Exploring haptic interfacing with a mobile robot without visual feedback

Search and rescue scenarios are often complicated by low or no visibility conditions. The lack of visual feedback hampers orientation and causes significant stress for human rescue workers. The Guardians project [1] pioneered a group of autonomous mobile robots assisting a human rescue worker operating within close range. Trials were held with fire fighters of South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue. It became clear that the subjects by no means were prepared to give up their procedural routine and the feel of security they provide: they simply ignored instructions that contradicted their routines

スマートフォンを用いた視覚障碍者向け移動支援システムアーキテクチャに関する研究

学位の種別: 課程博士審査委員会委員 : （主査）東京大学教授 坂村 健, 東京大学教授 越塚 登, 東京大学教授 暦本 純一, 東京大学教授 中尾 彰宏, 東京大学教授 石川 徹University of Tokyo(東京大学

Visual vs auditory augmented reality for indoor guidance

Indoor navigation systems are not widely used due to the lack of effective indoor tracking technology. Augmented Reality (AR) is a natural medium for presenting information in indoor navigation tools. However, augmenting the environment with visual stimuli may not always be the most appropriate method to guide users, e.g., when they are performing some other visual task or they suffer from visual impairments. This paper presents an AR app to support visual and auditory stimuli that we have developed for indoor guidance. A study (N=20) confirms that the participants reached the target when using two types of stimuli, visual and auditory. The AR visual stimuli outperformed the auditory stimuli in terms of time and overall distance travelled. However, the auditory stimuli forced the participants to pay more attention, and this resulted in better memorization of the route. These performance outcomes were independent of gender and age. Therefore, in addition to being easy to use, auditory stimuli promote route retention and show potential in situations in which vision cannot be used as the primary sensory channel or when spatial memory retention is important. We also found that perceived physical and mental efforts affect the subjective perception about the AR guidance app

The design and evaluation of non-visual information systems for blind users

This research was motivated by the sudden increase of hypermedia information (such as that found on CD-ROMs and on the World Wide Web), which was not initially accessible to blind people, although offered significant advantages over traditional braille and audiotape information. Existing non-visual information systems for blind people had very different designs and functionality, but none of them provided what was required according to user requirements studies: an easy-to-use non-visual interface to hypermedia material with a range of input devices for blind students. Furthermore, there was no single suitable design and evaluation methodology which could be used for the development of non-visual information systems. The aims of this research were therefore: (1) to develop a generic, iterative design and evaluation methodology consisting of a number of techniques suitable for formative evaluation of non-visual interfaces; (2) to explore non-visual interaction possibilities for a multimodal hypermedia browser for blind students based on user requirements; and (3) to apply the evaluation methodology to non-visual information systems at different stages of their development. The methodology developed and recommended consists of a range of complementary design and evaluation techniques, and successfully allowed the systematic development of prototype non-visual interfaces for blind users by identifying usability problems and developing solutions. Three prototype interfaces are described: the design and evaluation of two versions of a hypermedia browser; and an evaluation of a digital talking book. Recommendations made from the evaluations for an effective non-visual interface include the provision of a consistent multimodal interface, non-speech sounds for information and feedback, a range of simple and consistent commands for reading, navigation, orientation and output control, and support features. This research will inform developers of similar systems for blind users, and in addition, the methodology and design ideas are considered sufficiently generic, but also sufficiently detailed, that the findings could be applied successfully to the development of non-visual interfaces of any type

Investigating Visitors’ Behavioural Response to Virtual Reality (VR) Retail Environments

