''It''+''I'': Virtual Embodiments as Hybrid Experiences

International audienceA dichotomy exists in the way virtual embodiments are currently studied: embodied entities are considered by conversational approaches as other selves whereas avatar approaches study them as users' hosts. Virtual reality applications such as in our case study often propose a different, in between embodiment experience. In the context of a virtual house for sale visit, this paper aims at examining the user's self-reported embodiment perception resulting from such a hybrid experience. To induce variability in this embodiment experience, we manipulated avatar representations (high versus low anthropomorphism) and frame of reference (egocentric versus exocentric). Results show the importance of the entity humanness to foster both experiences. When controlled by humanness, having a conversational experience appears uncorrelated to an avatar experience. This highlights the need to study these hybrid experiences as a combination of both approaches

D3: an Immersive aided design deformation method

International audienceIn this paper, we introduce a new deformation method adapted to immersive design. The use of Virtual Reality (VR) in the design process implies a physical displacement of project actors and data between the virtual reality facilities and the design office. The decisions taken in the immersive environment are manually reflected on the Computed Aided Design (CAD) system. This increases the design time and breaks the continuity of data workflow. On this basis, there is a clear demand among the industry for tools adapted to immersive design. But few methods exist that encompass CAD problematic in VR. For this purpose, we propose a new method, called D3, for "Draw, Deform and Design", based on a 2 step manipulation paradigm, consisting with 1) area selection and 2) path drawing, and a final refining and fitting phase. Our method is discussed on the basis of a set of CAD deformation scenarios

User-Defined Gestural Interaction: a Study on Gesture Memorization

8 pagesInternational audienceIn this paper we study the memorization of user created gestures for 3DUI. Wide public applications mostly use standardized gestures for interactions with simple contents. This work is motivated by two application cases for which a standardized approach is not possible and thus user specific or dedicated interfaces are needed. The first one is applications for people with limited sensory-motor abilities for whom generic interaction methods may not be adapted. The second one is creative arts applications, for which gesture freedom is part of the creative process. In this work, users are asked to create gestures for a set of tasks, in a specific phase, prior to using the system. We propose a user study to explore the question of gesture memorization. Gestures are recorded and recognized with a Hidden Markov Model. Results show that it seems difficult to recall more than two abstract gestures. Affordances strongly improve memorization whereas the use of colocalization has no significant effect

A Methodology to Assess the Acceptability of Human-Robot Collaboration Using Virtual Reality

International audienceRobots are becoming more and more present in our everyday life: they are already used for domestic tasks, for companionship activities, and soon they will be used to assist humans and collaborate with them in their work. Human-robot collaboration has already been studied in the industry, for ergonomics and efficiency purposes, but more from a safety than from an acceptability point of view. In this work, we focused on how people perceive robots in a collaboration task and we proposed to use virtual reality as a simulation environment to test different parameters, by making users collaborate with virtual robots. A simple use case was implemented to compare different robot appearances and different robot movements. Questionnaires and physiological measures were used to assess the acceptability level of each condition with a user study. The results showed that the perception of robot movements depended on robot appearance and that a more anthropomorphic robot, both in its appearance and movements, was not necessarily better accepted by the users in a collaboration task. Finally, this preliminary use case was also the opportunity to guarantee the relevance of using such a methodology -- based on virtual reality, questionnaires and physiological measures --for future studies

Assessing the Acceptability of Human-Robot Co-Presence on Assembly Lines: A Comparison Between Actual Situations and their Virtual Reality Counterparts

International audienceThis paper focuses on the acceptability of human-robot collaboration in industrial environments. A use case was designed in which an operator and a robot had to work side-by-side on automotive assembly lines, with different levels of co-presence. This use case was implemented both in a physical and in a virtual situation using virtual reality. A user study was conducted with operators from the automotive industry. The operators were asked to assess the acceptability to work side-by-side with the robot through questionnaires, and physiological measures (heart rate and skin conductance) were taken during the user study. The results showed that working close to the robot imposed more constraints on the operators and required them to adapt to the robot. Moreover, an increase in skin conductance level was observed after working close to the robot. Although no significant difference was found in the questionnaires results between the physical and virtual situations, the increase in physiological measures was significant only in the physical situation. This suggests that virtual reality may be a good tool to assess the acceptability of human-robot collaboration and draw preliminary results through questionnaires, but that physical experiments are still necessary to a complete study, especially when dealing with physiological measures

Une réflexion sur les usages possibles de la réalité virtuelle immersive en Archéologie

International audienceCet article fait suite à une rencontre entre les Archéologues de l’université Paris I Sorbonne et les chercheurs en Réalité Virtuelle des MinesParisTech. L’échange a porté sur les possibles usages des outils de réalité virtuelle immersive en archéologie, lors d’une visite du système de réalité virtuelle des Mines ParisTech. Nous tentons d’en résumer ici les grandes lignes. Une dialectique prometteuse s’en dégage entre utilité évidente de la Réalité Virtuelle et le besoin fort de l’archéologue de garder une objectivité sur ses données

