Augmented Reality for Indoor Navigation and Task Guidance

Modern augmented reality systems are becoming increasingly popular in different industrial sectors as augmented reality based applications can improve performance and reduce workload during operations. The efficacy of such systems, however, has not been comprehensively investigated from human factors and performance standpoints. This research explores the design, development and evaluation of augmented reality based prototype applications for two discrete domain areas which include indoor navigation (Part II) and procedural task support in nuclear power plants (Part III). Augmented Reality-Based Indoor Navigation: In the study, we introduced an augmented reality-based indoor navigation application that utilizes pre-scanned environmental features and markerless tracking technology to assist people to navigate in indoor environments. The application can be implemented on electronic devices such as a smartphone or a head-mounted display, providing both visual and auditory instructions. In particular, we examined Google Glass as a wearable head-mounted device in comparison to hand-held navigation aids including a smartphone and a paper map. We conducted both a technical assessment study and a human factors study to comprehensively evaluate the system. The technical assessment established the feasibility and reliability of the system. The human factors study evaluated human-machine system performance measures including perceived accuracy, navigation time, subjective comfort, subjective workload, and route memory retention. The results showed that the wearable device was perceived to be more accurate, but other performance and workload results indicated that the wearable device was not significantly different from the hand-held smartphone. We also found that both digital navigation aids were better than the paper map in terms of shorter navigation time and lower workload, but digital navigation aids resulted in worse route retention. These results could provide empirical evidence supporting future designs of indoor navigation systems. Implications and future research were also discussed. Augmented Reality-Based Task Assistance in Nuclear Power Plants: This research illustrates the design, development and human factors evaluation of an augmented reality based procedural task guidance system, implemented on a hand-held tablet device (ipad), in order to support nuclear power plant operators with main control room operations. After conducting an extensive literature review, we detail the development stages of our new application prototype that employs marker based tracking to superimpose computer generated instructions in the live view of the operators control panel. We had hypothesized that the augmented reality-based procedures would perform better than the traditional methods currently used in nuclear power plants that include computer-based procedures and paper-based procedures. A research study was devised and carried out that compared the three methods of procedural instructions. The performance evaluation and human factors study revealed that the augmented reality based prototype solution reduced operator’s workload, increased operators situation awareness, made processes efficient and less prone to errors and reduced inquiry communication. The results also led us to conclude that augmented reality based procedural assistance poorly supports memory retention and skill learning amongst operators

