VERA: virtual environment for research in archaeology

The VERA (Virtual Environment for Research in Archaeology) project is based on a research excavation of part of the large Roman town at Silchester, which aims to trace the site's development from its origins before the Roman conquest to its abandonment in the fifth century A.D. [1]. The VERA project aims to investigate how archaeologists use Information Technology (IT) in the context of a field excavation, and also for post-excavation analysis. VERA is a two-year project funded by the JISC VRE 2 programme that involves researchers from the University of Reading, University College London, and York Archaeological Trust. The overall aim of the project is to assess and introduce new tools and technologies that can aid the archaeological processes of gathering, recording and later analysis of data on the finds and artefacts discovered. The researchers involved in the project have a mix of skills, ranging from those related to archaeology, and computer science, though to ones involving usability and user assessment. This paper reports on the status of the research and development work undertaken in the project so far; this includes addressing various programming hurdles, on-site experiments and experiences, and the outcomes of usability and assessment studies.

Use of auditory cues for wayfinding assistance in virtual environment: music aids route decision

This paper addresses the crucial problem of wayfinding assistance in the Virtual Environments (VEs). A number of navigation aids such as maps, agents, trails and acoustic landmarks are available to support the user for navigation in VEs, however it is evident that most of the aids are visually dominated. This work-in-progress describes a sound based approach that intends to assist the task of 'route decision' during navigation in a VE using music. Furthermore, with use of musical sounds it aims to reduce the cognitive load associated with other visually as well as physically dominated tasks. To achieve these goals, the approach exploits the benefits provided by music to ease and enhance the task of wayfinding, whilst making the user experience in the VE smooth and enjoyable.

Collaborative virtual environment for advanced computing

Synchronous collaborative systems allow geographically distributed participants to form a virtual work environment enabling cooperation between peers and enriching the human interaction. The technology facilitating this interaction has been studied for several years and various solutions can be found at present. In this paper, we discuss our experiences with one such widely adopted technology, namely the Access Grid. We describe our experiences with using this technology, identify key problem areas and propose our solution to tackle these issues appropriately. Moreover, we propose the integration of Access Grid with an Application Sharing tool, developed by the authors. Our approach allows these integrated tools to utilise the enhanced features provided by our underlying dynamic transport layer.

Operator performance evaluation of controlled depth of field in a stereographically displayed virtual environment

Retinal blurring resulting from the human eye's depth of focus has been shown to assist visual perception. Infinite focal depth within stereoscopically displayed virtual environments may cause undesirable effects, for instance, objects positioned at a distance in front of or behind the observer's fixation point will be perceived in sharp focus with large disparities thereby causing diplopia. Although published research on incorporation of synthetically generated Depth of Field (DoF) suggests that this might act as an enhancement to perceived image quality, no quantitative testimonies of perceptional performance gains exist. This may be due to the difficulty of dynamic generation of synthetic DoF where focal distance is actively linked to fixation distance. In this paper, such a system is described. A desktop stereographic display is used to project a virtual scene in which synthetically generated DoF is actively controlled from vergence-derived distance. A performance evaluation experiment on this system which involved subjects carrying out observations in a spatially complex virtual environment was undertaken. The virtual environment consisted of components interconnected by pipes on a distractive background. The subject was tasked with making an observation based on the connectivity of the components. The effects of focal depth variation in static and actively controlled focal distance conditions were investigated. The results and analysis are presented which show that performance gains may be achieved by addition of synthetic DoF. The merits of the application of synthetic DoF are discussed.

Generating virtual environments to allow increased access to the built environment

The problems encountered by individuals with disabilities when accessing large public buildings is described and a solution based on the generation of virtual models of the built environment is proposed. These models are superimposed on a control network infrastructure, currently utilised in intelligent building applications such as lighting, heating and access control. The use of control network architectures facilitates the creation of distributed models that closely mirror both the physical and control properties of the environment. The model of the environment is kept local to the installation which allows the virtual representation of a large building to be decomposed into an interconnecting series of smaller models. This paper describes two methods of interacting with the virtual model, firstly a two dimensional aural representation that can be used as the basis of a portable navigational device. Secondly an augmented reality called DAMOCLES that overlays additional information on a user’s normal field of view. The provision of virtual environments offers new possibilities in the man-machine interface so that intuitive access to network based services and control functions can be given to a user.

The causal surface and its effect on distribution transparency in a distributed virtual environment

One goal in the development of distributed virtual environments (DVEs) is to create a system such that users are unaware of the distribution-the distribution should be transparent. The paper begins by discussing the general issues in DVEs that might make this possible, and a system that allows some level of distribution transparency is described. The system described suffers from effects of inconsistency, which in turn cause undesirable visual effects. The causal surface is introduced as a solution that removes these visual effects. The paper then introduces two determining factors of distribution transparency relating to user perception and performance. With regard to these factors, two hypotheses are stated relating to the causal surface. A user-trial on forty-five subjects is used to validate the hypotheses. A discussion of the results of the trial concludes that the causal surface solution does significantly improve the distribution transparency in a DVE.

Livestock and learning: evaluation of a prototype 3D virtual learning environment for livestock practitioners in India and Bolivia

Livestock are a key asset for the global poor. However, access to relevant information is a critical issue for both the poor and the practitioners who serve them. Therefore, the authors describe a web-based Virtual Learning Environment to disseminate educational materials on priority animal health constraints in Bolivia and India. The aim was to explore demand for 3D among development practitioners in the South. Two wider arguments from the ICT4D literature framed the analysis: the concept of 3D as a ‘lead technology’ and the relevance of Internet skills to the adoption of a 3D format. The results illustrated that neither construct influenced demand. Rather, study participants were ready adopters but desired greater levels of interaction and thereby, a more collaborative learning environment. Therefore, 3D has a number of potential benefits to enhance knowledge sharing among community practitioners in the Global South.