Entwicklungsunterstützung für interaktive 3D-Anwendungen

Die vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich mit der Entwicklung interaktiver 3D-Anwendungen. Interaktive 3D-Grafik wird heutzutage in den verschiedensten Domänen eingesetzt, z. B. im e-Commerce-, Unterhaltungs- und Ausbildungsbereich. Dennoch stellt die Entwicklung einer umfangreicheren 3D-Anwendung nach wie vor eine Herausforderung dar. Programmcode und 3D-Inhalte werden i. d. R. von verschiedenen Entwicklern erstellt, die unterschiedliches Fachwissen besitzen und mit völlig verschiedenartigen Werkzeugen arbeiten. Diese Situation führt häufig zu Problemen bei der Integration der erstellten Anwendungskomponenten in ein komplexes interaktives 3D-Gesamtsystem. So können etwa Inkonsistenzen auftreten, die einen korrekten Zugriff des Programms auf die 3D-Inhalte zur Laufzeit verhindern. Zudem fehlen Konzepte und Werkzeuge zur Unterstützung einer strukturierten interdisziplinären 3D-Entwicklung. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird ein neuartiger Lösungsansatz für die genannten Probleme vorgestellt. Es handelt sich dabei um eine Familie domänenspezifischer Sprachen, die für einen Einsatz in der Entwurfsphase vor der Implementierung im 3D-Entwicklungsprozess konzipiert wurden. Basissprache der Familie, die durch weitere Sprachkomponenten ergänzt wird, ist die Scene Structure and Integration Modelling Language (kurz SSIML). Mittels visueller Modelle lassen sich -- werkzeuggestützt -- Verknüpfungen zwischen Programmkomponenten und 3D-Inhalten spezifizieren. Durch die automatische Erzeugung von Codeskeletten aus einem Modell, die sowohl dem 3D-Designer als auch dem Programmierer als zu vervollständigende Vorlagen dienen, kann die Konsistenz zwischen den einzelnen Anwendungsbestandteilen sichergestellt werden. Neben der Verknüpfung von Programmcode und 3D-Inhalten sind die Strukturierung und Modularisierung von 3D-Inhalten, die aufgabenorientierte 3D-Visualisierung, 3D-Verhalten und Animation und Augmented Realitiy-Anwendungen weitere wichtige Aspekte, die durch die Mitglieder der SSIML-Sprachfamilie abgedeckt werden. Außerdem wird in der vorliegenden Arbeit ein 3D-Entwicklungsprozess skizziert, der einen sinnvollen Einbezug der vorgestellten Konzepte und Werkzeuge erlaubt

Round-trip Engineering für Anwendungen der Virtuellen und Erweiterten Realität

Traditionelle 3D-Anwendungsentwicklung für VR/AR verläuft in heterogenen Entwicklerteams unstrukturiert, ad hoc und ist fehlerbehaftet. Der präsentierte Roundtrip3D Entwicklungsprozess ermöglicht die iterativ inkrementelle 3D-Anwendungsentwicklung, wechselseitig auf Softwaremodell- und Implementierungsebene. Modelle fördern das gemeinsame Verständnis unter Projektbeteiligten und sichern durch generierte Schnittstellen gleichzeitiges Programmieren und 3D-Modellieren zu. Das Roundtrip3D Werkzeug ermittelt Inkonsistenzen zwischen vervollständigten 3D-Inhalten und Quelltexten auch für verschiedene Plattformen und visualisiert sie auf abstrakter Modellebene. Die gesamte Implementierung wird nicht simultan, sondern nach codegetriebener Entwicklung kontrolliert mit Softwaremodellen abgeglichen. Inkremente aus aktualisierten Softwaremodellen fließen in dann wieder zueinander konsistente Quelltexte und 3D-Inhalte ein. Der Roundtrip3D Entwicklungsprozess vereint dauerhaft Vorteile codegetriebener mit modellgetriebener 3D-Anwendungsentwicklung und fördert strukturiertes Vorgehen im agilen Umfeld

Evaluation of learning outcomes using an educational iPhone game vs. traditional game

