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Publications

Publications by HumanISE

2020

The Impact of Olfactory and Wind Stimuli on 360 Videos Using Head-mounted Displays

Authors
Narciso, D; Melo, M; Vasconcelos Raposo, J; Bessa, M;

Publication
ACM TRANSACTIONS ON APPLIED PERCEPTION

Abstract
Consuming 360 audiovisual content using a Head-Mounted Display (HMD) has become a standard feature for Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR). However, most applications rely only on visual and auditory feedback whereas other senses are often disregarded. The main goal of this work was to study the effect of tactile and olfactory stimuli on participants' sense of presence and cybersickness while watching a 360 video using an HMD-based IVR setup. An experiment with 48 participants and three experimental conditions (360 video, 360 video with olfactory stimulus, and 360 video with tactile stimulus) was performed. Presence and cybersickness were reported via post-test questionnaires. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference in presence between the control and the olfactory conditions. From the control to the tactile condition, mean values were higher but failed to show statistical significance. Thus, results suggest that adding an olfactory stimulus increases presence significantly while the addition of a tactile stimulus only shows a positive effect. Regarding cybersickness, no significant differences were found across conditions. We conclude that an olfactory stimulus contributes to higher presence and that a tactile stimulus, delivered in the form of cutaneous perception of wind, has no influence in presence. We further conclude that multisensory cues do not affect cybersickness.

2020

Usability and Sense of Presence in Virtual Worlds for Distance Education: A Case Study with Virtual Reality Experts

Authors
Krassmann, AL; Rocha Mazzuco, AEd; Melo, M; Bessa, M; Bercht, M;

Publication
Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Computer Supported Education, CSEDU 2020, Prague, Czech Republic, May 2-4, 2020, Volume 1.

Abstract
This case study presents a virtual reality experts' evaluation of a desktop-based virtual world developed towards distance education, under the perspectives of usability and sense of presence, which are considered factors that can potentially influence learning outcomes. Among the results, data from usability and sense of presence were positively correlated. The sense of presence was achieved, with participants losing track of time while performing the activity. Experts agreed that the virtual world is easy to use and can prepare students for the real-world task. The findings outline positive and negative points that must be addressed in order to optimize the experience of distance education students. Copyright

2020

Collaborative immersive authoring tool for real-time creation of multisensory VR experiences (vol 78, pg 19473, 2020)

Authors
Coelho, H; Melo, M; Martins, J; Bessa, M;

Publication
MULTIMEDIA TOOLS AND APPLICATIONS

Abstract
In the original publication, Figs. 1 and 2 were interchange and the citation of Fig. 1 in the third paragraph of section 2.2 Authoring tools for multisensory VR experiences should be removed.

2020

Impact of Different Sensory Stimuli on Presence in Credible Virtual Environments

Authors
Goncalves, G; Melo, M; Vasconcelos Raposo, J; Bessa, M;

Publication
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON VISUALIZATION AND COMPUTER GRAPHICS

Abstract
Multiple factors can affect presence in virtual environments, such as the number of human senses engaged in a given experience or the extent to which the virtual experience is credible. The purpose of the present work is to study how the inclusion of credible multisensory stimuli affects the sense of presence, namely, through the use of wind, passive haptics, vibration, and scent. Our sample consisted of 37 participants (27 men and 10 women) whose ages ranged from 17 to 44 years old and were mostly students. The participants were divided randomly into 3 groups: Control Scenario (visual and auditory - N = 12), Passive Haptic Scenario (visual, auditory, and passive haptic - N = 13) and Multisensory Scenario (visual, auditory, wind, passive haptic, vibration, and scent - N = 12). The results indicated a significant increase in the involvement subscale when all multisensory stimuli were delivered. We found a trend where the use of passive haptics by itself has a positive impact on presence, which should be the subject of further work.

2020

A novel method to enhance the touristic 360 degrees promotional video experience

Authors
Goncalves, G; Melo, M; Vasconcelos Raposo, J; Bessa, M;

Publication
MULTIMEDIA TOOLS AND APPLICATIONS

Abstract
Promotional 360 degrees videos are now widely used to promote touristic sites, giving consumers a more immersive glimpse of what they can expect from those places. However, these 360 degrees videos often comprise so much information that it overloads the users, not allowing them to benefit from such a rich multimedia experience. To overcome this issue, we propose and evaluate a novel method that allows the experience of immersive 360 degrees promotional videos to be more interactive and informative without overloading users. The evaluation study focuses on how the proposed interaction method performs versus the non-interactive method in terms of user satisfaction, presence, and cybersickness in both a low-immersive (computer monitor) setup and an immersive platform (head-mounted display (HMD)). Our sample (N = 50) was randomly divided into four groups: 360 degrees (computer monitor without interaction), 360 degrees Interaction (computer monitor with interaction), IVR360 degrees (HMD without interaction) and IVR360 degrees Interaction (HMD with interaction). The results show that the novel proposed method is preferred by users over the non-interactive approach regardless of the setup (low-immersive or immersive). For cybersickness, there were no differences across all the experimental scenarios. We conclude that our method has the potential to bring added value to touristic promotion when compared to conventional promotional approaches.

2020

Learning in Virtual Reality: Investigating the Effects of Immersive Tendencies and Sense of Presence

Authors
Krassmann, AL; Melo, M; Peixoto, B; Pinto, D; Bessa, M; Bercht, M;

Publication
Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality. Industrial and Everyday Life Applications - 12th International Conference, VAMR 2020, Held as Part of the 22nd HCI International Conference, HCII 2020, Copenhagen, Denmark, July 19-24, 2020, Proceedings, Part II

Abstract
The goal of this study is to examine the effects of the sense of presence and immersive tendencies on learning outcomes while comparing different media formats (Interactive VR, Non-interactive VR and Video). An experiment was conducted with 36 students that watched a Biology lesson about the human cells. Contrary to expected, the results demonstrate that the Non-interactive VR was the most successful format. Sense of presence and immersive tendencies did not have an effect on learning gain, and the latter was not a critical factor to experience the sense of presence. The findings provide empirical evidence to help understand the influence of these variables on learning in VR. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

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