3D Interactive Environment Research Articles

A prototypical 3D graphical visualizer for object-oriented systems

This paper describes a framework for visualizing object-oriented systems within a 3D interactive environment. The 3D visualizer represents the structure of a program as Cylinder Net that simultaneously specifies two relationships between objects within 3D virtual space. Additionally, it represents additional relationships on demand when objects are moved into local focus. The 3D visualizer is implemented using a 3D graphics toolkit, TOAST, that implements 3D widgets and 3D graphics to ease the programming task for 3D visualization.

Pipeline rendering: interactive refractions, reflections and shadows

A coordinated use of hardware-provided bitplanes and rendering pipelines can create ray-trace quality illumination effects in real time. We provide recursive reflections through the use of secondary viewpoints, and present a method for using a homogeneous 2D projective image mapping to extend this method for refractive surface. We extend the traditional use of shadow volumes to provide reflected and refracted shadows as well as reflected and refracted lighting. A shadow blending technique is demonstrated, and the shadow and lighting effects are incorporated into our recursive viewpoint paradigm. Finally, we incorporate material properties including a translucency model to provide a general framework for creating physically approximate renderings. These techniques are immediately applicable to area such as 3D modelling, animation and interactive environments to produce more realistic images in real time.

Investigation of Feel for 6DOF Inputs: Isometric and Elastic Rate Control for Manipulation in 3D Environments

An increasing need exists for both a theoretical basis and practical human factors guidelines for designing and selecting high degree-of-freedom (DOF) computer input devices for 3D interactive environments such as telerobotic and virtual reality systems. This study evaluates elastic versus isometric rate control devices, in a 3D object positioning task. An experiment was conducted with a stereoscopic virtual reality system. The results showed that the elastic rate controller facilitated faster task completion time in the first of four phases of the experiment. The results are discussed in light of psychomotor literature. While the richer proprioceptive feedback afforded by an elastic controller is necessary for achieving superior performance in the early stages of learning, subjects performed equally well with the isometric controller in later learning stages. The study provides evidence to support a theory of skill shift from closed-loop to open-loop behaviour as learning progresses.