The main aim of this thesis was to evaluate the performance of the contrast sensitivity clock (CSC), a new screening device for measuring contrast sensitivity (CS) and glare. This device allows CS without glare, with glare and disability glare scores to be recorded. After initial data collection the design of the CSC was slightly amended improving the performance of the device. The amended design of the CSC was shown to be a valid, discriminative and repeatable measure for purpose. The CSC is also a quick test to perform and is relatively cheap to produce. If all these factors are considered it shows potential to become the test of choice for the assessment of visual glare. A head-mounted display system was also evaluated in terms of the glare effects it may cause. The monocular display screen of the device significantly reduced the CS of the eye directly exposed but also had an effect on binocular performance, reducing amounts of binocular summation. Electronic devices, including head-mounted displays and satellite navigation systems can seriously affect CS at low luminance levels, similar to those found when driving at night.

I denna artikel undersöks HoloLens 2 som verktyg för att förmedla LEGO-bygginstruktioner genom att använda Augmented Reality (AR). Traditionella instruktionsmetoder såsom text, bilder och video har börjat få konkurrens av AR-tekniken. AR har potentialen att förbättra inlärning och effektivisering av instruktions processen genom att lägga till digitalt innehåll i den fysiska verkligheten.  I artikeln diskuteras både fördelar och nackdelar med att använda sig av AR-instruktioner jämfört med traditionella medier, såsom pappersinstruktioner och framhäver AR’s potential inom områden som exempelvis utbildning, sjukvård och tillverkning. Tidigare studier har visat ökat engagemang, effektivitet och minskad ansträngning hos användare som använder sig av AR-instruktioner. Ibáñez m.fl. (2014) genomförde en undersökning där de använde sig av AR bland studenter och fick positiv feedback vad gäller användning av AR i ett lärandesammanhang.  Artikeln inriktar sig specifikt på användningen av AR Head Mounted Display (HMD), som i detta fall kommer vara en HoloLens 2 för att förmedla LEGO-bygginstruktioner. Med hjälp av HoloLens 2 får användaren en tydligare uppfattning om monteringsprocessen och visualisera de olika komponenterna i 3D. Detta blir fördelaktigt för undersökningen när det gäller att hantera små LEGO-komponenter för att placera dem på rätt plats.  Slutresultatet för undersökningen av att använda HoloLens 2 som verktyg för att förmedla LEGO-bygginstruktioner, visade sig ha både fördelar och nackdelar som kommer att diskuteras senare i artikeln.

Visualisation of proposed plans and designs can be done with a number of differenttechniques within the field of architecture and urban planning. But which visualisationtechnique is best suited when presenting a design proposal at a public consultation? Is therea breaking point where the user can form a general understanding of the proposed designdepending on the degree of fidelity? To seek answers to these questions a qualitative studywas conducted where five different visualisation techniques were tested on ten users toassess their understanding of a proposed design. Our findings show that there is not asingle best visualisation technique for public consultation. Based on our results thepreferred alternative would be a combination of several techniques. We could also see thatthe general understanding of a space increased until a certain degree, and after that adeeper more detail oriented understanding was achieved.

I denna uppsats undersöks hur spelares beteende i virtuella miljöer skiljer sig när modern HMD VR-teknik används jämfört med traditionell bildskärm i 2D. Genom att utveckla en spelprototyp i 3D med förstapersonsperspektiv i pusselgenren där spelarens mål är att finna objekt i olika rum har en komparativ studie genomförts. Spelprototypen skapades med hjälp av metoden prototyputveckling. En alfaversion testades innan den slutgiltiga versionen gjordes klart.   Två grupper med 7 personer i vardera har utfört testet. Ena gruppen använde HMD VR-glasögonen Oculus Rift DK2 medan den andra använde traditionell bildskärm i 2D. Styrning skedde med tangentbord och mus. En dataloggning kördes i bakgrunden av varje användartest som samlade in information om spelarens positions- och rotationsdata. Denna data analyserades sedan och jämfördes mellan grupperna.   Sammanfattningsvis utgörs ingen stark skillnad mellan dom två grupperna. Den största skillnaden är i hur mycket mark som har täckts av spelarna. I gruppen som spelade med VR-glasögon stod spelarna still mer och gick inte runt och utforskade lika mycket. Men dom var cirka 5 sekunder snabbare i genomsnitt. Gruppen som spelade utan VR-glasögon tittade upp och ner något mer men som mest skiljde det sig endast 5 grader. / In this thesis the behaviours of players in virtual environments using modern HMD VR technology and traditional 2D monitors is studied and compared. By developing a game prototype in 3D using a first-person perspective and placing it in the puzzle genre by having the players goal being that they must find an object in different rooms a comparative study has been carried out. The game prototype was developed by using prototyping and an alpha version was tested before the final version was completed.   Two groups of 7 in each one has performed the test. One group used the HMD VR headset Oculus Rift DK2 and the other one used a traditional 2D monitor. Mouse and keyboard was used for controls. A data logging ran in the background of every test and collected information on the players positional and rotational data. The data was analysed and then compared between the two groups.   In conclusion, there is no strong difference between the two groups. The biggest difference was in how much ground the players covered. The group who played in VR didn’t walk around and explored as much and instead was more stationary. But they were around 5 seconds faster in average. The group who played without VR looked up and down a bit more but the difference was never more than just 5 degrees.

