Enhancing Spatial Awareness with Tactile cues in a Virtual Environment

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly S. Hale ◽  
Kay M. Stanney
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Environment ◽  
Spatial Awareness ◽  
Tactile Cues

scholarly journals Tactile Cues for Improving Target Localization in Subjects with Tunnel Vision

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damien Camors ◽  
Damien Appert ◽  
Jean-Baptiste Durand ◽  
Christophe Jouffrais
Keyword(s):  
Visual Search ◽  
Peripheral Vision ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Recognition Algorithm ◽  
Polar Coordinate System ◽  
Spatial Awareness ◽  
Tunnel Vision ◽  
Polar Coordinate ◽  
Tactile Cues ◽  
Efficient Code

The loss of peripheral vision is experienced by millions of people with glaucoma or retinitis pigmentosa, and has a major impact in everyday life, specifically to locate visual targets in the environment. In this study, we designed a wearable interface to render the location of specific targets with private and non-intrusive tactile cues. Three experimental studies were completed to design and evaluate the tactile code and the device. In the first study, four different tactile codes (single stimuli or trains of pulses rendered either in a Cartesian or a Polar coordinate system) were evaluated with a head pointing task. In the following studies, the most efficient code, trains of pulses with Cartesian coordinates, was used on a bracelet located on the wrist, and evaluated during a visual search task in a complex virtual environment. The second study included ten subjects with a simulated restrictive field of view (10°). The last study consisted of proof of a concept with one visually impaired subject with restricted peripheral vision due to glaucoma. The results show that the device significantly improved the visual search efficiency with a factor of three. Including object recognition algorithm to smart glass, the device could help to detect targets of interest either on demand or suggested by the device itself (e.g., potential obstacles), facilitating visual search, and more generally spatial awareness of the environment.

Factors Influencing Spatial Awareness and Orientation in Desktop Virtual Environments

1997 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 1278-1282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis C. Neale
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Environments ◽  
Virtual Environment ◽  
Spatial Orientation ◽  
Task Difficulty ◽  
Field Of View ◽  
Office Building ◽  
Spatial Awareness ◽  
Virtual Office ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
The Impact

This study investigated influences on human spatial orientation and representation resulting from manipulations in the geometric field of view (GFOV) of a perspective display. Also examined was the impact of incorporating symbolic virtual environment enhancements in the interface based on visual momentum (VM) techniques. Sixty participants, pretested for spatial ability, were required to navigate through a virtual office building while performing a variety of spatial orientation tasks. A 3 × 2 × 2 mixed-subjects design compared three levels of GFOV, two levels of VM, and two levels of Difficulty. The findings indicate that decreases in GFOV produce spatial orientation and representation errors, and as task difficulty increases, errors are more pronounced. Furthermore, VM was shown to alleviate errors in spatial orientation and representation, especially when task difficulty was increased. Design recommendations are discussed based on the implications of the results.

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