Ecological Validity of Virtual Reality : Three Use Cases

International audienceThis paper is a discussion on the question of ecological validity of virtual reality in the light of three studies that we have done in previous works. These works are chosen as a basis for the discussion because they are all designed to assess validity using one method : the comparison of user perception and behavior between real and virtual environements. The first study explores visual perception of complex materials , the second studies the role of visual feedback on user gestures and object manipulation, the third is a study of virtual reality as a tool for assessing the acceptability of human robot collaboration in a car factory. We discuss our methodology, the limits of validity of VR in our three use cases and suggest future developments in VR to provide design tools for more valid VR environments

Interaction en Environnements Immersifs et Retours d’Effort Passifs

Force feedback provides users with haptic information, relative to the sense of touch. This work focuses on passive force feedback -which doesn’t add mechanical energy to the user- and distance of manipulation in immersive displays. We propose and evaluate passive force feed- back techniques whose objective is to cumulate two advantages : 1) make no use of motors or actuators, 2) adapt to changes in the virtual environment. The proposed techniques are based on an interaction between visual and tactile senses, in 2D and immersive environments. On a 2D desktop system, we show the suitability of pseudo-haptic feedback -proposed by Lecuyer et al- for simulating torque feedback. We then propose a passive system that returns non-grounded forces. The system is evaluated in two situations : the simulation of friction and in a two-user cooperative task. In an immersive environment, we propose a new system for simulating grounded forces. It is evaluated and installed on a Workbench virtual reality system. Finally we study the effect of distance of manipulation in a responsive workbench ; we define it as the distance between the hand of the user and the virtual object being manipulated.Le retour d’effort permet de renvoyer à un utilisateur des informations relatives au sens du toucher. Ces travaux s’intéressent aux retours d’effort passifs, n’apportant pas d’énergie mécanique à l’utilisateur, ainsi qu’à la distance de manipulation en environnements immersifs. Nous proposons et évaluons des méthodes de retour d’effort passif dont l’objectif est de cumuler deux avantages : 1) ne pas utiliser de moteurs ou d’actionneurs, 2) pouvoir s’adapter aux changements dans l’environnement virtuel. Ces méthodes sont basées sur une interaction entre la vue et le toucher, en environnements 2D ou immersifs. Sur station, en 2D, nous montrons la possibilité de fournir un retour d’effort en couples de forces en utilisant le retour pseudo-haptique proposé par Lécuyer et al. Nous proposons ensuite un périphérique de retour haptique passif à base non fixe. Ce périphérique est évalué selon deux critères : la simulation de frottements, et son apport dans une situation de coopération entre deux utilisateurs. En environnement immersif, nous proposons un périphérique nouveau, appelé “auto-contraint”, à base fixe. Le périphérique est évalué, et installé sur un Plan de Travail Virtuel. Enfin, nousétudions l’effet de la distance de manipulation sur le plan de travail virtuel, définie comme la distance séparant la main de l’utilisateur et l’objet virtuel manipulé

Interaction en Environnements Immersifs et Retours d’Effort Passifs

Force feedback provides users with haptic information, relative to the sense of touch. This work focuses on passive force feedback -which doesn’t add mechanical energy to the user- and distance of manipulation in immersive displays. We propose and evaluate passive force feed- back techniques whose objective is to cumulate two advantages : 1) make no use of motors or actuators, 2) adapt to changes in the virtual environment. The proposed techniques are based on an interaction between visual and tactile senses, in 2D and immersive environments. On a 2D desktop system, we show the suitability of pseudo-haptic feedback -proposed by Lecuyer et al- for simulating torque feedback. We then propose a passive system that returns non-grounded forces. The system is evaluated in two situations : the simulation of friction and in a two-user cooperative task. In an immersive environment, we propose a new system for simulating grounded forces. It is evaluated and installed on a Workbench virtual reality system. Finally we study the effect of distance of manipulation in a responsive workbench ; we define it as the distance between the hand of the user and the virtual object being manipulated.Le retour d’effort permet de renvoyer à un utilisateur des informations relatives au sens du toucher. Ces travaux s’intéressent aux retours d’effort passifs, n’apportant pas d’énergie mécanique à l’utilisateur, ainsi qu’à la distance de manipulation en environnements immersifs. Nous proposons et évaluons des méthodes de retour d’effort passif dont l’objectif est de cumuler deux avantages : 1) ne pas utiliser de moteurs ou d’actionneurs, 2) pouvoir s’adapter aux changements dans l’environnement virtuel. Ces méthodes sont basées sur une interaction entre la vue et le toucher, en environnements 2D ou immersifs. Sur station, en 2D, nous montrons la possibilité de fournir un retour d’effort en couples de forces en utilisant le retour pseudo-haptique proposé par Lécuyer et al. Nous proposons ensuite un périphérique de retour haptique passif à base non fixe. Ce périphérique est évalué selon deux critères : la simulation de frottements, et son apport dans une situation de coopération entre deux utilisateurs. En environnement immersif, nous proposons un périphérique nouveau, appelé “auto-contraint”, à base fixe. Le périphérique est évalué, et installé sur un Plan de Travail Virtuel. Enfin, nousétudions l’effet de la distance de manipulation sur le plan de travail virtuel, définie comme la distance séparant la main de l’utilisateur et l’objet virtuel manipulé