Delphine Szymczak

Pointing for non-visual orientation and navigation

People who have visual impairments may have difficulties navigating freely and without personal assistance, and some are even afraid to go out alone. Current navigation devices with non-visual feedback are quite expensive, few, and are in general focused on routing and target finding. We have developed a test prototype application running on the Android platform in which a user may scan for map information using the mobile phone as a pointing device to orient herself and to choose targets for navigation and be guided to them. It has previously been shown in proof of concept studies that scanning and pointing to get information about different locations, or to use it to be guided to a point, can be useful. In the present study we describe the design of PointNav, a prototype navigational application, and report initial results from a recent test with visually impaired and sighted users.

A real-world study of an audio-tactile tourist guide

This paper reports on the in-context evaluation of an audio-tactile interactive tourist guide - one test was done in a medieval city center, and the other was done at an archaeological site. The activity theory framework was used as a perspective to guide design, field-study and analysis. The evaluation shows that the guide allows users to experience an augmented reality, while keeping the environment in focus (in contrast with the common key-hole like experience that on-screen augmented reality generates). The evaluation also confirms the usefulness of extending the vibrational feedback to convey also distance information as well as directional information.

Guiding tourists through haptic interaction: vibration feedback in the lund time machine

This paper describes the vibrationnal feedback that was chosen for the guiding interaction part of the Lund Time Machine application. This tourist guide provides information on points of interests along a trail, and guides the user along it. The interface uses audio and tactile modalities to be accessible in situations where the visual channel is not available. To navigate to the next goal, the user scans around and feels the phone vibrating in the correct direction. The distance coding was embedded in the directional feedback by making the bursts more frequent when getting closer to the goal. The design was first evaluated in a controlled study and then validated as usable and non-obtrusive within an evaluation in the real context of use.

Scanning angles for directional pointing

The present study was performed in order to get a better understanding of the influence of the scanning angle interval on navigation performance, gestures and strategies in a more realistic outdoor setting. Results indicate that users are able to handle a wide range of angle intervals. We observe different gestures and strategies and provide recommendations for suitable angle intervals. Our observations also support the notion that using this type of pointing gesture for navigation is intuitive and easy to use.

The influence of angle size in navigation applications using pointing gestures

One factor which can be expected to influence performance in applications where the user points a device in some direction to obtain information is the angle interval in which the user gets feedback. The present study was performed in order to get a better understanding of the influence of this angle interval on navigation performance, gestures and strategies in a more realistic outdoor setting. Results indicate that users are able to handle quite a wide range of angle intervals, although there are differences between narrow and wide intervals. We observe different gestures and strategies used by the users and provide some recommendations on suitable angle intervals. Finally, our observations support the notion that using this type of pointing gesture for navigation is intuitive and easy to use.

Navigation by pointing to GPS locations

This article deals with a method for interacting with a handheld navigation application, based on using the mobile device for pointing. When the user points the device in any direction, feedback will be provided based on if the user is aiming at the next point in the track or beside it. The presented study has been performed in order to get a better understanding of how the basic parameters in this type of interaction—like the angle for pointing and the size of the target—influence the navigation performance. We have applied a dual investigation by running a computer simulation varying additional parameters such as GPS accuracy and user behavior, and also running an in-context study with 15 participants in a realistic outdoor setting with real location-based GPS data. The study has resulted in general recommendations for angle intervals and the radius of the circles surrounding the track points.

Exploring history: a mobile inclusive virtual tourist guide

In the present paper we report on the design decisions and the field test results of an inclusive mobile tourist guide app, the Time Machine. The historical information is conveyed by sound and the navigation information by haptics, while the app can be controlled eyes-free by a combination of on-screen and free-form gestures. To emphasize the eyes-free use, 9 of 11 test users recruited had severe visual impairment or blindness. The field test results show that users find that the Time Machine is fun, stimulating and usable, but also provide valuable information for future designers of inclusive apps/location based services. We argue that the Time Machine provides an exemplar of how one can design inclusively in a way that benefits both users who are sighted and users who have a visual impairment.

The Time Machine --- An Inclusive Tourist Guide Application Supporting Exploration

In the present paper we describe an inclusive tourist application, The Time Machine, that allows users to explore an environment or be guided along a trail while experiencing virtual sounds and get information visual and auditory at key locations in the environment. We report the application design and preliminary results from evaluations in a city environment. Results indicate that the Time Machine is fun, stimulating and usable for a wide range of users.

Demonstration of an audio-tactile tourist guide

An audio-tactile interactive tourist guide is demonstrated, including the possibility to be guided to points of interest. In contrast with the key-hole like experience of on-screen augmented reality, this guide makes use of the non-visual modalities to create a more immersive augmented experience. Sound windows from the past and verbal historical information complement discrete tactile guidance along a trail.