Parental death has been recognized as the most over-whelming grief in the second wave of Covid-19 in India. And the research has shown that bereaved youth need to talk about their emotions to be able to positively process this sudden change of growing up too fast too early.  It is not easy to cope with the crumbling of your founding pillars. The latest understanding of grief among youth focuses on continuing the bond with the deceased in a discreet fash-ion, which counteracts with the traditional norms and ex-pectations of Indian society. The result of an ethnographic study, with the aim of gaining insights into the significance of conversation on grief as a tool for learning to cope with grief, creates an opportunity for new understanding of grief coping mechanisms within individuals as speaker, listener, and witness. The nuances of a conversational AI-enabled VR tool gives access to the exchange of unique grieving experi-ence with the technology that blurs the boundary of judg-ments, fear of oversharing, and hesitance of letting your guard down. Allowing for profound conversation around grief which contradicts the conventional discourse around death conversation about moving on or letting go of the bond with the deceased

Environmental problems are increasingly jeopardizing the earth's life-support systems. By shifting from a take-make-dispose industrial model to a circular one, resources will last longer, and the environmental impact will be significantly lower. People’s choices, behaviours and lifestyles will play a vital role in achieving sustainable development. A way to influence this is to use an educational tool that is accessible, interesting and fun. By superimposing computer generated objects to the real world, Augmented Reality (AR) adds a layer of interactivity and engagement. As there are 3 billion active smartphone users worldwide, an AR smartphone application is also very accessible. This thesis investigates how marker-based AR can be used as a means to educate a user in circular economy. This was done by using research through design and applied research to create a design for a prototype which worked as a proof of concept. The prototype was evaluated through a heuristic evaluation. Data was gathered through a form and semi-structured interviews. The data was analysed using the framework method and box plots. The prototype used marker-based AR and was built using the game engine Unity with the Vuforia SDK. The results indicated that an AR application could be a good tool to use in combination with other sources of information such as seminars. / Miljöproblem äventyrar i allt större utsträckning jordens livsstödssystem. Genom att byta från en ta-skapa-kasta industriell modell till en cirkulär, kommer resurserna att räcka längre och miljöpåverkan blir betydligt lägre. Människors val, beteenden och livsstil kommer att spela en viktig roll för att uppnå en hållbar utveckling. Ett sätt att påverka detta är att använda ett pedagogiskt verktyg som är lättillgängligt, intressant och roligt. Genom att lägga till ett lager av virtuella objekt i den verkliga världen, tillför Augmented Reality (AR), interaktivitet och engagemang. Eftersom det finns 3 miljarder aktiva smarttelefonanvändare över hela världen, är en AR-smarttelefonapplikation också lättillgänglig. Denna avhandling undersöker hur markörbaserad AR kan användas för att utbilda en användare i cirkulär ekonomi. Detta gjordes genom att använda forskning genom design och tillämpad forskning för att designa en prototyp för konceptvalidering. Prototypen utvärderades genom en heuristisk utvärdering. Data samlades in genom ett formulär och halvstrukturerade intervjuer samt analyserades med hjälp av ramverks metoden och lådagram. Prototypen använde markörbaserad AR och byggdes med hjälp av spelmotorn Unity med Vuforia SDK. Resultaten visade att en AR-applikation skulle kunna vara ett bra verktyg att använda i kombination med andra informationskällor, som till exempel seminarier.

ABSTRACT A REAL TIME INDOOR NAVIGATION AND MONITORING SYSTEM FOR FIREFIGHTERS AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED MAY 2011 SIDDHESH RAJAN GANDHI M.S. E.C.E, UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Aura Ganz There has been a widespread growth of technology in almost every facet of day to day life. But there are still important application areas in which technology advancements have not been implemented in a cost effective and user friendly manner. Such applications which we will address in this proposal include: 1) indoor localization and navigation of firefighters during rescue operations and 2) indoor localization and navigation for the blind and visually impaired population. Firefighting is a dangerous job to perform as there can be several unexpected hazards while rescuing victims. Since the firefighters do not have any knowledge about the internal structure of the fire ridden building, they will not be able to find the location of the EXIT door, a fact that can prove to be fatal. We introduce an indoor location tracking and navigation system (FIREGUIDE) using RFID technology integrated with augmented reality. FIREGUIDE assists the firefighters to find the nearest exit location by providing the navigation instructions to the exits as well as an Augmented Reality view of the location and direction of the exits. The system also presents the Incident Commander the current firefighter’s location superimposed on a map of the building floor. We envision that the FIREGUIDE system will save a significant number of firefighters and victims’ lives. Blind or visually impaired people find it difficult to navigate independently in both outdoor and indoor environments. The outdoor navigation problem can be solved by using systems that have GPS support. But indoor navigation systems for the blind or visually impaired are still a challenge to conquer, given the requirements of low cost and user friendly operation. In order to enhance the perception of indoor and unfamiliar environments for the blind and visually-impaired, as well as to aid in their navigation through such environments, we propose a novel approach that provides context–aware navigation services. INSIGHT uses RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), and tagged spaces (audio landmarks), enabling a ubiquitous computing system with contextual awareness of its users while providing them persistent and context-aware information. We present INSIGHT system that supports a number of unique features such as: a) Low deployment and maintenance cost; b) Scalability, i.e. we can deploy the system in very large buildings; c) An on-demand system that does not overwhelm the user, as it offers small amounts of information on demand; and d) Portability and ease-of-use, i.e., the custom handheld device carried by the user is compact and instructions are received audibly.

