Lecture 3: Augemted Reality & Virtual Reality

Question 1

What was the Link Trainer?

Answer 1

Edwin Albert Link, a pioneer in simulation technology, invented a flight simulator named Link Trainer. This approach startet the multi-billion dollar flight simulation industry.

In more Detail, the Link Trainer was a fuselage-like device with a cockpit and controls that produced the motions and sensations of flying. The early models served as amusement rides. Later on the army used it for training purposes.

Question 2

What was the Sword of Democles? Describe it in bullet points.

Answer 2

• One of the first implementations considered virtual reality
• Binocular head-mounted display
• Visualization is changed
  according to the rotation of the user‘s head
• First head-mounted display (HMD) created in 1968 by Ivan Sutherland and his student Bob Sproull.
• Six degrees of freedom
• Heavy, hung from the ceiling
• Could view simple wireframe environments

Question 3

What was Sensorama?

Answer 3

“The Cinema of the Future”

Plays multimodal movies:
* Wide-angle 3D stereoscopic view,
* stereosound,
* body tilting,
* aromas,
* and wind.
First prototype built in 1962 Not interactive

Question 4

Describe what Augmented reality (AR) is.

Answer 4

Augmented reality (AR) is a field of computer research which deals with the combination of real-world and computer-generated data

Question 5

Enumerate the three primary characteristics of AR

Answer 5

• Combines real and virtual objects in a real environment
• Is interactive in real-time
• Registers (aligns) real and virtual objects with each other in 3D

Question 6

Describe what Virtual reality (VR) is.

Answer 6

Virtual reality (VR), on the other hand, is fully computer-generated and relies on specific hardware to provide the user with the illusion of physical presence within that “reality”

In technical terms […] Virtual reality is the term used to describe a three- dimensional, computer generated environment which can be explored and interacted with by a person. That person becomes part of this virtual world or is immersed within this environment and whilst there, is able to manipulate objects or perform a series of actions.

Question 7

Sketch in words the David Zeltzer’s AIP Cube.

Answer 7

VR is composed of:

● Autonomy – User can react to events and stimuli.

● Interaction – User can interact with objects and environment.

● Presence – User feels immersed through sensory input and output channels

Question 8

What means “Presence” and „Telepresence“ in context of VR?

Answer 8

• Presence is the key to define Virtual Reality in terms of experience
• Presence is the sense of being in an environment
• Telepresence is the experience of presence in an environment by means of a communication medium.
• A “virtual reality” is a real or simulated environment in which a perceiver experiences telepresence

Question 9

Please sketch the Reality Continuum Beam.

Answer 9

Question 10

List some platforms for AR/VR

Answer 10

• Head-mounted displays (HMDs)
• Head-up displays (HUDs)
• Cave Automatic Virtual Environments (CAVEs)
• Mobile devices: smartphones, tablets, PCs..
• Browsers

Question 11

List some application areas for AR/VR

Answer 11

• Healthcare (e.g., treat anxiety, pain)
• Engineering, Manufacturing, Maintenance (e.g., Access to contextual information)
• Retail (e.g., place objects in the room)
• Gaming (e.g., like Pokemon go)
• Vehicles and Travel (include additional information)

Question 12

Name High-end, industrial-grade HMDs

Answer 12

Varjo VR-1, XR-1, and VR-2 (additional hand tracking is integrated in VR-2)

Question 13

Please describe the term of Immersion in VR

Answer 13

In VR, immersion is commonly seen as a property of a system, i.e., immersion is dependent only on the system’s rendering software and display technology.

By this definition, immersion is objective and quantifiable.

Immersion is an objective level of sensory fidelity the system provides, including, e.g.: Field of view (FOV), degrees of freedom (DOF), display size, resolution, stereoscopy.

Question 14

Please describe the term of Precense in VR

Answer 14

Presence is the sense of “being there”.

• An individual and context-dependent user response
• The subjective experience of being in one place or environment, even when one is physically situated in another
• Presence is vital to VR experiences
• In the larger context, “immersion” is often used where “presence” would be more suitable

Question 15

How can Precense be measured?

Answer 15

Questionnaires, Analysis of user behavior, Physiological measures

Question 16

How does the analysis of user behavior in VR work?

Answer 16

If participants within a virtual environment behave as if they were in an equivalent real environment, then this is a sign of presence

Analysis can be, e.g.:
* Overall behavior and actions
* Postural sway
* Facial expressions

Question 17

What ist the advantage of Physiological measurement in VR and how does it work?

Answer 17

Benefit: It is objective

Objective measures involve monitoring the impact of a virtual environment on physiologic processes such as heart rate, respiration rate, skin resistance, skin temperature and peripheral brain wave EEG activity.

We can calculate the presence with:
* Brain activity
* Electrodermal activity
* Heart rate

Question 18

How can we measure brain activity?

Answer 18

Brain activity can be monitored using
electroencephalography (EEG)

Question 19

What is Electrodermal activity (EDA)?

Answer 19

Electrodermal activity is the property of the human body that causes continuous variation in the electrical characteristics of the skin

Question 20

How can we measure heart rate?

Answer 20

With Electrocardiography (ECG or EKG)

Produces a recording of the electrical activity of the heart using electrodes placed on the skin

Question 21

Describe what Cybersickness is

Answer 21

Cybersickness is an affliction common to users of virtual environments.

Similar in symptoms to motion sickness, cybersickness can result in, e.g., nausea, headaches, dizziness, fatigue, and vomiting

Due to the absence of actual physical motion, this affliction is considered a distinct condition from motion sickness.

Question 22

What can be the reason for Cybersickness?

Answer 22

• Sensory conflict: mismatch of senses
• Poison theory: the body misreads the information and reacts as if it is in danger
• Postural instability theory: postural stability cannot be naturally reached in VR

Question 23

How can we measure Cybersickness?

Answer 23

Questionnaires like the Simulator Sickness Questionnaire (SSQ)

Physiological measures, such as heart rate

Question 24

How to reduce or prevent Cybersickness?

Answer 24

• Different movement methods (e.g., teleportation)
• Haptics, e.g., airflow
• Put the user in a vehicle?
• Guiding elements

Question 25

Describe the Garnter’s Hype Cycle

Answer 25

Technology Trigger: new fascinating technology appear.

Peak of Inflated Expectations: Society and media have many expections and the technolgy gets high attention

Through of Disillusionment: Technology can not serve all expecstions and fails at some points.

Slope of Enlightenment: Technology gets improved and earns new credibility.

Plateau of Productivity: Technology gets established.

The hype cycle gives you a view how a technology or application will evolve over time.