Using Visual Effects to Facilitate Depth Perception for Spatial Tasks in Virtual and Augmented Reality
When developing serious games relying on spatial placement tasks in Augmented/Virtual Reality (AR/VR) having an accurate depth perception of virtual objects is highly important. It even becomes essential when such games are used for assessment of motion disorders. Patients should be able to naturally interact with the virtual and augmented environment and to perceive the correct 3D position of objects around them. We report on the results of a user study with 16 participants exploring whether visual effects applied to 3D content in AR and VR provide a better depth perception, level of presence or engagement to users. The findings show that visual effects both in AR and VR have a negative impact on perceived depth. The measured performance in VR though is best using visual effects while in AR without using visual effects. Both in AR and VR, visual effects influenced the user's level of presence negatively.
2016 IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality (ISMAR Adjunct)