This thesis aimed to explore the influence of Virtual Reality (VR) retail environment cues on visitors’ behavioural intentions in the context of urban shopping destinations. The Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) theory (Mehrabian and Russell, 1974) were employed as a theoretical foundation given that many researchers have provided substantial evidence on its suitability as a theoretical framework to investigate the effects of various physical and virtual (online/mobile) retail environment cues on human behaviour through the mediating variables of affective and cognitive states. The first step to achieving the aim was to determine the current state of knowledge surrounding this topic. Therefore, relevant literature over four key topic areas was critically reviewed including 1) urban place marketing, particularly within the broader context of urban tourism, 2) retail store environment literature extending to electronic and mobile commerce research, 3) immersive technology, and 4) technology adoption (Objective 1). Then, primary data were collected in two research phases. Research Phase 1 entailed two sets of semi-structured interviews. First, a contrasting case-based approach was employed, and interviews were conducted with seven urban place marketers from three urban place marketing organisations in four urban shopping destinations in the UK (Objective 2). The findings provided initial insights into urban place marketers’ views on the perceived barriers, benefits, internal organisational capability and external pressures associated with immersive technology (VR and Augmented Reality) implementation and their overall intention to adopt these innovative technologies for city marketing. This data was analysed using thematic analysis and four themes and eleven sub-themes emerged including three new context-specific sub-themes (technology access, organisational readiness and industry readiness). Based on these findings, twelve semi-structured interviews with visitors to Manchester City Centre were gathered and aimed to draw out context-specific themes and sub-themes. This data was also analysed using thematic analysis and overall, three themes and thirteen sub-themes emerged including four new sub-themes (virtual aesthetics, virtual atmospherics, social presence and layout design) under the main theme of VR retail environment cues. Accordingly, ten hypotheses were proposed and informed the development of a qualitative VR Visitor Behaviour Model based on S-O-R theory. The aim of Research Phase 2 was to validate the proposed model (Objective 3). To achieve this, survey data were gathered from 150 potential visitors to urban shopping destinations and the data were analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) (Objective 3). From these findings, a final VR Visitor Behaviour S-O-R Model was proposed, which is the main contribution of this study (Objective 4). The thesis concludes by outlining the theoretical contributions of this research and providing guidance to urban place marketers and VR developers and designers. Finally, avenues for further research based on the identified study limitations are offered

Augmenting the Spatial Perception Capabilities of Users Who Are Blind

People who are blind face a series of challenges and limitations resulting from their lack of being able to see, forcing them to either seek the assistance of a sighted individual or work around the challenge by way of a inefficient adaptation (e.g. following the walls in a room in order to reach a door rather than walking in a straight line to the door). These challenges are directly related to blind users' lack of the spatial perception capabilities normally provided by the human vision system. In order to overcome these spatial perception related challenges, modern technologies can be used to convey spatial perception data through sensory substitution interfaces. This work is the culmination of several projects which address varying spatial perception problems for blind users. First we consider the development of non-visual natural user interfaces for interacting with large displays. This work explores the haptic interaction space in order to find useful and efficient haptic encodings for the spatial layout of items on large displays. Multiple interaction techniques are presented which build on prior research (Folmer et al. 2012), and the efficiency and usability of the most efficient of these encodings is evaluated with blind children. Next we evaluate the use of wearable technology in aiding navigation of blind individuals through large open spaces lacking tactile landmarks used during traditional white cane navigation. We explore the design of a computer vision application with an unobtrusive aural interface to minimize veering of the user while crossing a large open space. Together, these projects represent an exploration into the use of modern technology in augmenting the spatial perception capabilities of blind users

AtomXR: Streamlined XR Prototyping with Natural Language and Immersive Physical Interaction

As technological advancements in extended reality (XR) amplify the demand for more XR content, traditional development processes face several challenges: 1) a steep learning curve for inexperienced developers, 2) a disconnect between 2D development environments and 3D user experiences inside headsets, and 3) slow iteration cycles due to context switching between development and testing environments. To address these challenges, we introduce AtomXR, a streamlined, immersive, no-code XR prototyping tool designed to empower both experienced and inexperienced developers in creating applications using natural language, eye-gaze, and touch interactions. AtomXR consists of: 1) AtomScript, a high-level human-interpretable scripting language for rapid prototyping, 2) a natural language interface that integrates LLMs and multimodal inputs for AtomScript generation, and 3) an immersive in-headset authoring environment. Empirical evaluation through two user studies offers insights into natural language-based and immersive prototyping, and shows AtomXR provides significant improvements in speed and user experience compared to traditional systems.Comment: 15 pages, 14 figures, in submissio

Virtuelle Gedächtnispaläste: Der Einfluss der Gestaltung auf die Erinnerungsleistung

