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This study aims to develop a motion sickness measurement index in a virtual reality (VR) environment. The VR market is in an early stage of market formation and technological development, and thus, research on the side effects of VR devices such as simulator motion sickness is lacking. In this study, we used the simulator sickness questionnaire (SSQ), which has been traditionally used for simulator motion sickness measurement. To measure the motion sickness in a VR environment, 24 users performed target selection tasks using a VR device. The SSQ was administered immediately after each task, and the order of work was determined using the Latin square design. The existing SSQ was revised to develop a VR sickness questionnaire, which is used as the measurement index in a VR environment. In addition, the target selection method and button size were found to be significant factors that affect motion sickness in a VR environment. The results of this study are expected to be used for measuring and designing simulator sickness using VR devices in future studies., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

As VR technology advances and network speeds rise, social VR platforms are gaining traction. These platforms enable multiple users to socialize and collaborate within a shared virtual environment using avatars. Virtual reality, with its ability to augment visual information, offers distinct advantages for collaboration over traditional methods. Prior research has shown that merely sharing another person's viewpoint can significantly boost collaborative efficiency. This paper presents an innovative non-verbal communication technique designed to enhance the sharing of visual information. By employing virtual cameras, our method captures where participants are focusing and what they are interacting with, then displays these data above their avatars. The direction of the virtual camera is automatically controlled by considering the user's gaze direction, the position of the object the user is interacting with, and the positions of other objects around that object. The automatic adjustment of these virtual cameras and the display of captured images are symmetrically conducted for all participants engaged in the virtual environment. This approach is especially beneficial in collaborative settings, where multiple users work together on a shared structure of multiple objects. We validated the effectiveness of our proposed technique through an experiment with 20 participants tasked with collaboratively building structures using block assembly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We sought to understand how the perception of personal space is influenced by different levels of social density, spatial density, and type of window-view in South Korean and United Kingdom workplaces. We employed virtual reality to simulate shared and single occupancy offices. We obtained personal space estimations using a virtual disc around the participant which could be extended and retracted, inside the simulation, to indicate perceived amount of personal space, and compared this measure to questionnaire-based estimations. We found that in both cultures participants experienced greater perceived personal space (1) when in a sparse rather than dense office and (2) having a view of the city outside the office. However, British, but not Korean, participants had significantly higher personal space estimations in single occupancy offices than in shared offices. These results suggest subtle cross-cultural differences in workplace experience, that could only be investigated using virtual reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although new virtual reality (VR) devices and their contents are actively being released, there are still not enough studies to prepare its interface/interaction standard. In this study, it was investigated whether specific interaction factors influenced task performance and the degree of virtual reality sickness when performing pointing tasks in immersive virtual reality. A smartphone-based VR device was used, and twenty-five targets were placed in a 5 × 5 layout on the VR experimental area that extended to a range similar to the human viewing angle. Task completion time (TCT) was significantly affected by target selection method (p < 0.001) and target size (p < 0.001), whereas the error rate (ER) significantly differed for the target selection method (p < 0.001) and not for the target size (p = 0.057). Target location was observed to be a factor affecting TCT (p < 0.001), but it did not affect the ER (p = 0.876). VR sickness was more severe when the target size was smaller. Gaze selection was found to be more efficient when accuracy is demanded, and manual selection is more efficient for quick selection. Moreover, applying these experimental data to Fitts' Law showed that the movement time was found to be less affected by the device when using the gaze-selection method. Virtual reality provides a three-dimensional visual environment, but a one-dimensional formula can sufficiently predict the movement time. The result of this study is expected to be a reference for preparing interface/interaction design standards for virtual reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual reality (VR) devices have recently become popular; however, research on input methods for VR devices is lacking. The main input methods of current commercial devices can be classified into two categories: manual selection using a controller and gaze selection. This study aims to derive the optimal input method and timing for VR devices by analyzing the performance of these input methods. A study is conducted in which participants wear a VR headset and select an activated input button from a 3 × 3 array on a VR device with two button sizes and two input methods. The manual selection method exhibits a shorter task completion time but a greater error number compared to the gaze selection method. For the gaze selection method, the task completion time and target search time were shortest when the gaze timing was 1 s. Further, the button size was determined to be statistically significant only when the manual selection method was used. The results of this study can be used as a reference in future VR user experience and product design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there have been significant advances in the development of virtual-reality-based surgical simulations, there remain fundamental questions concerning the fidelity required for effective surgical training. A dual-station experimental platform was built for the purpose of investigating these fidelity requirements. Analogous laparoscopic surgical tasks were implemented on a virtual station and a real station, with the virtual station modeling the real environment with various degrees of fidelity. After measuring the subjects' initial performance on the real station, different groups of subjects were trained on the virtual station under a variety of conditions and finally tested on the real station. Experiments involved bimanual pushing and cutting tasks on a nonlinear elastic object. The results showed that force feedback results in significantly improved training transfer as compared to training without force feedback. The training effectiveness of a linear approximation model was approximately the same as that of a more accurate nonlinear model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]