Applying Augmented Reality to Outdoors Industrial Use

Augmented Reality (AR) is currently gaining popularity in multiple different fields. However, the technology for AR still requires development in both hardware and software when considering industrial use. In order to create immersive AR applications, more accurate pose estimation techniques to define virtual camera location are required. The algorithms for pose estimation often require a lot of processing power, which makes robust pose estimation a difficult task when using mobile devices or designated AR tools. The difficulties are even larger in outdoor scenarios where the environment can vary a lot and is often unprepared for AR. This thesis aims to research different possibilities for creating AR applications for outdoor environments. Both hardware and software solutions are considered, but the focus is more on software. The majority of the thesis focuses on different visual pose estimation and tracking techniques for natural features. During the thesis, multiple different solutions were tested for outdoor AR. One commercial AR SDK was tested, and three different custom software solutions were developed for an Android tablet. The custom software solutions were an algorithm for combining data from magnetometer and a gyroscope, a natural feature tracker and a tracker based on panorama images. The tracker based on panorama images was implemented based on an existing scientific publication, and the presented tracker was further developed by integrating it to Unity 3D and adding a possibility for augmenting content. This thesis concludes that AR is very close to becoming a usable tool for professional use. The commercial solutions currently available are not yet ready for creating tools for professional use, but especially for different visualization tasks some custom solutions are capable of achieving a required robustness. The panorama tracker implemented in this thesis seems like a promising tool for robust pose estimation in unprepared outdoor environments.Lisätyn todellisuuden suosio on tällä hetkellä kasvamassa usealla eri alalla. Saatavilla olevat ohjelmistot sekä laitteet eivät vielä riitä lisätyn todellisuuden soveltamiseen ammattimaisessa käytössä. Erityisesti posen estimointi vaatii tarkempia menetelmiä, jotta immersiivisten lisätyn todellisuuden sovellusten kehittäminen olisi mahdollista. Posen estimointiin (laitteen asennon- sekä paikan arviointiin) käytetyt algoritmit ovat usein monimutkaisia, joten ne vaativat merkittävästi laskentatehoa. Laskentatehon vaatimukset ovat usein haasteellisia varsinkin mobiililaitteita sekä lisätyn todellisuuden laitteita käytettäessä. Lisäongelmia tuottaa myös ulkotilat, jossa ympäristö voi muuttua usein ja ympäristöä ei ole valmisteltu lisätyn todellisuuden sovelluksille. Diplomityön tarkoituksena on tutkia mahdollisuuksia lisätyn todellisuuden sovellusten kehittämiseen ulkotiloihin. Sekä laitteisto- että ohjelmistopohjaisia ratkaisuja käsitellään. Ohjelmistopohjaisia ratkaisuja käsitellään työssä laitteistopohjaisia ratkaisuja laajemmin. Suurin osa diplomityöstä keskittyy erilaisiin visuaalisiin posen estimointi tekniikoihin, jotka perustuvat kuvasta tunnistettujen luonnollisten piirteiden seurantaan. Työn aikana testattiin useita ratkaisuja ulkotiloihin soveltuvaan lisättyyn todellisuuteen. Yhtä kaupallista työkalua testattiin, jonka lisäksi toteutettiin kolme omaa sovellusta Android tableteille. Työn aikana kehitetyt sovellukset olivat yksinkertainen algoritmi gyroskoopin ja magnetometrin datan yhdistämiseen, luonnollisen piirteiden seuranta-algoritmi sekä panoraamakuvaan perustuva seuranta-algoritmi. Panoraamakuvaan perustuva seuranta-algoritmi on toteuteutettu toisen tieteellisen julkaisun pohjalta, ja algoritmia jatkokehitettiin integroimalla se Unity 3D:hen. Unity 3D-integrointi mahdollisti myös sisällön esittämisen lisätyn todellisuuden avulla. Työn lopputuloksena todetaan, että lisätyn todellisuuden teknologia on lähellä pistettä, jossa lisätyn todellisuuden työkaluja voitaisiin käyttää ammattimaisessa käytössä. Tällä hetkellä saatavilla olevat kaupalliset työkalut eivät vielä pääse ammattikäytön vaatimalle tasolle, mutta erityisesti visualisointitehtäviin soveltuvia ei-kaupallisia ratkaisuja on jo olemassa. Lisäksi työn aikana toteutetun panoraamakuviin perustuvan seuranta-algoritmin todetaan olevan lupaava työkalu posen estimointiin ulkotiloissa.Siirretty Doriast

Handheld Guides in Inspection Tasks : Augmented Reality versus Picture

Inspection tasks focus on observation of the environment and are required in many industrial domains. Inspectors usually execute these tasks by using a guide such as a paper manual, and directly observing the environment. The effort required to match the information in a guide with the information in an environment and the constant gaze shifts required between the two can severely lower the work efficiency of inspector in performing his/her tasks. Augmented reality (AR) allows the information in a guide to be overlaid directly on an environment. This can decrease the amount of effort required for information matching, thus increasing work efficiency. AR guides on head-mounted displays (HMDs) have been shown to increase efficiency. Handheld AR (HAR) is not as efficient as HMD-AR in terms of manipulability, but is more practical and features better information input and sharing capabilities. In this study, we compared two handheld guides: an AR interface that shows 3D registered annotations, that is, annotations having a fixed 3D position in the AR environment, and a non-AR picture interface that displays non-registered annotations on static images. We focused on inspection tasks that involve high information density and require the user to move, as well as to perform several viewpoint alignments. The results of our comparative evaluation showed that use of the AR interface resulted in lower task completion times, fewer errors, fewer gaze shifts, and a lower subjective workload. We are the first to present findings of a comparative study of an HAR and a picture interface when used in tasks that require the user to move and execute viewpoint alignments, focusing only on direct observation. Our findings can be useful for AR practitioners and psychology researchers

Enhancing the museum experience with a sustainable solution based on contextual information obtained from an on-line analysis of users’ behaviour

