The present study investigated depth perception in virtual environments. Twenty-three participants verbally estimated ten distances between 40 cm and 500 three different environments two conditions: (1) only one target was presented or (2) targets were at the same time. Additionally, presence of a metric aid varied. A questionnaire assessed subjective ratings about physical complaints (e.g., headache), experience world presence), experiment itself (self-evaluation estimations). Results show...

Palpation is a physical examination technique where objects, e.g., organs or body parts, are touched with fingers to determine their size, shape, consistency and location. Many medical procedures utilize palpation as supplementary interaction it can be therefore considered an essential basic method. However, mostly neglected in training simulators, the exception of very specialized simulators that solely focus on palpation, for manual cancer detection. In this article we propose novel...

Various factors influence the degree of cybersickness a user can suffer in an immersive virtual environment, some which be controlled without adapting environment itself. When using HMDs, one example is size field view. However, to like this manipulated affecting negatively other ways limited. Another prominent characteristic that it affects individuals very differently. Therefore, account for both possible disruptive nature alleviating and high interpersonal variance, promising approach may...

Real walking is the most natural method of navigation in virtual environments. However, physical space limitations often prevent or complicate its continuous use. Thus, many real interfaces, among them redirected techniques, depend on a reorientation technique that redirects user away from boundaries when they are reached. existing techniques typically actively interrupt user, application rotation gain can lead to simulator sickness. In our approach, reoriented using portals. While one...

To use the full potential of immersive data analysis when wearing a head-mounted display, users have to be able navigate through spatial data. We collected, developed and evaluated 5 different hands-free navigation methods that are usable while seated in analyst's usual workplace. All meet requirements being easy learn inexpensive integrate into existing workplaces. conducted user study with 23 participants which showed body leaning metaphor an accelerometer pedal performed best. In given...

Working with scatterplots is a classic everyday task for data analysts, which gets increasingly complex the more plots are required to form an understanding of underlying data. To help analysts retrieve relevant quickly when they needed, immersive virtual environments (iVEs) provide them option freely arrange in 3D space around them. In this paper, we investigate impact different on users' ability find and individual from larger collection. We tested three scenarios, all having common that...

Adaptive resonance theory (ART) describes a family of self-organizing neural networks, capable clustering arbitrary sequences input patterns into stable recognition codes. Many different types ART-networks have been developed to improve capabilities. In this paper we compare performance ART-networks: Fuzzy ART, ART 2A with and without complement encoded patterns, an Euclidean 2A-variation. All are tested two- high-dimensional in order illustrate general capabilities characteristics system...

Pie menus are a well-known technique for interacting with 2D environments and so far large body of research documents their usage optimizations. Yet, comparatively little has been done on the usability pie in immersive virtual (IVEs). In this paper we reduce gap by presenting an implementation evaluation extended hierarchical menu system IVEs that can be operated six-degrees-of-freedom input device. Following iterative development process, first developed evaluated basic system. To better...

When moving through a tracked immersive virtual environment, it is sometimes useful to deviate from the normal one-to-one mapping of real motion. One option application rotation gain, where user around vertical axis amplified or reduced by factor. Previous research in head-mounted display environments has shown that gain can go unnoticed certain extent, which exploited redirected walking techniques. Furthermore, be used increase effective field regard projection systems. However, never been...

Personal space (PS), the flexible protective zone maintained around oneself, is a key element of everyday social interactions. It, e.g., affects people's interpersonal distance and thus largely involved when navigating through environments. However, PS regulated dynamically, its size depends on numerous personal characteristics violation evokes different levels discomfort physiological arousal. Thus, gaining more insight into this phenomenon important. We contribute to investigations by...

In this work we describe the scenario of fully-immersive desktop VR, which serves overall goal to seamlessly integrate with existing workflows and workplaces data analysts researchers, such that they can benefit from gain in productivity when immersed their data-spaces. Furthermore, provide a literature review showing status quo techniques methods available for realizing under raised restrictions. Finally, propose concept an analysis framework decisions made still be taken, outline how...

Object selection in virtual environments is one of the most common and recurring interaction tasks. Therefore, used technique can critically influence a system's overall efficiency usability. IntenSelect scoring-based selection-by-volume that was shown to offer improved performance over conventional raycasting reality. This initial method, however, pronounced for small spherical objects converge point-like appearance only, challenging parameterize, has inherent limitations terms flexibility....

The ability of a user to adjust their own scale while traveling through virtual environments enables them inspect tiny features being ant-sized and gain an overview the surroundings as giant. While prior work has almost exclusively focused on steering-based interfaces for multi-scale travel, we present three novel teleportation-based techniques that avoid continuous motion flow reduce risk cybersickness. Our approaches build extension known teleportation workflows suggest specifying...

Listening to conversations and remembering their content is a highly demanding task, especially in noisy environments. Previous research has mainly focused on short-term memory using simple cognitive tasks with unrelated words or digits. The present study investigates the listeners' listening effort under different conditions, without soft moderate noise. To this end, participants were administered dual-task paradigm, including primary which between two talkers presented, an secondary task....

Collaborative work in large virtual environments often requires transitions from loosely-coupled collaboration at different locations to tightly-coupled a common meeting point. Inspired by prior on the continuum between these extremes, we present two novel interaction techniques designed share spatial context while collaborating over distances. The first method replicates familiar setup of video conference providing users with tablet feeds their peers. second called PASCAL (Parallel Avatars...

Most deformable object simulators suffer from stability problems caused by material slivers in the cut vicinity. The extended finite element method (XFEM) is a novel approach that uses enrichment to effectively model discontinuities. In combination with an appropriate mass-lumping technique, XFEM provides stable simulation regardless of location.

As the visualization research community reorients its software to address up-coming challenges, it must successfully deal with diverse processor architectures, distributed systems, various data sources, massive parallelism, multiple input and output devices, interactivity.

Over 10 years' experience with VR displays, visualization applications, and informal feedback from scientists using these applications has convinced RWTH Aachen University researchers that the combination of full immersion, high image quality, advanced interaction metaphors makes immersive valuable as an analysis tool in simulation science.

Text input is an important part of the data annotation process, where text used to capture ideas and comments. For entry in immersive virtual environments, for which standard keyboards usually do not work, various approaches have been proposed. While these solutions mostly proven effective, there still remain certain shortcomings making further investigations worthwhile. Motivated by recent research, we propose speech-based multimodal system SWIFTER, strives simplicity while maintaining good...

An immersive virtual environment is the ideal platform for planning and training of on-orbit servicing missions, as it provides a flexible safe environment. In such kind assembly simulation, grasping objects one most common natural interactions. However, unlike in real world, non-trivial task environments, where primary feedback visual only. A lot research investigated ways to provide haptic feedback, force, vibrational electrotactile feedback. Such devices, however, are usually...

Abstract One core aspect of immersive visualization labs is to develop and provide powerful tools applications that allow for efficient analysis exploration scientific data. As the requirements such are often diverse complex, same applies development process. This has led a myriad different tools, frameworks, approaches grew developed over time. The steady advance commercial off-the-shelf game engines as Unreal Engine made them valuable option in labs. In this work, we share our experience...