Google Glass is a new personal computing device that employs an over-eyetransparent display together with voice-control in order to offer audiovisual informationto the device's users. Glass is also a new mediated-reality platform,fundamentally different from common computers and smartphones, and theavailable Glass application (Glassware) design guides do not fully cover human-computer interaction issues that are imposed by Glass' characteristics – issuessuch as optimum information density, use of colourization and positioningto separate information, optimum amount of discrete entities on display, and theuse of iconography. By combining existing guidelines for Glassware UI designwith past research on human-computer interaction and psychology, those issuescan be addressed and can lead to additional design principles. To evaluate theefficacy of such combinations within the technical and design limitations imposedby Google Glass, a set of UI mock-ups for fictional Glassware is createdand used in multiple surveys to acquire data on human response to those combinedfactors. During the study, it was determined that factors including colourization,element positioning and use of icons have a definite effect on user perceptionand preferences, whilst factors related to information density andamount of discrete entities on screen are less relevant. Additionally, supportingevidence was found in relation to the assumption that utility is more importantthan functionless aesthetics. As a result, a UI design guideline set was formulatedthat can be used to supplement existing UI design guidelines for GoogleGlass and similar over-eye transparent-screen devices.

Sedan en lång tid tillbaka har människor nyttjat minnespalats för att komma ihåg information med hjälp av spatial struktur och associationer med miljöns framträdande karaktärsdrag. Denna studie undersöker om en narrativ komponent inom dessa minnespalats kan vara förmånlig för informationsinkodning och återkallelse. Resultaten visar, med statistisk signifikans, att en narrativ komponent leder till en ökad minneskapacitet vilket indikerar intressanta utvecklingsmöjligheter för framtidens virtuella minnespalats.

Music videos invite the viewer to an enhanced experience of a song, and by combining it with360°, a new dimension of immersion emerges. However, a new wave of complex narrativeand user interface unfolds when intertwining 360° and the contemporary way of telling storiesin music videos.This thesis used an experimental mixed method research design, focusing on collecting,analyzing, and mixing both quantitative and qualitative data in a series of studies. A surveywas first conducted to get an overview of consensus with respect to music videos, VR, and360°. The majority of the respondents had tried VR and 40% of stated that they felt immersedwhile trying it. Around 18% argued it was experience-dependent and 42% did not feelimmersed at all. The survey was followed by experiments showing two 360° music videoswith different storytelling techniques. After the participants had seen the videos, theydiscussed the experience in focus groups in a semi-structured interview. The results were thencoded and benchmarked with theory, which led to the rise of six key 360° storytellingguidelines.All three focus groups concluded 360° music videos enable a deeper level of immersion.However, when combining novelty and a sometimes overwhelming visual experience, 360°music videos can distract the audience if not told right. The guidelines discuss the purpose ofa music video, how the technology affects the experience, if the medium is passive or active,and how different types of interaction can be used as a storytelling mean. They also discussways to pedagogically intertwine audio and visuals. Additionally, the guidelines includediscussions of how different cues and POV’s can be utilized to ensure that the filmmakers andviewers experiences are somewhat aligned, they also tackle the fear of missing out, andfinally compare 360° and traditional music videos.Conclusively, the research shows that storytelling in a 360° sphere will entail a journey oftrial and error, and that the audience have scattered preferences of what different narrativestyles they find work and do not.

During an extravehicular activity (EVA), the role of an astronaut involves a multitude of complex tasks. Whether that task is a science experiment aboard the International Space Station, or traversing extraterrestrial terrain – attention, communication, and instruction are essential. As an aid, augmented reality (AR) can portray suit informatics and procedures within line-of-sight while minimizing attentional loss. Currently, there exists little research highlighting the human systems considerations to qualify AR systems for space suit applications. This study quantifies user interface (UI) and human performance measures for an AR prototype on the Mark III space suit. For user testing, 21 military pilots and personnel (11 men, 10 women) evaluated UI search tasks and completed a series of AR-instructed EVA dexterity tasks in an elevated luminosity, background clutter, and workload scenario. UI results suggest correlations for readability and usability; whereas, human performance results provide situational awareness, workload, and task performance data.

The underestimation of depth in virtual environments at mediumield distances is a well studied phenomenon. However, the degree by which underestimation occurs varies widely from one study to the next, with some studies reporting as much as 68% underestimation in distance and others with as little as 6% (Thompson et al. [38] and Jones et al. [14]). In particular, the study detailed in Jones et al. [14] found a surprisingly small underestimation effect in a virtual environment (VE) and no effect in an augmented environment (AE). These are highly unusual results when compared to the large body of existing work in virtual and augmented distance judgments [16, 31, 36–38, 40–43]. The series of experiments described in this document attempted to determine the cause of these unusual results. Specifically, Experiment I aimed to determine if the experimental design was a factor and also to determine if participants were improving their performance throughout the course of the experiment. Experiment II analyzed two possible sources of implicit feedback in the experimental procedures and identified visual information available in the lower periphery as a key source of feedback. Experiment III analyzed distance estimation when all peripheral visual information was eliminated. Experiment IV then illustrated that optical flow in a participant’s periphery is a key factor in facilitating improved depth judgments in both virtual and augmented environments. Experiment V attempted to further reduce cues in the periphery by removing a strongly contrasting white surveyor’s tape from the center of the hallway, and found that participants continued to significantly adapt even when given very sparse peripheral cues. The final experiment, Experiment VI, found that when participants’ views are restricted to the field-of-view of the screen area on the return walk, adaptation still occurs in both virtual and augmented environments.

This thesis explores current guidelines for the development of menu systems in virtual reality with the main focus aimed toward gaming environments. These guidelines were gathered with the help of a literature study and two expert interviews. A game environment was created as a platform to test the systems. A 2D menu system and a 3D menu system were implemented with the help of gathered guidelines. The prototype was tested with participants in an experiment and empirical data was gathered and analyzed. The measured data shows minor differences in inefficiency, error rate, and learnability but a greater difference in immersiveness thus resulting in a subjectively preferred system to be 3D based.