Effects of arm-support exoskeletons on pointing accuracy and movement.

Exoskeletons are wearable devices that support or augment users' physical abilities. Previous studies indicate that they reduce the physical demands of repetitive tasks such as those involving heavy material handling, work performed with arms elevated, and the use of heavy tools. However, there have been concerns about exoskeletons hindering movement and reducing its precision.

Investigating the Effects of Avatarization and Interaction Techniques on Near-field Mixed Reality Interactions with Physical Components.

Mixed reality (MR) interactions feature users interacting with a combination of virtual and physical components. Inspired by research investigating aspects associated with near-field interactions in augmented and virtual reality (AR & VR), we investigated how avatarization, the physicality of the interacting components, and the interaction technique used to manipulate a virtual object affected performance and perceptions of user experience in a mixed reality fundamentals of laparoscopic peg-transfer task wherein users had to transfer a virtual ring from one peg to another for a number of trials. We employed a 3 (Physicality of pegs) X 3 (Augmented Avatar Representation) X 2 (Interaction Technique) multi-factorial design, manipulating the physicality of the pegs as a between-subjects factor, the type of augmented self-avatar representation, and the type of interaction technique used for object-manipulation as within-subjects factors.

The Effects of Secondary Task Demands on Cybersickness in Active Exploration Virtual Reality Experiences.

Active exploration in virtual reality (VR) involves users navigating immersive virtual environments, going from one place to another. While navigating, users often engage in secondary tasks that require attentional resources, as in the case of distracted driving. Inspired by research generally studying the effects of task demands on cybersickness (CS), we investigated how the attentional demands specifically associated with secondary tasks performed during exploration affect CS.

The Effects of Auditory, Visual, and Cognitive Distractions on Cybersickness in Virtual Reality.

Cybersickness (CS) is one of the challenges that has hindered the widespread adoption of Virtual Reality (VR). Consequently, researchers continue to explore novel means to mitigate the undesirable effects associated with this affliction, one that may require a combination of remedies as opposed to a solitary stratagem. Inspired by research probing into the use of distractions as a means to control pain, we investigated the efficacy of this countermeasure against CS, studying how the introduction of temporally time-gated distractions affects this malady during a virtual experience featuring active exploration.

Give Me a Hand: Improving the Effectiveness of Near-field Augmented Reality Interactions By Avatarizing Users' End Effectors.

Inspired by previous works showing promise for AR self-avatarization - providing users with an augmented self avatar, we investigated whether avatarizing users' end-effectors (hands) improved their interaction performance on a near-field, obstacle avoidance, object retrieval task wherein users were tasked with retrieving a target object from a field of non-target obstacles for a number of trials. We employed a 3 (Augmented hand representation) X 2 (density of obstacles) X 2 (size of obstacles) X 2 (virtual light intensity) multi-factorial design, manipulating the presence/absence and anthropomorphic fidelity of augmented self-avatars overlaid on the user's real hands, as a between subjects factor across three experimental conditions: (1) No-Augmented Avatar (using only real hands); (2) Iconic-Augmented Avatar; (3) Realistic Augmented Avatar. Results indicated that self-avatarization improved interaction performance and was perceived as more usable regardless of the anthropomorphic fidelity of avatar.

How Virtual Hand Representations Affect the Perceptions of Dynamic Affordances in Virtual Reality.

User representations are critical to the virtual experience, and involve both the input device used to support interactions as well as how the user is virtually represented in the scene. Inspired by previous work that has shown effects of user representations on the perceptions of relatively static affordances, we attempt to investigate how end-effector representations affect the perceptions of affordances that dynamically change over time. Towards this end, we empirically evaluated how different virtual hand representations affect users' perceptions of dynamic affordances in an object retrieval task wherein users were tasked with retrieving a target from a box for a number of trials while avoiding collisions with its moving doors.