Lattice Menu: A Low-Error Gaze-Based Marking Menu Utilizing Target-Assisted Gaze Gestures on a Lattice of Visual AnchorsWe present Lattice Menu, a gaze-based marking menu utilizing a lattice of visual anchors that helps perform accurate gaze pointing for menu item selection. Users who know the location of the desired item can leverage target-assisted gaze gestures for multilevel item selection by looking at visual anchors over the gaze trajectories. Our evaluation showed that Lattice Menu exhibits a considerably low error rate (~1%) and a quick menu selection time (1.3-1.6 s) for expert usage across various menu structures (4 × 4 × 4 and 6 × 6 × 6) and sizes (8, 10 and 12°). In comparison with a traditional gaze-based marking menu that does not utilize visual targets, Lattice Menu showed remarkably (~5 times) fewer menu selection errors for expert usage. In a post-interview, all 12 subjects preferred Lattice Menu, and most subjects (8 out of 12) commented that the provisioning of visual targets facilitated more stable menu selections with reduced eye fatigue.2022TKTaejun Kim et al.School of Computing, KAISTEye Tracking & Gaze InteractionCHI
PatchProv: Supporting Improvisational Design Practices for Modern QuiltingThe craft of improvisational quilting involves working without the use of a predefined pattern. Design decisions are made "in the fabric," with design experimentation tightly interleaved with the creation of the final artifact. To investigate how this type of design process can be supported, and to address challenges faced by practitioners, this paper presents PatchProv, a system for supporting improvisational quilt design. Based on a review of popular books on improvisational quilting, a set of design principles and key challenges to improvisational quilt design were identified, and PatchProv was developed to support the unique aspects of this process. An evaluation with a small group of quilters showed enthusiasm for the approach and revealed further possibilities for how computational tools can support improvisational quilting and improvisational design practices more broadly.2021MLMackenzie Leake et al.Chatham Labs, Stanford UniversityTextile Art & Craft DigitizationCHI
Armstrong: An Empirical Examination of Pointing at Non-Dominant Arm-Anchored UIs in Virtual RealityIn virtual reality (VR) environments, asymmetric bimanual interaction techniques can increase users' input bandwidth by complementing their perceptual and motor systems (e.g., using the dominant hand to select 3D UI controls anchored around the non-dominant arm). However, it is unclear how to optimize the layout of such 3D UI controls for near-body and mid-air interactions. We evaluate the performance and limitations of non-dominant arm-anchored 3D UIs in VR environments through a bimanual pointing study. Results demonstrated that targets appearing closer to the skin, located around the wrist, or placed on the medial side of the forearm could be selected more quickly than targets farther away from the skin, located around the elbow, or on the lateral side of the forearm. Based on these results, we developed Armstrong guidelines, demonstrated through a Unity plugin to enable designers to create performance-optimized arm-anchored 3D UI layouts.2021ZLZhen Li et al.University of Toronto, Chatham LabsMid-Air Haptics (Ultrasonic)Haptic WearablesFull-Body Interaction & Embodied InputCHI
StickyPie: A Gaze-Based, Scale-Invariant Marking Menu Optimized for AR/VRThis work explores the design of marking menus for gaze-based AR/VR menu selection by expert and novice users. It first identifies and explains the challenges inherent in ocular motor control and current eye tracking hardware, including overshooting, incorrect selections, and false activations. Through three empirical studies, we optimized and validated design parameters to mitigate these errors while reducing completion time, task load, and eye fatigue. Based on the findings from these studies, we derived a set of design guidelines to support gaze-based marking menus in AR/VR. To overcome the overshoot errors found with eye-based expert marking menu behaviour, we developed StickyPie, a marking menu technique that enables scale-independent marking input by estimating saccade landing positions. An evaluation of StickyPie revealed that StickyPie was easier to learn than the traditional technique (i.e., RegularPie) and was 10% more efficient after 3 sessions.2021SASunggeun Ahn et al.Chatham Labs, KAISTEye Tracking & Gaze InteractionMixed Reality WorkspacesCHI
ShArc: A Geometric Technique for Multi-Bend/Shape SensingWe present ShArc, a precision, geometric measurement technique for building multi-bend/shape sensors. ShArc sensors are made from flexible strips that can be dynamically formed into complex curves in a plane. They measure local curvature by noting the relative shift between the inner and outer layers of the sensor at many points and model shape as a series of connected arcs. Unlike jointed systems where angular errors sum with each joint measured, ShArc sensors do not accumulate angular error as more measurement points are added. This allows for inexpensive, robust sensors that can accurately model curves with multiple bends. To demonstrate the efficacy of this technique, we developed a capacitive ShArc sensor and evaluated its performance. We conclude with examples of how ShArc sensors can be employed in applications like gesture input devices, user interface controllers, human motion tracking and angular measurement of free-form objects.2020FSFereshteh Shahmiri et al.Gerogia Institute of Technology & Tactual Labs Co.Shape-Changing Interfaces & Soft Robotic MaterialsHand Gesture RecognitionHuman Pose & Activity RecognitionCHI
