A Study of Interaction, Visual Canvas, and Immersion in AR Design: A DSR Approach

Augmented reality (AR) as an innovative technology has changed the way people use technology for interaction and communication. While researchers have studied the application of AR, research on AR as a communication medium remains scant. In this study, we investigate the effect of AR factors (namely, interaction, visual canvas/cues, and immersion) on AR-mediated communication. We apply design science research (DSR) guidelines to design, develop, and evaluate an AR artifact. We derive the design elements based on interactivity, media naturalness, and immersion theories and develop the AR artifact as a mobile app in an iterative manner. We evaluate the design product through the informed arguments and scenarios method, and the design process by assessing its conformance to DSR principles. We show that AR factors\u27 design elements—interaction (user controls, contextual tasks, and ergonomics), visual canvas/cues (realistic 3D models, visual and audio cues, and aesthetics), and immersion (diverse components)—play a critical role in AR-mediated communication. Furthermore, high-quality product visuals and interactive user controls give users a good AR experience. From a practice perspective, AR app designers may incorporate the design process we used in our study and generate AR experiences that fully exploit AR media’s communication affordance. We contribute to knowledge by using DSR guidelines for designing and developing AR as a communication medium

:Gamification & Serious Game : Symposium 2016, July 4 & 5

Reinforcing the bridge between local academic and applied worlds in the domain of Serious Game & Gamification, e.g. applied universities and startups. Focusing on three application domain, Helath, Social, and Education, the figure next page illustrates the variety of short talks of the symposium. The three categories of talks (among 14 corresponding short papers): five concept-oriented in green, nine demo-oriented in black, and three roundtables

Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality (AR) is a natural development from virtual reality (VR), which was developed several decades earlier. AR complements VR in many ways. Due to the advantages of the user being able to see both the real and virtual objects simultaneously, AR is far more intuitive, but it's not completely detached from human factors and other restrictions. AR doesn't consume as much time and effort in the applications because it's not required to construct the entire virtual scene and the environment. In this book, several new and emerging application areas of AR are presented and divided into three sections. The first section contains applications in outdoor and mobile AR, such as construction, restoration, security and surveillance. The second section deals with AR in medical, biological, and human bodies. The third and final section contains a number of new and useful applications in daily living and learning

Exploring Cognitive Processes with Virtual Environments

The scope of this thesis is the study of cognitive processes with, and within Virtual Environments (VEs). Specifically, the presented work has two main objectives: (1) to outline a framework for situating the applications of VEs to cognitive sciences, especially those interfacing with the medical domain; and (2) to empirically illustrate the potential of VEs for studying specific aspects of cognitive processes. As for the first objective, the sought framework has been built by proposing classifications and discussing several examples of VEs used for assessing and treating disorders of attention, memory, executive functions, visual-spatial skills, and language. Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy was briefly discussed as well, and applications to autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia, and pain control were touched on. These applications in fact underscore prerogatives that may extend to non-medical applications to cognitive sciences. The second objective was sought by studying the time course of attention. Two experiments were undertaken, both relying on dual-target paradigms that cause an attentional blink (AB). The first experiment evaluated the effect of a 7-week Tibetan Yoga training on the performance of habitual meditators in an AB paradigm using letters as distractors, and single-digit numbers as targets. The results confirm the evidence that meditation improves the allocation of attentional resources, and extend this conclusion to Yoga, which incorporates also physical exercise. The second experiment compared the AB performance of adult participants using rapid serial presentations of road signs -- hence less abstract stimuli -- under three display conditions: as 2-D images on a computer screen, either with or without a concurrent auditory distraction, and appearing in a 3-D immersive virtual environment depicting a motorway junction. The results found a generally weak AB magnitude, which is maximal in the Virtual Environment, and minimal in the condition with the concurrent auditory distraction. However, no lag-1 sparing effect was observed. == La tesi attiene allo studio dei processi cognitivi in ambiente virtuale (AV). In particolare il lavoro presentato ha due obiettivi principali: (1) proporre un quadro di riferimento per le applicazioni degli AV nelle scienze cognitive, specialmente quando queste rientrano nel settore medico; e (2) illustrare empiricamente il potenziale degli AV per lo studio di specifici aspetti cognitivi. Il quadro di riferimento del primo obiettivo è stato costruito discutendo classificazioni ed esempi di AV usati per valutare e trattare disturbi dell'attenzione, della memoria, esecutivi, delle abilità visuo-spaziali e del linguaggio. Sono stati brevemente discussi anche esempi di applicazioni di Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy, e per i disturbi dello spettro autistico, la schizofrenia, e l'analgesia. Esse sono infatti rappresentative delle prerogative degli AV trasferibili ad aspetti non medici delle scienze cognitive. Per il secondo obiettivo del lavoro si è studiata l'attenzione nel dominio temporale. Sono stati realizzati due esperimenti, entrambi basati su un paradigma sperimentale di doppio-compito tale da indurre il fenomeno dell'attentional blink (AB). Il primo esperimento ha valutato l'effetto di 7 settimane di Yoga tibetano sull'AB di un gruppo di meditatori. La presentazione visiva seriale rapida comprendeva lettere come distrattori e numeri a una cifra come target. I risultati confermano che la meditazione riduce l'AB, ed estendono questa conclusione allo Yoga, che include anche l'esercizio fisico. Il secondo esperimento ha confrontato l'AB di un gruppo di adulti utilizzando presentazioni visive seriali rapide di segnali stradali -- dunque stimoli meno astratti -- in 3 condizioni: immagini 2-D sullo schermo di un computer, essendo simultaneamente presente o assente una distrazione uditiva, e presentazione 3-D in un AV immersivo che simula un incrocio autostradale. I risultati rilevano un AB lieve, che è massimo nell'AV, e minimo nella condizione 2-D con la distrazione uditiva. L'effetto lag-1 sparing non è presente

