Hideaki Maehara

Improving Understandability of 3-Dimensional Maps for Pedestrian Navigation.

This paper discusses navigation services utilizing 3-dimensional maps for pedestrians. We conduct two kinds of experiments.The first compares the understandability of 2- and 3-dimensional maps with different display sizes corresponding to PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) and mobile phones. Our results indicate that 3-dimensional maps are much easier to understand than conventional 2-dimensional maps and that understandability is affected by display size.The second one deals with improving understandability of 3-dimensional maps on small display screen and it is based on the “compensation method”, which we proposed in a previous report.The compensation method adjusts parameters, such as contrast and view angle, through statistical procedures.Our findings show that the understandability of 3-dimensional maps can be improved significantly, compared with a case of usual parameter values.

Experimental system using an interactive drawing input method

It is very laborious and costly to input paper-based drawings into a computer using digitizing tablets. And there are many drawings that cannot be recognized by conventional automatic drawing input systems. To cope with these drawings, we are developing an interactive drawing input system that helps manual digitizing with automatic recognition technology. The operator has only to specify the kind of figures and click some points on the drawing to specify approximate position and shape of the figure, and the system immediately recognizes the figures position and shape exactly.