ALCOVE: Design and Implementation of an Object-Centric Virtual Environment

This thesis presents a new interaction metaphor for object-centric tasks in the form of a prototype VR system, ALCOVE. Our new interaction metaphor is based on the observation that many users perform object-centric tasks: tasks centered around objects that must be manipulated and examined in detail. Although such tasks are numerous, traditional VR systems have yet to provide an interaction metaphor that naturally facilitates the interactions that these tasks require. Additionally, determining the benefits offered by current systems is difficult as the systems are often designed and analyzed qualitatively. In an effort to bring more mathematical rigor to the field of virtual reality, we have developed quantitative quality metrics for virtual environments, such as interaction volume metrics. These metrics can be used both to guide design decisions and as a tool for analysis, providing a unifying framework in which different types of virtual environments can be judged. Using these analytic calculations, we quantitatively demonstrate the benefits of restructuring the interaction volume offered by current systems. Our metrics show that many applications’ interaction volume increases by 1.5 to 2.6 times when using the ALCOVE system. In addition to our quantitative metrics, we offer an informal user task analysis and evaluations of previous VR systems that qualitatively support this improved interaction volume as well as demonstrate the need for a shift from room and desk-sized systems to desktop units. To demonstrate ALCOVE in action, we present some testbed applications which benefit from this object-centric design and discuss some of the advantages and shortcomings of our system. A