Augmented reality and scene examination

The research presented in this thesis explores the impact of Augmented Reality on human performance, and compares this technology with Virtual Reality using a head-mounted video-feed for a variety of tasks that relate to scene examination. The motivation for the work was the question of whether Augmented Reality could provide a vehicle for training in crime scene investigation. The Augmented Reality application was developed using fiducial markers in the Windows Presentation Foundation, running on a wearable computer platform; Virtual Reality was developed using the Crytek game engine to present a photo-realistic 3D environment; and a video-feed was provided through head-mounted webcam. All media were presented through head-mounted displays of similar resolution to provide the sole source of visual information to participants in the experiments. The experiments were designed to increase the amount of mobility required to conduct the search task, i.e., from rotation in the horizontal or vertical plane through to movement around a room. In each experiment, participants were required to find objects and subsequently recall their location. It is concluded that human performance is affected not merely via the medium through which the world is perceived but moreover, the constraints governing how movement in the world is controlled

Collision warning design in automotive head-up displays

Abstract. In the last few years, the automotive industry has experienced a large growth in the hardware and the underlying electronics. The industry benefits from both Human Machine Interface (HMI) research and modern technology. There are many applications of the Advanced Driver Assistant System (ADAS) and their positive impact on drivers is even more. Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is one of many applications of ADAS. In the last decades, different approaches and tools are used to implement FCW systems. Current Augmented Reality (AR) applications are feasible to integrate in modern cars. In this thesis work, we introduce three different FCW designs: static, animated and 3D animated warnings. We test the proposed designs in three different environments: day, night and rain. The designs static and animated achieve a minimum response time 0.486 s whereas the 3D animated warning achieves 1.153 s

OSGAR: a scene graph with uncertain transformations

An important problem for augmented reality is registration error. No system can be perfectly tracked, calibrated or modeled. As a result, the overlaid graphics are not aligned perfectly with objects in the physical world. This can be distracting, annoying or confusing. In this paper, we propose a method for mitigating the effects of registration errors that enables application developers to build dynamically adaptive AR displays. Our solution is implemented in a programming toolkit called OSGAR. Built upon OpenSceneGraph (OSG), OSGAR statistically characterizes registration errors, monitors those errors and, when a set of criteria are met, dynamically adapts the display to mitigate the effects of the errors. Because the architecture is based on a scene graph, it provides a simple, familiar and intuitive environment for application developers. We describe the components of OSGAR, discuss how several proposed methods for error registration can be implemented, and illustrate its use through a set of examples

Augmented reality and its aspects: a case study for heating systems

Mestrado de dupla diplomação com a UTFPR - Universidade Tecnológica Federal do ParanáThanks to the advances of technology in various domains, and the mixing between real and virtual worlds. Allowed this master’s thesis to explore concepts related to virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), and extended reality (XR). The development and comparison of Android applications and Microsoft HoloLens aimed to solve a deadlock in the recognition of instructions by the users. We used an interactive manual of assembly and disassembly for taps of residential heaters. Therefore, this work deals with three main parts. Firstly, the exploration of the concepts of VR, AR, MR, and XR. Secondly, 3D modeling and animations techniques. Finally, the development of applications using Vuforia, Wikitude, and MRTK. The users tried our application “HeaterGuideAR” to verify the effectiveness of the instruction passed by the interactive manual. Only a few users had some difficulties at the beginning of the trials. Thus, it was necessary to provide aid tools. However, other users were able to disassemble the faucet without any external help. We suggest continuing this work with more explorations, models, and situations.Graças aos últimos avanços tecnológicos em diversas áreas deram a possibilidade de fazer a mistura do mundo real com o virtual. É com este intuito que esta tese de mestrado veio expor os conceitos relacionados à realidade virtual (RV), realidade aumentada (RA), realidade mista (RM) e realidade estendida (RE). O desenvolvimento e comparação de aplicativos Android e Microsoft HoloLens teve como objetivo resolver um impasse no entendimento de instruções por parte dos usuários. Utilizamos um manual interativo para montagem e desmontagem de torneiras de aquecedores residenciais. Este trabalho, portanto, lida com três partes principais. Na primeira, a exploração dos conceitos de RV, RA, RM e RE. Na segunda, modelagem 3D e técnicas de animações. E por fim, o desenvolvimento de aplicações usando Vuforia, Wikitude e MRTK. A aplicação “HeaterGuideAR” foi testada pelos usuários afim de verificar a eficácia da instrução passada pelo manual interativo. Apenas alguns usuários tiveram algumas dificuldades no início dos testes. Sendo que, foi necessário fornecer algumas ferramentas de auxílio. Mesmo assim, outros usuários conseguiram desmontar a torneira sem ajuda externa. Sugerimos continuar este trabalho com mais explorações, modelos e situações.Mestrado de dupla diplomação com a UTFPR - Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paran

A 360 VR and Wi-Fi Tracking Based Autonomous Telepresence Robot for Virtual Tour

This study proposes a novel mobile robot teleoperation interface that demonstrates the applicability of a robot-aided remote telepresence system with a virtual reality (VR) device to a virtual tour scenario. To improve realism and provide an intuitive replica of the remote environment for the user interface, the implemented system automatically moves a mobile robot (viewpoint) while displaying a 360-degree live video streamed from the robot to a VR device (Oculus Rift). Upon the user choosing a destination location from a given set of options, the robot generates a route based on a shortest path graph and travels along that the route using a wireless signal tracking method that depends on measuring the direction of arrival (DOA) of radio signals. This paper presents an overview of the system and architecture, and discusses its implementation aspects. Experimental results show that the proposed system is able to move to the destination stably using the signal tracking method, and that at the same time, the user can remotely control the robot through the VR interface