developed. This work begins by observing how participants interact with virtual content using gesture alone, speech alone, and the combination of gesture+speech during a basic object manipulation task in augmented reality. Later, a complex 3-dimensional data-exploration environment is developed and refined. That environment is capable of being used in both augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), either asynchronously or simultaneously. The process of iteratively designing that system and the design choices made during its implementation are provided for future researchers working on complex systems. This dissertation concludes with a comparison of user interactions and navigation in that complex environment when using either an augmented or virtual reality display. That comparison contributes new knowledge on how people perform object manipulations between the two devices. When viewing 3D visualizations, users will need to feel able to navigate the environment. Without careful attention to proper interaction technique design, people may struggle to use the developed system. These struggles may range from a system that is uncomfortable and not fit for long-term use, or they could be as major as causing new users to not being able to interact in these environments at all. Getting the interactions right for AR and VR environments is a step towards facilitating their widespread acceptance. This dissertation provides the groundwork needed to start designing interaction techniques around how people utilize their personal space, virtual space, body, tools, and feedback systems

Immersive technology and medical visualisation: a user's guide

The immersive technologies of Virtual and Augmented Reality offer a new medium for visualisation. Where previous technologies allowed us only two-dimensional representations, constrained by a surface or a screen, these new immersive technologies will soon allow us to experience three dimensional environments that can occupy our entire field of view. This is a technological breakthrough for any field that requires visualisation, and in this chapter I explore the implications for medical visualisation in the near-to-medium future. First, I introduce Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality respectively, and identify the essential characteristics, and current state-of-the-art, for each. I will then survey some prominent applications already in-use within the medical field, and suggest potential use cases that remain under-explored. Finally, I will offer practical advice for those seeking to exploit these new tools

Harmonize: a shared environment for extended immersive entertainment

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) applications are very diffuse nowadays. Moreover, recent technology innovations led to the diffusion of commercial head-mounted displays (HMDs) for immersive VR: users can enjoy entertainment activities that fill their visual fields, experiencing the sensation of physical presence in these virtual immersive environments (IEs). Even if AR and VR are mostly used separately, they can be effectively combined to provide a multi-user shared environment (SE), where two or more users perform some specific tasks in a cooperative or competitive way, providing a wider set of interactions and use cases compared to immersive VR alone. However, due to the differences between the two technologies, it is difficult to develop SEs offering a similar experience for both AR and VR users. This paper presents Harmonize, a novel framework to deploy applications based on SEs with a comparable experience for both AR and VR users. Moreover, the framework is hardware-independent and it has been designed to be as much extendable to novel hardware as possible. An immersive game has been designed to test and to evaluate the validity of the proposed framework. The assessment of the system through the System Usability Scale (SUS) questionnaire and the Game Experience Questionnaire (GEQ) shows a positive evaluation

Direct modeling techniques in the conceptual design stage in immersive environments for DfA&D

Due to the fast – growing competition of the mass – products markets, companies are looking for new technologies to maximize productivity and minimize time and costs. In the perspective of Computer Aided Process Planning (CAPP), companies want to optimize fixture design and assembly planning for different goals. To meet these demands, the designers' interest in Design for Assembly and Disassembly is growing considerably and is increasingly being integrated into the CAPP. The work described in this thesis aims to exploit immersive technologies to support the design of mating elements and assembly / disassembly, by developing a data exchange flow between the immersive environment and the modeling environment that provides the high – level modeling rules, both for modeling features and for assembly relationships. The main objective of the research is to develop the capability to model and execute simple coupling commands in a virtual environment by using fast direct modeling commands. With this tool the designer can model the coupling elements, position them and modify their layout. Thanks to the physical engine embedded in the scene editor software, it is possible to take into consideration physical laws such as gravity and collision between elements. A library of predefined assembly features has been developed through the use of an external modeling engine and put into communication with the immersive interaction environment. Subsequently, the research involved the study of immersive technologies for workforce development and training of workers. The research on immersive training involved industrial case studies, such as the projection of the disassembly sequence of an industrial product on a head mounted display, and less industrial case studies, such as the manual skills development of carpenters for AEC sectors and the surgeon training in the pre – operative planning in medical field

A Usability Study of Virtual Reality Systems: On Best Practices for User-Centered Design in Virtual Reality Gaming Interfaces

In an effort to gather a list of best practices for user-centered design in virtual reality gaming interfaces, this study combines evidence from industry anecdotal observations, heuristic evaluations, and usability testing with three of the leading virtual reality platforms on the market: HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, and Windows Mixed Reality. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from a variety of usability scales and questionnaires, think-aloud tasks, observation, and semi-structured interviews. The results of the study suggest that immersion is an effective design feature across all interfaces, however the lack of real-world awareness resulting from immersion can be a major usability concern. Pain-points included controller design and button mapping, physiological comfort, and adapting to new methods of movement and interaction required in 3D virtual environments. The findings emphasize the need to prioritize learnability in the design of VR systems. The paper concludes with fifteen guidelines for designing user-friendly virtual reality interfaces.Master of Science in Information Scienc