Reflecting on the Design Process for Virtual Reality Applications

ABSTRACT

A reflective analysis on the experience of virtual environment (VE) design is presented focusing on the human–computer interaction (HCI) challenges presented by virtual reality (VR). HCI design guidelines were applied to development of two VRs, one in marine archaeology and the other in situation awareness simulation experiments. The impact of methods and HCI knowledge on the VR design process is analyzed, leading to proposals for presenting HCI and cognitive knowledge in the context of design trade-offs in the choice of VR design techniques. Problems reconciling VE and standard Graphical User Interface (GUI) design components are investigated. A trade-off framework for design options set against criteria for usability, efficient operation, realism, and presence is proposed. HCI-VR design advice and proposals for further research aimed towards improving human factor-related design in VEs are discussed.

Acknowledgments

The research conducted as part of the two case studies presented in this article was made possible with the use of the VR CAVE equipment at the Immersive and Creative Technologies Lab (http://www.theictlab.org). The acquisition and establishment of the equipment was part of the IPE/NEKYP/0311/02 “VR CAVE” project (http://www.vrcave.com.cy) and was supported financially by the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation and the European Structural Funds (ESF).

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported financially by the Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation and the European Structural Funds (ESF).

Notes on contributors

A. G. Sutcliffe

Alistair Sutcliffe, University of Manchester, has research interests in HCI on theory and models of user experience, multi-media, interaction design, social media and design of complex socio-technical systems, and theories of domain knowledge. He has over 300 publications including five books and several edited volumes of articles.

C. Poullis

Andreas Gregoriades is the Assistant Professor of Electronic Commerce and Information Systems in the Department of Hotel and Tourism Management. He published over 60 research articles in peer-reviewed journals and conferences. His research interests include Decision Support Systems, Web Analytics, Requirements Engineering, Intelligent Transportation Systems, and Human Computer Interaction.

A. Gregoriades

Charalambos (Charis) Poullis, Ph.D., University of Southern California (USC), Associate Professor at the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering at Concordia University and Director of the Immersive and Creative Technologies Lab: http://www.theICTlab.org. His research interests lie at the intersection of computer vision and computer graphics and virtual and augmented reality.

I. Katsouri

Ireni Katsouri BA (Brighton, UK) is a researcher in the Department of Multimedia And Graphic Arts, Cyprus University of Technology, Cyprus. Her research interests include graphic design, Designing Interactive Multimedia, 3D Modelling, and virtual reality. She is a freelance graphic designer with Pax Imagica, Cyprus.

A. Tzanavari

Aimilia Tzanavari, Ph.D., Bristol, UK, is currently an Associate Professor at the Department of Design & Multimedia, University of Nicosia, Cyprus and a Research Associate at the Immersive and Creative Technologies Lab, Cyprus University of Technology. She conducts research in human–computer interaction and e-learning

K. Herakleous

Kyriakos Herakleous, B.Sc. in Computer Science (University of Cyprus), M.A. Interactive Multimedia, (Cyprus University of Technology). His main interests focus the areas of Computer Vision and Computer Graphics. He has participated in a number of projects funded by National and European agencies.