Hiroyuki Tarumi

Public Applications of SpaceTag and Their Impacts

SpaceTag is an object that can be accessed only from limited locations and time period. SpaceTags are served and distributed from a central server which should be managed by a service provider. Users of the SpaceTag system can access SpaceTags with portable terminals equipped with location sensors and wireless communication device such as mobile phones. Users walk around in a city and find SpaceTags that can be only found at the location. SpaceTag is thus an inconvenient media, but suitable for gaming, advertising, city guide information, etc. A user can also put a SpaceTag at the location where (s)he is, which can be found by other people nearby. This feature also enables local public communication applications. In this paper, we will argue why this inconvenient but simple virtual platform can support various applications for a digital city. We will also argue social impacts of these applications.

SpaceTag: an overlaid virtual system and its applications

SpaceTag is an object system on which each object called SpaceTag can be accessed only from limited locations and a limited time period. Its applications include entertainment systems, advertisement services, bulletin board systems, and personal communication systems. For one-way communication, they are broadcasted from the server; for two-way communication, users can cut and paste SpaceTags between their portable PCs and the real space. The SpaceTag system is a location-aware information system, as well as an augmented reality system because it attaches information to the real space. However, we categorize it as an overlaid virtual system, because it has no direct link to real objects. It can be realized as a public service without causing drastic change of this society, and without much cost.

Communication through virtual active objects overlaid onto the real world

A SpaceTag is a virtual object that can be accessed only from limited locations and time period. Users of the SpaceTag System can see and create SpaceTags using a portable terminal with a location sensor. We have categorized it as an overlaid virtual system, in which virtual objects are overlaid onto the real world based on time and space coordinates. This architecture is more promising, general purpose, low-cost, and more realistic than other location-aware system architectures like augmented reality that attaches virtual information onto real objects. The SpaceTag System can be offered as a public information service that is a common platform for gaming, advertising, city guide information, etc. We have already implemented a prototype. In this paper, active SpaceTags are additionally proposed. They are enabled to interact autonomously with human and other SpaceTags, realizing new applications of interactive games, virtual creatures (SpacePet), etc. The computation model of active SpaceTag is described here. This paper also gives a discussion by regarding the SpaceTag System as a CVE. It is a considered as special CVE that has a same space/time coordinates as the real world. SpaceTags and SpacePets can be regarded as objects and active objects in the virtual space, but they are projected onto the real world. Users can communicate with each other through these objects. This paper also describes how such communication occurs.

Digital-EE II: RV-Augmented Interface Design for Networked Collaborative Environmental Learning

DigitalEE II (Digitally Enhanced Experience) is an online digital platform for networked collaborative environmental learning through multiple discussions among diverse people. The platform interconnects real and virtual worlds via a photo-realistic 3D spatial metaphor, and supports video- and voice-based interaction between real participants (participants in real nature) and virtual participants (participants at distant locations). Both participants share time, space, vision, experiences, and emotion between the two different worlds. We conducted experiments on DigitalEE II to verify voluntary environmental learning through interactive communication. The experiments found that the desire to fill information gap between real and virtual worlds stimulated various interactive communication and voluntary environmental observation. DigitalEE II made contribution toward raising participants’ interests in the environment and their awareness to nature. The platform provided the participants with opportunities of considering environmental preservation. This research introduced diverse computational technologies in environmental learning, and enlarged the field of application of CSCL techniques.

Evolution of business processes and a process simulation tool

Business processes such as workflows are software too. However, development, evolution, and deployment of business processes have different difficulties to general software. Control, introduction, evaluation, and testing of business processes are difficult because multiple processes are related to each other and many people are involved in the processes. To solve these problems, we propose BPT/BPR/BPS (Business Process Tactics, Reengineering, and Simulation) lifecycle, based on a multi-agent groupware model. BPT means activities to control processes dynamically which have already been proposed. The simulation phase is mainly focused upon. A simulation model is presented which has some original aspects, and a prototype simulation tool is shown.

Open experiments of mobile sightseeing support systems with shared virtual worlds

In this paper, we describe results from the experiments of a location-dependent shared virtual world system applied to sightseeing entertainment. This system can be used with GPS-phones on the current Japanese market. Users can enjoy interacting with virtual objects including virtual animals/agents. Subjects of the experiments were real tourists who had their own GPS-phones compatible with our system. We found that evaluations on the system varied depending on age, gender, and experiences of subjects. Results from the experiments gave suggestions on prospective users and service design.

Implementations and evaluations of location-based virtual city system for mobile phones

A system platform for location-based entertainment applications of mobile phones is described. With GPS and electronic compasses, some of todays mobile phones have rich functions for such entertainment as role playing games, treasure hunting, sightseeing with virtual information, etc. Our system model can manage virtual worlds that can be overlaid onto the real world with regard to location (latitude and longitude). Each virtual world is a set of virtual architectural objects and virtual creatures. Virtual creatures are active objects that can interact with users. In this paper, browser-based and BREW-based systems for virtual worlds are described. BREW is an efficient software platform for mobile phones. It enables autonomous location sensing and automatic redrawing, which will solve most of the problems found in evaluation sessions of the browser-based version.

Real-time quiz functions for dynamic group guidance in distance learning systems

One of the serious problems of distance learning systems is how to teach many students on an individual basis. The authors design an educational method, dynamic group guidance using quiz functions for network based lecturing, and present an implementation method. Using the dynamic group guidance function, the system groups students automatically according to the results of quizzes and a teacher can guide each group individually. Supported by the system, therefore, a teacher can guide every student in a lecture efficiently according to his/her own level of understanding. We have realized the system using two technologies: user profiling and software agents.

A programming environment supporting reuse of object-oriented software

The authors have developed a programming environment for object-oriented programming. This environment supports reuse of classes, especially retrieval of them with an expert system. The user can find classes and methods by describing the features of objects and operations according to an object model proposed. The target programming language is MOMO, which has been developed to implement the object model. A description is given of the retrieval part of the environment.<<ETX>>

Design and evaluation of a location-based virtual city system for mobile phones

We are developing a virtual city system with a model that consists of virtual architectural objects and virtual creatures, geographically overlaid onto the real world. People who have mobile terminals with location sensors like GPS can visit the virtual city when walking about in a real city. The most important aspect of our research is that we have adopted current market mobile phones. In this paper we describe a prototype of virtual city system and its evaluation. The result of evaluation suggests that subjects were very much interested in the virtual city system. Technical problems have been revealed by the evaluation but most of them will be solved or minimized if we use the next generation of mobile phones.