Acquisition and extinction across multiple virtual reality contexts: implications for specific phobias and current treatment methods

Victor Wong studied human acquisition learning over multiple contexts using virtual reality. He found that learning an association over multiple contexts can impact subsequent extinction training. This suggests that fears acquired over multiple contexts may be more difficult to treat using exposure-based therapies and will need to be augmented for effectiveness

Attention and Social Cognition in Virtual Reality:The effect of engagement mode and character eye-gaze

Technical developments in virtual humans are manifest in modern character design. Specifically, eye gaze offers a significant aspect of such design. There is need to consider the contribution of participant control of engagement. In the current study, we manipulated participants’ engagement with an interactive virtual reality narrative called Coffee without Words. Participants sat over coffee opposite a character in a virtual café, where they waited for their bus to be repaired. We manipulated character eye-contact with the participant. For half the participants in each condition, the character made no eye-contact for the duration of the story. For the other half, the character responded to participant eye-gaze by making and holding eye contact in return. To explore how participant engagement interacted with this manipulation, half the participants in each condition were instructed to appraise their experience as an artefact (i.e., drawing attention to technical features), while the other half were introduced to the fictional character, the narrative, and the setting as though they were real. This study allowed us to explore the contributions of character features (interactivity through eye-gaze) and cognition (attention/engagement) to the participants’ perception of realism, feelings of presence, time duration, and the extent to which they engaged with the character and represented their mental states (Theory of Mind). Importantly it does so using a highly controlled yet ecologically valid virtual experience

Measuring prefrontal cortex response to virtual reality exposure therapy in freely moving participants

Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy has demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of phobias; yet little is known about its underlying neural mechanisms. Neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that both traditional exposure therapy and virtual reality exposure therapy normalise brain activity within a prefrontal - amygdalar fear circuit after the treatment. However, the previous studies employed technologies that perhaps impact on ecological validity and naturalness of experience. Moreover, there are no studies investigating what is happening in the brain within a virtual reality session. This PhD takes a multidisciplinary approach and draws upon research areas of cognitive neuroscience, neuropsychology, and virtual reality. The approach is twofold - developmental and experimental. A key methodological objective was to maximise ecological validity by allowing freedom of movement and sight of one’s own body. This was approached by combining wearable fNIRS within Immersive Projection Technology (IPT). The stimulus was adapted from a classic VR experiment - Pit Room. The scope of this PhD includes three experiments. The first pilot experiment tested the potential of combining the wearable Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) device – NIRSport, with virtual reality (VR) display - CAVE-like Immersive Projection Technology (IPT) system – Octave. The aim was to test the feasibility of the protocol in terms of the design, integration of technology, and signal to noise ratio in the Pit Room study, which involved measuring brain response during exposure to heights in virtual reality. The study demonstrated that brain activity could be measured in IPT without a significant signal interference. Although there was no significant change in brain activity during exposure to virtual heights, the study found trends toward increased HbO in the prefrontal cortex. The second study investigated the brain activity indicative of fear inhibition and cognitive reappraisal within a single session of VRET in healthy controls. The heart rate was also measured as an indicator of emotional arousal (fear response) during the VRET session. 27 healthy volunteers were exposed to heights in virtual reality. Changes in oxygenated haemoglobin concentration in the prefrontal cortex were measured in three blocks using a wireless fNIRS, and heart rate was measured using a wireless psychophysiological monitor. Results revealed increased HbO concentration in the DLPFC and MPFC during exposure to the fear-evoking VR, consistent with fear inhibition and cognitive reappraisal measured in previous neuroimaging studies that had not used VR. Within-session brain activity was measured at much higher temporal resolution than in previous studies. Consistent with previous studies, a trend showed an increase of brain activity in the DLPFC indicative of cognitive reappraisal at the beginning of the session. Then additionally the MPFC was activated consistent with fear inhibition. The heart rate showed a trend towards a gradual decrease within a session. The aim of the third study was to investigate the neural basis of VRET in an acrophobic population. In particular, the study focused on measuring functional brain activity associated with both within- and between-session learning. Psychophysiological monitoring was also employed to measure levels of emotional arousal within- and between sessions. 13 acrophobic volunteers took part in three-session VRET for a fear of heights. Changes in HbO in the prefrontal cortex were measured in three blocks to investigate within–session brain activity and across three sessions to investigate between-session inhibitory learning. Results demonstrated that phobic participants have decreased activity in the DLPFC and MPFC at the beginning, however, after three sessions of VRET, activity in these brain areas increased towards normal (measured in healthy controls). Although there was no within-session learning during the first and second session, the study found a significant increase in the DLPFC at the beginning of a session. During the second block, additionally, the MPFC was activated. The magnitude of brain activity in those regions was negatively correlated with the initial level of acrophobia. Due to the technical difficulties, no significant results were found in psychophysiological measures. However, subjective fear ratings decreased significantly within- and between sessions. Moreover, participants who felt more present demonstrated stronger results in brain activity at the end of VRET. This is the first project that investigated the neural correlates of fear inhibition and inhibitory learning by combining a VR display in which people can move around and see their body, with wearable neural imaging that gave a reasonable compromise between spatial and temporal resolution. This project has an application in widening access to immersive neuroimaging across understanding, diagnosis, assessment, and treatment of, a range of mental disorders such as phobia, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder. An application that is receiving an interest in the clinical community is repeatable, direct and quantifiable assessment within clinics, to diagnose, steer treatment and measure treatment outcome