Ross T. Smith

Digital foam interaction techniques for 3D modeling

Digital Foam is a new input sensor developed to support clay like sculpting and modeling operations. We present techniques facilitating navigation and manipulation operations performed using Spherical Digital Foam as a sole input device. Our free-form sculpting technique allows manipulation of new and existing 3D models using accumulated sculpting like motions. Digital Foams multi-point pressure sensitive surface captures the separate locations of a users fingertips allowing controlled manipulation of multiple model vertices simultaneously. Additionally, we developed a technique that allows the camera view and zoom to be controlled by applying varying pressure to the Digital Foam surface. Furthermore, we have designed a menu system tailored for operation using Spherical Digital Foam as a sole input device using both the internal orientation sensor and the pressure sensitive surface. A new higher resolution Spherical Digital Foam input device with 162 unique pressure sensors is presented. This is a significant improvement in comparison to the previous Spherical Digital Foam version with only 21 sensors. We discuss the design issues and how an increased resolution affects the operation and design of the algorithms used. We propose a new dynamic button allocation technique made possible using the new high resolution Spherical Digital Foam. Finally, we performed a trial study using the new 162 sensor Spherical Digital Foam input device to evaluate elements of the menu system.

Bogus Visual Feedback Alters Onset of Movement-Evoked Pain in People With Neck Pain

Pain is a protective perceptual response shaped by contextual, psychological, and sensory inputs that suggest danger to the body. Sensory cues suggesting that a body part is moving toward a painful position may credibly signal the threat and thereby modulate pain. In this experiment, we used virtual reality to investigate whether manipulating visual proprioceptive cues could alter movement-evoked pain in 24 people with neck pain. We hypothesized that pain would occur at a lesser degree of head rotation when visual feedback overstated true rotation and at a greater degree of rotation when visual feedback understated true rotation. Our hypothesis was clearly supported: When vision overstated the amount of rotation, pain occurred at 7% less rotation than under conditions of accurate visual feedback, and when vision understated rotation, pain occurred at 6% greater rotation than under conditions of accurate visual feedback. We concluded that visual-proprioceptive information modulated the threshold for movement-evoked pain, which suggests that stimuli that become associated with pain can themselves trigger pain.

Augmented Reality Chinese Checkers

This paper presents an application, Augmented Reality Chinese Checkers that we created to investigate user interface issues for table top projected augmented reality entertainment applications. A new tangible interaction device, the wireless button enhanced fiducial, is introduced to support selection tasks in mixed reality environments. The Augmented Reality Chinese Checkers game is built on a framework which can be used to create other computer supported collaborative games. The system is built using the Passive Detection Framework to track the 6 degrees of freedom position in real time of marked objects in the environment. The game supports up to six players at a time.

Designing backpacks for high fidelity mobile outdoor augmented reality

This paper presents the design for our latest backpack to support mobile outdoor augmented reality, and how it evolved from lessons learned with our previous designs. We present a number of novel features which help to reduce size and weight, improve reliability and ease of configuration, and reduce CPU usage on laptop computers.

Robust gloves for 3D interaction in mobile outdoor AR environments

This paper describes the design of hand-worn gloves for interacting with mobile outdoor augmented reality systems. Most existing systems rely on more traditional 2D input devices such as mice and keyboards. Since augmented reality information is typically registered in 3D to the environment, user interfaces need to be designed that are capable of supporting the more complex operations possible. This paper describes how we used metallic thread and adhesive fabric to add conduction sensing to a standard set of gloves which can survive harsh treatment; how Bluetooth and MSP430 microcontrollers are used to build a small circuit that is wireless and highly portable; and how AR-ToolKit is used for 3D tracking of fiducial markers on the thumbs. While we have previously demonstrated this technology with a number of our previous systems, this paper explains the various techniques we use in the implementation.

The future of work is play: Global shifts suggest rise in productivity games

Shifts in global, societal, technological, economic, and socio-political trends will shape the future of work. The culmination of these distinct trends across multiple facets of societal and technological advancement will lead to an increased use of game mechanics in the workplace of the future. Over the last several years, several Microsoft teams have deployed “productivity games” to improve software engineering processes through the application of game mechanics. Augmenting a business process with game mechanics has led to significant productivity improvements. These lessons support the notion that games can - and will - be an important component of the workplace of the future.

Wearable jamming mitten for virtual environment haptics

This paper presents a new mitten incorporating vacuum layer jamming technology to provide haptic feedback to a user. We demonstrate that layer jamming technology can be successfully applied to a mitten, and discuss advantages layer jamming provides as a wearable technology through its low profile form factor. Jamming differs from traditional wearable haptic systems by restricting a users movement, rather than applying an actuation force on the users body. Restricting the users movement is achieved by varying the stiffness of wearable items, such as gloves. We performed a pilot study where the qualitative results showed users found the haptic sensation of the jamming mitten similar to grasping the physical counterpart.

Validating Spatial Augmented Reality for interactive rapid prototyping

This paper investigates the use of Spatial Augmented Reality in the prototyping of new human-machine interfaces, such as control panels or car dashboards. The prototyping system uses projectors to present the visual appearance of controls onto a mock-up of a product. Finger tracking is employed to allow real-time interactions with the controls. This technology can be used to quickly and inexpensively create and evaluate interface prototypes for devices. In the past, evaluating a prototype involved constructing a physical model of the device with working components such as buttons. We have conducted a user study to compare these two methods of prototyping and to validate the use of spatial augmented reality for rapid iterative interface prototyping. Participants of the study were required to press pairs of buttons in sequence and interaction times were measured. The results indicate that while slower, users can interact naturally with projected control panels.

Tech Note: Digital Foam

This paper presents a new input device called digital foam designed to support natural sculpting operations similar to those used when sculpting clay. We have constructed two prototypes to test the concept of using a conductive foam input device to create 3D geometries and perform sculpting operations. The novel contributions of this paper include the realization that conductive foam sensors are accurate enough to allow fine grained control of position sensing and can be used to build foam based input devices. We have designed a novel foam sensor array by combining both conductive and non-conductive foam to allow interference free sensor readings to be recorded. We also constructed two novel input devices, one flat input device with one hundred sensors, and a second spherical design with twenty one sensors, both allowing user interactions by touching or squeezing the foam surface. We present the design idea, foam sensor theory, two prototype designs, and the initial application ideas used to explore the possible uses of digital foam.

Situated Analytics: Demonstrating immersive analytical tools with Augmented Reality

Abstract This paper introduces the use of Augmented Reality as an immersive analytical tool in the physical world. We present Situated Analytics, a novel combination of real-time interaction and visualization techniques that allows exploration and analysis of information about objects in the users physical environment. Situated Analytics presents both situated and abstract summary and contextual information to a user. We conducted a user study to evaluate its use in three shopping analytics tasks, comparing the use of a Situated Analytics prototype with manual analysis. The results showed that users preferred the Situated Analytics prototype over the manual method, and that tasks were performed more quickly and accurately using the prototype.