SkyPort: Investigating 3D Teleportation Methods in Virtual Environments

Andrii Matviienko, Florian Müller, Martin Schmitz, Marco Fendrich, Max Mühlhäuser

CHI 2022

CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

TL;DR

What we did: We designed six new 3D teleportation methods in virtual environments by combining linear and parabolic aiming with different transitioning types.

What we found: We found that the linear aiming method significantly enhances target selection speed and accuracy, with the optimal combination being linear aiming paired with instant transitioning.

Takeaway: Our research provides valuable insights for improving locomotion techniques in Virtual Reality, suggesting that prioritizing linear aiming can optimize user experience without increasing Virtual Reality sickness.

Abstract

Teleportation has become the de facto standard of locomotion in Virtual Reality (VR) environments. However, teleportation with parabolic and linear target aiming methods is restricted to horizontal 2D planes and it is unknown how they transfer to the 3D space. In this paper, we propose six 3D teleportation methods in virtual environments based on the combination of two existing aiming methods (linear and parabolic) and three types of transitioning to a target (instant, interpolated and continuous). To investigate the performance of the proposed teleportation methods, we conducted a controlled lab experiment (N = 24) with a mid-air coin collection task to assess accuracy, efficiency and VR sickness. We discovered that the linear aiming method leads to faster and more accurate target selection. Moreover, a combination of linear aiming and instant transitioning leads to the highest efficiency and accuracy without increasing VR sickness.

Abstract

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