Towards Inducing Weight Perception in Virtual Reality Through a Liquid-based Haptic Controller

Rendering haptic sensations while interacting with virtual objects, such as experiencing weight is essential for creating natural virtual reality (VR) experiences. However, accurately providing the forces required to sense an object’s weight poses a demanding challenge. Hence, standard VR setups do not allow users to experience different weight sensations. In this paper, we propose a haptic VR controller design that renders the weight of virtual objects by regulating the mass of the controller through liquid transfer. Our planned system consists of two tracked controllers that contain a water bag. They are connected to a liquid reservoir in the back, to or from which water is transferred to change the weight of the controller. A Microcontroller determines the weight of each reservoir via a bi-directional water pump and a set of solenoid valves. To evaluate the prototype, we are planning to investigate in a study whether our system can enhance the VR experience and sense of presence while lifting and swinging virtual objects. Furthermore we plan to examine, whether the device can be used to amplify avatar embodiment

Increasing Player Performance and Game Experience in High Latency Systems

Cloud gaming services and remote play offer a wide range of advantages but can inherent a considerable delay between input and action also known as latency. Previous work indicates that deep learning algorithms such as artificial neural networks (ANN) are able to compensate for latency. As high latency in video games significantly reduces player performance and game experience, this work investigates if latency can be compensated using ANNs within a live first-person action game. We developed a 3D video game and coupled it with the prediction of an ANN. We trained our network on data of 24 participants who played the game in a first study. We evaluated our system in a second user study with 96 participants. To simulate latency in cloud game streaming services, we added 180 ms latency to the game by buffering user inputs. In the study we predicted latency values of 60 ms, 120 ms and 180 ms. Our results show that players achieve significantly higher scores, substantially more hits per shot and associate the game significantly stronger with a positive affect when supported by our ANN. This work illustrates that high latency systems, such as game streaming services, benefit from utilizing a predictive system

Impact of video summary viewing on episodic memory recall:design guidelines for video summarizations

Reviewing lifelogging data has been proposed as a useful tool to support human memory. However, the sheer volume of data (particularly images) that can be captured by modern lifelogging systems makes the selection and presentation of material for review a challenging task. We present the results of a five-week user study involving 16 participants and over 69,000 images that explores both individual requirements for video summaries and the differences in cognitive load, user experience, memory experience, and recall experience between review using video summarisations and non-summary review techniques. Our results can be used to inform the design of future lifelogging data summarisation systems for memory augmentation

The Effect of Nudges and Boosts on Browsing Privacy in a Naturalistic Environment

During everyday web browsing and search users reveal many pieces of private information to third parties. Even though people report being concerned about their privacy online, they often do not take steps to protect it. This is known as the 'privacy paradox' in the literature. In this work we study two well-known strategies based on theories from the behavioral sciences, nudging and boosting, which encourage users to browse in a way that their private data are less exposed. First, an online survey (N=127) tested the comprehensibility and efficacy of various facts (boosts), before the most effective of these were evaluated against 'nudge' interventions previously shown to be efficacious in lab-studies. A three week naturalistic study (N=68) using a browser extension revealed that both nudges and boosts improve browsing privacy, as approximated by different measures. Boosts are also shown to improve user knowledge about privacy in the short term, but the benefit weakens over time

Reading in VR: The Effect of Text Presentation Type and Location

Reading is a fundamental activity to obtain information both in the real and the digital world. Virtual reality (VR) allows novel approaches for users to view, read, and interact with a text. However, for efficient reading, it is necessary to understand how a text should be displayed in VR without impairing the VR experience. Therefore, we conducted a study with 18 participants to investigate text presentation type and location in VR. We compared world-fixed, edge-fixed, and head-fixed text locations. Texts were displayed using Rapid Serial Visual Presentation (RSVP) or as a paragraph. We found that RSVP is a promising presentation type for reading short texts displayed in edge-fixed or head-fixed location in VR. The paragraph presentation type using world-fixed or edge-fixed location is promising for reading long text if movement in the virtual environment is not required. Insights from our study inform the design of reading interfaces for VR applications

Perceiving layered information on 3D displays using binocular disparity

stuttgart.de 3D displays are hitting the mass market. They are integrated in consumer TVs, notebooks, and mobile phones and are mainly used for virtual reality as well as video content. We see large potential in using depth also for structuring information. Our specific use case is 3D displays integrated in cars. The capabilities of such dis-plays could be used to present relevant information to the driver in a fast and easy-to-understand way, e.g., by functionality-based clus-tering. However, excessive parallaxes can cause discomfort and in turn negatively influence the primary driving task. This requires a reasonable choice of parallax boundaries. The contribution of this paper is twofold. First, we identify the comfort zone when perceiv-ing 3D content. Second, we determine a minimum depth distance between objects that still enables users to quickly and accurately separate the two depth planes. The results yield that in terms of task completion time the optimum distance from screen level is up to 35.9 arc-min angular disparity behind the screen plane. A dis-tance of at least 2.7 arc-min difference in angular disparity between the objects significantly decreases time for layer separation. Based on the results we derive design implications

Pac-many: Movement behavior when playing collaborative and competitive games on large displays

Peer reviewe

Services surround you:physical-virtual linkage with contextual bookmarks

Our daily life is pervaded by digital information and devices, not least the common mobile phone. However, a seamless connection between our physical world, such as a movie trailer on a screen in the main rail station and its digital counterparts, such as an online ticket service, remains difficult. In this paper, we present contextual bookmarks that enable users to capture information of interest with a mobile camera phone. Depending on the user’s context, the snapshot is mapped to a digital service such as ordering tickets for a movie theater close by or a link to the upcoming movie’s Web page

A field study to collect expert knowledge for the development of AR HUD navigation concepts

A promising advancement of conventional head-up displays in vehicles is the implementation of augmented reality. By projecting the content onto the vehicle's windshield, information can be displayed in a contact analogue way in the real world. Two major challenges for concept developers are to reduce masking caused by augmented reality content and to create concepts that are suitable for the limited field of view. To approach these challenges, we designed two contact analogue navigation concepts and evaluated them in a field study with a prototype car that contained a complete AR HUD testing environment. The subjects were experts in interaction design, AR, HUD and sales. First results of the experts' suggestions for improvements are given in this extended abstract

Validating virtual reality for time perception research: Virtual reality changes expectations about the duration of physical processes, but not the sense of time

Immersive virtual reality (VR) provides a versatile method for investigating human time perception, because it allows the manipulation and control of relevant variables (e.g., the speed of environmental changes) that cannot be modified in the real world. However, an important premise for interpreting the results of VR studies, namely that the method itself does not affect time perception, has received little attention. Here we tested this assumption by comparing timing performance in a real environment and a VR scenario. Participants performed two timing tasks, requiring the production of intervals defined either by numerical values ("eight seconds") or by a physical process (“the time it takes for a bottle to run out when turned over"). We found that the experience of immersive VR exclusively altered judgments about the duration of physical processes, whereas judgments about the duration of abstract time units were unaffected. These results demonstrate that effects of VR on timing performance are not driven by changes in time perception itself, but rather by altered expectations regarding the duration of physical processes. The present study validates the use of VR in time perception research and strengthens the interpretation of changed timing behaviour induced by manipulations within VR