Exploring the Potential of 3D Visualization Techniques for Usage in Collaborative Design

Best practice for collaborative design demands good interaction between its collaborators. The capacity to share common knowledge about design models at hand is a basic requirement. With current advancing technologies gathering collective knowledge is more straightforward, as the dialog between experts can be supported better. The potential for 3D visualization techniques to become the right support tool for collaborative design is explored. Special attention is put on the possible usage for remote collaboration. The opportunities for current state-of-the-art visualization techniques from stereoscopic vision to holographic displays are researched. A classification of the various systems is explored with respect to their tangible usage for augmented reality. Appropriate interaction methods can be selected based on the usage scenario

Quality of experience study for multiple sensorial media delivery

Traditional video sequences make use of both visual images and audio tracks which are perceived by human eyes and ears, respectively. In order to present better ultra-reality virtual experience, the comprehensive human sensations (e.g. olfaction, haptic, gustatory, etc) needed to be exploited. In this paper, a multiple sensorial media (mulsemedia) delivery system is introduced to deliver multimedia sequences integrated with multiple media components which engage three or more of human senses such as sight, hearing, olfaction, haptic, gustatory, etc. Three sensorial effects (i.e. haptic, olfaction, and air-flowing) are selected for the purpose of demonstration. Subjective test is conducted to analyze the user perceived quality of experience of the mulsemedia service. It is concluded that the mulsemedia sequences can partly mask the decreased movie quality. Additionally the most preferable sensorial effect is haptic, followed by air-flowing and olfaction.This work was supported in part by Enterprise Ireland Innovation Partnership programme

User quality of experience of mulsemedia applications

User Quality of Experience (QoE) is of fundamental importance in multimedia applications and has been extensively studied for decades. However, user QoE in the context of the emerging multiple-sensorial media (mulsemedia) services, which involve different media components than the traditional multimedia applications, have not been comprehensively studied. This article presents the results of subjective tests which have investigated user perception of mulsemedia content. In particular, the impact of intensity of certain mulsemedia components including haptic and airflow on user-perceived experience are studied. Results demonstrate that by making use of mulsemedia the overall user enjoyment levels increased by up to 77%

Multi-touch 3D Exploratory Analysis of Ocean Flow Models

Modern ocean flow simulations are generating increasingly complex, multi-layer 3D ocean flow models. However, most researchers are still using traditional 2D visualizations to visualize these models one slice at a time. Properly designed 3D visualization tools can be highly effective for revealing the complex, dynamic flow patterns and structures present in these models. However, the transition from visualizing ocean flow patterns in 2D to 3D presents many challenges, including occlusion and depth ambiguity. Further complications arise from the interaction methods required to navigate, explore, and interact with these 3D datasets. We present a system that employs a combination of stereoscopic rendering, to best reveal and illustrate 3D structures and patterns, and multi-touch interaction, to allow for natural and efficient navigation and manipulation within the 3D environment. Exploratory visual analysis is facilitated through the use of a highly-interactive toolset which leverages a smart particle system. Multi-touch gestures allow users to quickly position dye emitting tools within the 3D model. Finally, we illustrate the potential applications of our system through examples of real world significance

Haptic-GeoZui3D: Exploring the Use of Haptics in AUV Path Planning

We have developed a desktop virtual reality system that we call Haptic-GeoZui3D, which brings together 3D user interaction and visualization to provide a compelling environment for AUV path planning. A key component in our system is the PHANTOM haptic device (SensAble Technologies, Inc.), which affords a sense of touch and force feedback – haptics – to provide cues and constraints to guide the user’s interaction. This paper describes our system, and how we use haptics to significantly augment our ability to lay out a vehicle path. We show how our system works well for quickly defining simple waypoint-towaypoint (e.g. transit) path segments, and illustrate how it could be used in specifying more complex, highly segmented (e.g. lawnmower survey) paths

Physically Interacting With Four Dimensions

Thesis (Ph.D.) - Indiana University, Computer Sciences, 2009People have long been fascinated with understanding the fourth dimension. While making pictures of 4D objects by projecting them to 3D can help reveal basic geometric features, 3D graphics images by themselves are of limited value. For example, just as 2D shadows of 3D curves may have lines crossing one another in the shadow, 3D graphics projections of smooth 4D topological surfaces can be interrupted where one surface intersects another. The research presented here creates physically realistic models for simple interactions with objects and materials in a virtual 4D world. We provide methods for the construction, multimodal exploration, and interactive manipulation of a wide variety of 4D objects. One basic achievement of this research is to exploit the free motion of a computer-based haptic probe to support a continuous motion that follows the \emph{local continuity\/} of a 4D surface, allowing collision-free exploration in the 3D projection. In 3D, this interactive probe follows the full local continuity of the surface as though we were in fact \emph{physically touching\/} the actual static 4D object. Our next contribution is to support dynamic 4D objects that can move, deform, and collide with other objects as well as with themselves. By combining graphics, haptics, and collision-sensing physical modeling, we can thus enhance our 4D visualization experience. Since we cannot actually place interaction devices in 4D, we develop fluid methods for interacting with a 4D object in its 3D shadow image using adapted reduced-dimension 3D tools for manipulating objects embedded in 4D. By physically modeling the correct properties of 4D surfaces, their bending forces, and their collisions in the 3D interactive or haptic controller interface, we can support full-featured physical exploration of 4D mathematical objects in a manner that is otherwise far beyond the real-world experience accessible to human beings