In this paper, we present an initial study to determine the subject preferences for educational computer games for children, in which 150 education professionals participated. From the results of this first study, we have developed an iPhone game for transmitting knowledge as part of multiculturalism, solidarity and tolerance following established learning theories, several design principles, and the objectives and competences of the Spanish law for primary education. We also report on a second study to determine whether the iPhone game has better learning outcomes than a traditional game by analyzing the participation of 84 children ranging in age from 8 to 10 years old. The frequency of playing with consoles or computer games was also taken into account in this second study, and the worldwide trend of previous studies has been corroborated. For learning outcomes, the results did not show significant differences between the two groups. However, 96% of the children indicated that they would like to play with the iPhone game again, and 90% indicated that they preferred the experience with the iPhone game over the traditional one. From these results, we can conclude that the children achieved similar knowledge improvements using both the autonomous game (iPhone game) and the custom, guided game (traditional game). This could facilitate versatility in the learning process since the learning activity could be performed at any place and time without requiring supervision. Therefore, it could be a useful tool in the learning process and help teachers to fulfill students' training needs. 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.This work was funded by the Spanish APRENDRA project (TIN2009-14319-C02).Furió Ferri, D.; González Gancedo, S.; Juan, M.; Seguí, I.; Rando, N. (2013). Evaluation of learning outcomes using an educational iPhone game vs. traditional game. Computers and Education. 64:1-23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2012.12.001S1236

Model-Driven Development of Interactive Multimedia Applications

The development of highly interactive multimedia applications is still a challenging and complex task. In addition to the application logic, multimedia applications typically provide a sophisticated user interface with integrated media objects. As a consequence, the development process involves different experts for software design, user interface design, and media design. There is still a lack of concepts for a systematic development which integrates these aspects. This thesis provides a model-driven development approach addressing this problem. Therefore it introduces the Multimedia Modeling Language (MML), a visual modeling language supporting a design phase in multimedia application development. The language is oriented on well-established software engineering concepts, like UML 2, and integrates concepts from the areas of multimedia development and model-based user interface development. MML allows the generation of code skeletons from the models. Thereby, the core idea is to generate code skeletons which can be directly processed in multimedia authoring tools. In this way, the strengths of both are combined: Authoring tools are used to perform the creative development tasks while models are used to design the overall application structure and to enable a well-coordinated development process. This is demonstrated using the professional authoring tool Adobe Flash. MML is supported by modeling and code generation tools which have been used to validate the approach over several years in various student projects and teaching courses. Additional prototypes have been developed to demonstrate, e.g., the ability to generate code for different target platforms. Finally, it is discussed how models can contribute in general to a better integration of well-structured software development and creative visual design

Human Computer Interaction and Emerging Technologies

The INTERACT Conferences are an important platform for researchers and practitioners in the field of human-computer interaction (HCI) to showcase their work. They are organised biennially by the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) Technical Committee on Human–Computer Interaction (IFIP TC13), an international committee of 30 member national societies and nine Working Groups. INTERACT is truly international in its spirit and has attracted researchers from several countries and cultures. With an emphasis on inclusiveness, it works to lower the barriers that prevent people in developing countries from participating in conferences. As a multidisciplinary field, HCI requires interaction and discussion among diverse people with different interests and backgrounds. The 17th IFIP TC13 International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (INTERACT 2019) took place during 2-6 September 2019 in Paphos, Cyprus. The conference was held at the Coral Beach Hotel Resort, and was co-sponsored by the Cyprus University of Technology and Tallinn University, in cooperation with ACM and ACM SIGCHI. This volume contains the Adjunct Proceedings to the 17th INTERACT Conference, comprising a series of selected papers from workshops, the Student Design Consortium and the Doctoral Consortium. The volume follows the INTERACT conference tradition of submitting adjunct papers after the main publication deadline, to be published by a University Press with a connection to the conference itself. In this case, both the Adjunct Proceedings Chair of the conference, Dr Usashi Chatterjee, and the lead Editor of this volume, Dr Fernando Loizides, work at Cardiff University which is the home of Cardiff University Press

Modeling Augmented Reality User Interfaces with SSIML/AR

Abstract — Augmented Reality (AR) technologies open up new possibilities especially for task-focused domains such as assembly and maintenance. However, it can be noticed that there is still a lack of concepts and tools for a structured AR development process and an application specification above the code level. To address this problem we introduce specification of AR applications in general and AR user interfaces in particular. With SSIML/AR, three different aspects of AR user interfaces can be described: The user interface structure, the presentation of relevant information depending on the user’s current task and the integration of the user interface with other system components. Code skeletons can be generated automatically from SSIML/AR models. This enables the seamless transition from the design level to the implementation level. In addition, we sketch how SSIML/AR models can be integrated in an overall AR development process. Index Terms — Augmented Reality, AR application, AR user interface, task modeling, 3D software design, scene modeling