Week 11 summary

Pop Through Button Devices for VE Navigation and Interaction

Virtual environments need interaction with the user. For complex model, the traditional way to keep the number of button acceptable for the user is to divided them into separate modes that are called by users. This paper tries another approach, which consists of using pop-through button. Those button reacts to both light and pressure and then offer twice more options for the same area. This paper presents two devices. The trigger gun look likes a commercial flight-control joystick. It has two pop button and a 6DOF sensor. The second device is called fingerSleeve and can be equiped on the left or right index finger. This device has two pop-through buttons and also contains a 6DOF sensor.

To explore the viability of pop-through device, the paper first studies the most basic task, which is the navigation. Because traditional techniques do not use the full potential of pop-through devices, two news techniques have been developed. The first technique is called zoomback. The idea is to teleport the user at a new location and give him the choice to stay or go back to the previous location. Users defined the targeted location using a virtual laser. When the location is acquired, he pushed slightly the button. If he wants to stay, then, he pushed strongly the button. Otherwise, releasing the button bring him back to his previous location. The second technique is an extension of the previous one. The idea is often, an user do not want to be on an object but around. Then, when the surface has been selected, the user has now the choice of moving directly to the surface or reduce the distance between him and the object by half. An orbital mode can also be enabled (buy pushing strongly on the pop-through button). This mode enable the user to rotate around the selected target. One last technique presented uses stored image. Users are able to take picture and store them. At any moment, the user can select a picture and be translated to the corresponding location.

 

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