This paper is dedicated to the study of an innovative learning software that combines modern technology with an ancient learning method. The introduction briefly describes the current situation on education in the digital transformation and explains how an ancient mnemonic technique, the loci method (or "memory palace"), is being revived in current research. In the traditional version, one must imagine a familiar environment, which then serves as a memory palace. In this memory palace, the learning content is memorized along a route with unusual images. This process is repeated until one is able to walk through the memory palace again in one's mind and "pick up" the contents. The software-supported variant of the loci method is called "virtual memory palace". Here, the training is no longer done in thought, but with the help of a virtual environment, for example on a computer screen. The introduction is followed by theoretical basics on the topics of learning, the loci method, and the aspect of design. This is followed by a structured literature review, which leads to the research question of whether the design of a virtual memory palace has an influence on memory performance. An appropriate research methodology is then evaluated. The argument derives a design-oriented approach used to investigate a research model with multiple cycles and three identified design-relevant domains. The results of the research show that the design of a virtual memory palace does indeed have a significant impact on memory performance. The following implications, hints for future research projects on this topic, as well as a general conclusion are described in the last chapter.Diese Arbeit widmet sich der Untersuchung einer innovativen Lern-Software, die moderne Technologie mit einer antiken Lernmethode verknüpft. Die Einleitung beschreibt in Kürze die aktuelle Situation zum Thema Bildung in der digitalen Transformation und erklärt wie eine antike Mnemotechnik, die Loci-Methode (oder auch „Gedächtnispalast“), in der aktuellen Forschung wiederbelebt wird. In der traditionellen Variante muss man sich eine gewohnte Umgebung vorstellen, die dann als Gedächtnispalast dient. Die Lerninhalte werden in diesem Gedächtnispalast entlang einer Route mit ungewöhnlichen Bildern eingeprägt. Dieser Vorgang wird wiederholt, bis man in der Lage ist seinen Gedächtnispalast in Gedanken erneut abzulaufen, und die Inhalte „abzuholen“. Die softwaregestützte Variante der Loci- Methode nennt sich „virtueller Gedächtnispalast“. Hierbei erfolgt das Training nicht mehr in Gedanken, sondern mithilfe einer virtuellen Umgebung, zum Beispiel an einem Computer Bildschirm. Nach der Einleitung folgen theoretische Grund- lagen zu den Themen Lernen, der Loci-Methode und dem Aspekt Design. Daraufhin wird eine strukturierte Literaturanalyse beschrieben, die in der Forschungsfrage mündet, ob das Design eines virtuellen Gedächtnispalastes einen Einfluss auf die Erinnerungsleistung hat. Danach wird eine passende Forschungsmethodik evaluiert. Die Argumentation leitet eine gestaltungsorientierte Herangehensweise her, die dazu dient ein Forschungsmodell mit mehreren Zyklen und drei identifizierten gestaltungsrelevanten Bereichen zu untersuchen. Die Ergebnisse der Untersuchungen zeigen, dass die Gestaltung eines virtuellen Gedächtnispalastes tatsächlich signifikanten Einfluss auf die Erinnerungsleistung hat. Daraus folgende Implikationen, Hinweise für zukünftige Forschungsvorhaben in diesem Thema, als auch eine allgemeine Schlussfolgerung werden im letzten Kapitel beschrieben

VIRTUAL TOURISM: IDENTIFYING THE FACTORS THAT AFFECT A TOURIST\u27S EXPERIENCE AND BEHAVIORAL INTENTIONS IN A 3D VIRTUAL WORLD

Given the increase in the use of technologies within the tourism industry, particularly the rising interest in virtual worlds such as Second Life, the purpose of this study is to identify the factors related to the 3D virtual tourism experience and behavioral intentions after visiting a virtual tourism destination. Two theories, the Technology Acceptance Model and Self-Determination Theory, were used to guide this study, both of which were found to be useful frameworks. Basecamp Maasai Mara in Second Life was selected as the research site, designed and developed through a collaborative effort at Clemson University. The results revealed that technological acceptance factors of tele-presence, perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use as described by the Technology Acceptance Model are significant factors related to both virtual tourist experiences and the behavioral intentions. In addition, the results obtained here indicate that psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, as specified by the Self-Determination Theory, are significantly associated with virtual tourist experiences and behavioral intentions. The results of this study suggest that in designing virtual destinations, tourism practitioners need to consider consumers\u27 psychological needs of competence, autonomy and relatedness; for instance, the activities provided in Second Life Maasai Mara such as riding animated animals and listening to Maasai music were found to increase the virtual tourist\u27s autonomy. In addition, tourism marketers should consider the types of information provided as well as the media used to present the information, by including videos and music, for example, in order to enhance the perception of ease-of use and usefulness. As technology continues to evolve, more research is needed to understand the significance of the use of virtual worlds in the tourism industry as well as to generate a new paradigm shift in tourism literature