This dissertation contributes to IS research by explaining user intentions while using AR features in mobile social networking and retail app contexts. It consists of three essays, which use partial least squares modeling to analyze different consumer behavior models. The first essay examines the influence of quality, human, and environmental factors on AR reuse intention in a mobile social networking context. The second essay introduces position relevance, a new construct essential to AR research in e-commerce, and it looks at the influence of this construct and app involvement on user purchase intention, while using view-in-room features on mobile retail apps. The third essay examines the influence of service quality and visual quality on recommendation intention of mobile retail apps while using view-in-room features compared to shopping without using these AR features.

An important research question for optical see through AR is, “how accurately and precisely can a virtual object’s perceived location be measured in three dimensional space?” Previously, a method was developed for measuring the perceived 3D location of virtual objects using Microsoft HoloLens1 display. This study found an unexplained rightward perceptual bias on horizontal plane; most participants were right eye dominant, and consistent with the hypothesis that perceived location is biased in eye dominance direction. In this thesis, a replication study is reported, which includes binocular and monocular viewing conditions, recruits an equal number of left and right eye dominant participants, uses Microsoft HoloLens2 display. This replication study examined whether the perceived location of virtual objects is biased in the direction of dominant eye. Results suggest that perceived location is not biased in the direction of dominant eye. Compared to previous study’s findings, overall perceptual accuracy increased, and precision was similar.

Accurate and usable x-ray vision has long been a goal in augmented reality (AR) research and development. X-ray vision, or the ability to comprehend location and object information when such is viewed through an opaque barrier, would be imminently useful in a variety of contexts, including industrial, disaster reconnaissance, and tactical applications. In order for x-ray vision to be a useful tool for many of these applications, it would need to extend operators’ perceptual awareness of the task or environment. The effectiveness with which x-ray vision can do this is of significant research interest and is a determinant of its usefulness in an application context. In substance, then, it is crucial to evaluate the effectiveness of x-ray vision—how does information presented through x-ray vision compare to real-world information? This approach requires narrowing as x-ray vision suffers from inherent limitations, analogous to viewing an object through a window. In both cases, information is presented beyond the local context, exists past an apparently solid object, and is limited by certain conditions. Further, in both cases, the naturally suggestive use cases occur over action space distances. These distances range from 1.5 to 30 meters and represent the area in which observers might contemplate immediate visually directed actions. These actions, simple tasks with a visual antecedent, represent action potentials for x-ray vision; in effect, x-ray vision extends an operators’ awareness and ability to visualize these actions into a new context. Thus, this work seeks to answer the question “Can a real window be replaced with an AR window?” This evaluation focuses on perceived object location, investigated through a series of experiments using visually directed actions as experimental measures. This approach leverages established methodology to investigate this topic by experimentally analyzing each of several distinct variables on a continuum between real-world depth perception and fully realized x-ray vision. It was found that a real window could not be replaced with an AR window without some loss of depth perception acuity and accuracy. However, no significant difference was found between a target viewed through an opaque wall and a target viewed through a real window.

West Dallas AR is an interactive location-based app, using the power of multimedia and augmented reality to highlight the stories shared by West Dallas residents.

This project uses Augmented Reality (AR) technology with the Unity game engine to create a mobile application that helps in road blueprint visualization. Users can use their smartphone camera to add digital information to the road blueprint by mapping the physical environment. This study explores AR technology’s potential in the road blueprint visualization industry. The benefits of using AR technology include reduced costs and simpler implementation in road blueprint visualization. This research is significant because no previous studies have explored AR technology’s potential in this field. The study suggests that AR technology can improve the user’s experience in visualizing road blueprints, making them more realistic and dynamic.

Augmented Reality is a technology to visualize a real-time or indirect view of a physical real-world environment that has been enhanced by adding virtual computer-generated information. AR has been popular for mobile phone games and to visualize parts of education. But there is a lack of research on how AR can be used and what the students want to get out from it. As previous research mentions, there is a need for articles to focus on implementations and not on outcomes, as there is overwhelming evidence that AR is beneficial. Our research question is therefore “How can Augmented Reality be used to improve higher education courses at the Department of Computer and Systems Sciences at Stockholm University?”. The study uses a qualitative approach, by using semi-structured interviews as the data collection method. Six students from the bachelor program in digital media at DSV were interviewed. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed with thematic analysis. A lot of the students believe that AR could improve their education and understanding of the subjects when it is visualized, they also believe that DSV is up to the technical standard that AR requires. However, there is some testing that has to be done before any successful implementations can be done, both technically and pedagogically. The result of this study can provide DSV with new ideas to improve their courses, and what needs to change before a successful implementation can be made. Further research ideas for the AR community are also presented.

Distance learning is facing a critical moment finding a balance between high quality education for remote students and engaging them in hands-on learning. This is particularly relevant for project-based classrooms and makerspaces, which typically require extensive trouble-shooting and example demonstrations from instructors. We present RobotAR, a teleconsulting robotics system for creating Augmented Reality (AR) makerspaces. We present the hardware and software for an AR-compatible robot, which behaves as a student’s voice assistant and can be embodied by the instructor for teleconsultation. As a desktop-based teleconsulting agent, the instructor has control of the robot’s joints and position to better focus on areas of interest inside the workspace. Similarly, the instructor has access to the student’s virtual environment and the capability to create AR content to aid the student with problem-solving. We also performed a user study which compares current techniques for distance hands-on learning and an implementation of our system.