3D Input Devices Research Articles

Stereoscopic Telepointing in Videocommunications

Stereoscopic telepointing to be employed inter alia in cooperative telework applications yields many benefits but also poses a number of problems addressed in a study with 96 subjects under four different conditions. For two conditions, 3D-input devices were designed implementing different input metaphors. The ‘Light Beam Metaphor’ is analogous to pointing to objects with a slide show pointer or laser pointer. The ‘Reference Space Metaphor’ provides the users with the possibility of pointing to details of an object in such a way as if a re-sized model of the object was present in front of them and within reach of their hands. The other two conditions were stereoscopic and monoscopic control conditions without pointers. The subjects' task was to identify differences between a remote and a local object within a limited time. The results show that the Light Beam Metaphor pointer was easier to handle and conformed to a larger degree to the users' expectations, whereas the Reference Space Metaphor pointer received better subjective ratings on efficiency and Telepresence. The analysis of the results of all four conditions established the benefits of 3D over 2D representations for object-oriented communicative situations in terms of appeal and the impression of depth.

Sculpting

We present a new interactive modeling technique based on the notion of sculpting a solid material. A sculpting tool is controlled by a 3D input device and the material is represented by voxel data; the tool acts by modifying the values in the voxel array, much as a "paint" program's "paintbrush" modifies bitmap values. The voxel data is converted to a polygonal surface using a "marching-cubes" algorithm; since the modifications to the voxel data are local, we accelerate this computation by an incremental algorithm and accelerate the display by using a special data structure for determining which polygons must be redrawn in a particular screen region. We provide a variety of tools: one that cuts away material, one that adds material, a "sandpaper" tool, a "heat gun," etc. The technique provides an intuitive direct interaction, as if the user were working with clay or wax. The models created are free-form and may have complex topology; however, they are not precise, so the technique is appropriate for modeling a boulder or a tooth but not for modeling a crankshaft.

A Direct Manipulation Technique for Specifying 3D Object Transformations with a 2D Input Device

AbstractA mechanism is presented for direct manipulation of 3D objects with a conventional 2D input device, such as a mouse. The user can define and modify a model by graphical interaction on a 3D perspective or parallel projection. A gestural interface technique enables the specification of 3D transformations (translation, rotation and scaling) by 2D pick and drag operations. Interaction is not restricted to single objects but can be applied to compound objects as well. The method described in this paper is an easy‐to‐understand 3D input technique which does not require any special hardware and is compatible with the designer's mental model of object manipulation.

Rapid controlled movement through a virtual 3D workspace

Computer graphics hardware supporting real-time interactive 3D animation has the potential to support effective user interfaces by enabling virtual 3D workspaces. However, this potential requires development of viewpoint movement techniques that support rapid and controlled movement through workspaces. Rapid movement through large distances avoids wasted work time; controlled movement near target objects allows the user to examine and interact with objects in the workspace. Current techniques for viewpoint movement typically use high velocities to cover distances rapidly, but high velocities are hard to control near objects. This paper describes a new technique for targeted viewpoint movement that solves this problem. The key idea is to have the user indicate a point of interest (target) on a 3D object and use the distance to this target to move the viewpoint logarithmically, by moving the same relative percentage of distance to the target on every animation cycle. the result is rapid motion over distances that slows as the viewpoint approaches the target object. The technique can be used with 2D and multidimensional input devices. We also extend the technique to move objects in the workspace.

Simulation of Robot Factories Using Robsim

Industry uses robots in growing numbers. Many aspects related to robotics can be studied and solved using computer simulations. This paper describes ROBSIM. a robot simulation system. ROBSIM covers the areas from creation of simulation models. off-line programming to animation of robot programs using 3D computer graphics. ROBSIM provides a new scheme of user interactions. using DIMENSION 3 a 3D input device for computer graphics