Human computer interaction has evolved in the last years in order to enhance users’ experiences and provide more intuitive and usable systems. A major leap through in this scenario is obtained by embedding, in the physical environment, sensors capable of detecting and processing users’ context (position, pose, gaze, ...). Feeded by the so collected information flows, user interface paradigms may shift from stereotyped gestures on physical devices, to more direct and intuitive ones that reduce the semantic gap between the action and the corresponding system reaction or even anticipate the user’s needs, thus limiting the overall learning effort and increasing user satisfaction. In order to make this process effective, the context of the user (i.e. where s/he is, what is s/he doing, who s/he is, what are her/his preferences and also actual perception and needs) must be properly understood. While collecting data on some aspects can be easy, interpreting them all in a meaningful way in order to improve the overall user experience is much harder. This is more evident when we consider informal learning environments like museums, i.e. places that are designed to elicit visitor response towards the artifacts on display and the cultural themes proposed. In such a situation, in fact, the system should adapt to the attention paid by the user choosing the appropriate content for the user’s purposes, presenting an intuitive interface to navigate it. My research goal is focused on collecting, in a simple,unobtrusive, and sustainable way, contextual information about the visitors with the purpose of creating more engaging and personalized experiences

A systematic review of augmented reality applications in maintenance

Augmented Reality (AR) technologies for supporting maintenance operations have been an academic research topic for around 50 years now. In the last decade, major progresses have been made and the AR technology is getting closer to being implemented in industry. In this paper, the advantages and disadvantages of AR have been explored and quantified in terms of Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for industrial maintenance. Unfortunately, some technical issues still prevent AR from being suitable for industrial applications. This paper aims to show, through the results of a systematic literature review, the current state of the art of AR in maintenance and the most relevant technical limitations. The analysis included filtering from a large number of publications to 30 primary studies published between 1997 and 2017. The results indicate a high fragmentation among hardware, software and AR solutions which lead to a high complexity for selecting and developing AR systems. The results of the study show the areas where AR technology still lacks maturity. Future research directions are also proposed encompassing hardware, tracking and user-AR interaction in industrial maintenance is proposed

Visualization and Human-Machine Interaction

The digital age offers a lot of challenges in the eld of visualization. Visual imagery has been effectively used to communicate messages through the ages, to express both abstract and concrete ideas. Today, visualization has ever-expanding applications in science, engineering, education, medicine, entertainment and many other areas. Different areas of research contribute to the innovation in the eld of interactive visualization, such as data science, visual technology, Internet of things and many more. Among them, two areas of renowned importance are Augmented Reality and Visual Analytics. This thesis presents my research in the fields of visualization and human-machine interaction. The purpose of the proposed work is to investigate existing solutions in the area of Augmented Reality (AR) for maintenance. A smaller section of this thesis presents a minor research project on an equally important theme, Visual Analytics. Overall, the main goal is to identify the most important existing problems and then design and develop innovative solutions to address them. The maintenance application domain has been chosen since it is historically one of the first fields of application for Augmented Reality and it offers all the most common and important challenges that AR can arise, as described in chapter 2. Since one of the main problem in AR application deployment is reconfigurability of the application, a framework has been designed and developed that allows the user to create, deploy and update in real-time AR applications. Furthermore, the research focused on the problems related to hand-free interaction, thus investigating the area of speech-recognition interfaces and designing innovative solutions to address the problems of intuitiveness and robustness of the interface. On the other hand, the area of Visual Analytics has been investigated: among the different areas of research, multidimensional data visualization, similarly to AR, poses specific problems related to the interaction between the user and the machine. An analysis of the existing solutions has been carried out in order to identify their limitations and to point out possible improvements. Since this analysis delineates the scatterplot as a renowned visualization tool worthy of further research, different techniques for adapting its usage to multidimensional data are analyzed. A multidimensional scatterplot has been designed and developed in order to perform a comparison with another multidimensional visualization tool, the ScatterDice. The first chapters of my thesis describe my investigations in the area of Augmented Reality for maintenance. Chapter 1 provides definitions for the most important terms and an introduction to AR. The second chapter focuses on maintenance, depicting the motivations that led to choose this application domain. Moreover, the analysis concerning open problems and related works is described along with the methodology adopted to design and develop the proposed solutions. The third chapter illustrates how the adopted methodology has been applied in order to assess the problems described in the previous one. Chapter 4 describes the methodology adopted to carry out the tests and outlines the experimental results, whereas the fifth chapter illustrates the conclusions and points out possible future developments. Chapter 6 describes the analysis and research work performed in the eld of Visual Analytics, more specifically on multidimensional data visualizations. Overall, this thesis illustrates how the proposed solutions address common problems of visualization and human-machine interaction, such as interface de- sign, robustness of the interface and acceptance of new technology, whereas other problems are related to the specific research domain, such as pose tracking and reconfigurability of the procedure for the AR domain