A Framework on Multimodal Telecommunications from a Human Perspective

Interactive 3D content has become an integralpart in online applications. Examples can befound in Second Life, Google 3D City scene andMicrosoft 3D reconstruction using multiple 2Dphotos. One advantage attributable to 3D contentis the extra dimension, which provides bettervisual communication than 2D to representstructures and explain concepts. Moreimportantly, human computer interaction makes the user feel engaged and in control, and thusobtain higher satisfaction. The increasing popularity of Blackberry, iPhone and cell-phonesmakes us constantly anticipate what main streaminteractive 3D online applications will beavailable next on mobile devices. Thesepromises also lead us to think what newstrategies should be employed to overcomeobstacles such as competing bandwidth, signalinterference and limited processing power onmobile devices. Despite the advancements in thelast two decades, providing interactive 3D onlinecontent in high quality without jeopardizinginteractivity is still a challenge. This articlereviews current and potential trend, the issuesinvolved, as well as the compression andtransmission strategies designed to address thesechallenges.