Head-Coupled Kinematic Template Matching: A Prediction Model for Ray Pointing in VRThis paper presents a new technique to predict the ray pointer landing position for selection movements in virtual reality (VR) environments. The technique adapts and extends a prior 2D kinematic template matching method to VR environments where ray pointers are used for selection. It builds on the insight that the kinematics of a controller and Head-Mounted Display (HMD) can be used to predict the ray's final landing position and angle. An initial study provides evidence that the motion of the head is a key input channel for improving prediction models. A second study validates this technique across a continuous range of distances, angles, and target sizes. On average, the technique's predictions were within 7.3° of the true landing position when 50% of the way through the movement and within 3.4° when 90%. Furthermore, compared to a direct extension of Kinematic Template Matching, which only uses controller movement, this head-coupled approach increases prediction accuracy by a factor of 1.8x when 40% of the way through the movement.2020RHRorik Henrikson et al.Chatham LabsEye Tracking & Gaze InteractionHuman Pose & Activity RecognitionImmersion & Presence ResearchCHI
In the eye of a hurricane there is quiet, for just a moment, —CHI can be a multisensory overload. Attendees endure days of workshops, presentations, evening parties, and ephemeral interactions. This paper attempts to disrupt that onslaught of activities [9]. It draws inspiration from theories and methods already in HCI—e.g. mindfulness [1], reflective design [8], and slow design [4,7]—to bring eight pages of silence to the conference. This is meant to disrupt CHI's busy schedule and help attendees foster resilience. In pursuit of these aims, the authors will use the time and pages offered by this paper to facilitate a group silence; quiet, for just a moment, in the midst of the hurricane that is CHI.2018VTVanessa Thomas et al.Aarhus UniversityParticipatory DesignSustainable HCICHI
HCI meets Material Science: A Literature Review of Morphing Materials for the Design of Shape-Changing InterfacesWith the proliferation of flexible displays and the advances in smart materials, it is now possible to create interactive devices that are not only flexible but can reconfigure into any shape on demand. Several Human Computer Interaction (HCI) and robotics researchers have started designing, prototyping and evaluating shape-changing devices, realising, however, that this vision still requires many engineering challenges to be addressed. On the material science front, we need breakthroughs in stable and accessible materials to create novel, proof-of-concept devices. On the interactive devices side, we require a deeper appreciation for the material properties and an understanding of how exploiting material properties can provide affordances that unleash the human interactive potential. While these challenges are interesting for the respective research fields, we believe that the true power of shape-changing devices can be magnified by bringing together these communities. In this paper we therefore present a review of advances made in shape-changing materials and discuss their applications within an HCI context.2018IQIsabel P. S. Qamar et al.University of BristolShape-Changing Interfaces & Soft Robotic MaterialsCHI
Participatory Design of a Virtual Reality Exercise for People with Mild Cognitive ImpairmentThis case study describes the creation of a head-mounted display virtual reality exergame program for promoting physical exercise for people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), namely people with early-stage dementia. We engaged in an iterative participatory design process with kinesiologists, recreational therapists, and people with MCI prior to pilot-testing a prototype program with three persons with MCI. The test participants engaged in the exergame, were able to do the exercises, and their feedback was very positive. Engaging with professionals and people with dementia throughout the design process was very beneficial to creating a usable and engaging design as well as identifying areas that could be further improved. In conclusion, the approach illustrated through this case study resulted a new way for older adults with MCI to engage in physical activities that is fun and tailored to their abilities. The next phase in our research is to evaluate the exergame against comparable human-guided movements.2018MEMahzar Eisapour et al.University of WaterlooVR Medical Training & RehabilitationCognitive Impairment & Neurodiversity (Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia)Empowerment of Marginalized GroupsCHI
TopicOnTiles: Tile-Based Spatio-Temporal Event Analytics via Exclusive Topic Modeling on Social MediaDetecting anomalous events of a particular area in a timely manner is an important task. Geo-tagged social media data are useful resource for this task; however, the abundance of everyday language in them makes this task still challenging. To address such challenges, we present TopicOnTiles, a visual analytics system that can reveal information relevant to anomalous events in a multi-level tile-based map interface by using social media data. To this end, we adopt and improve a recently proposed topic modeling method that can extract spatio-temporally exclusive topics corresponding to a particular region and a time point. Furthermore, we utilize a tile-based map interface to efficiently handle large-scale data in parallel. Our user interface effectively highlights anomalous tiles using our novel glyph visualization that encodes the degree of anomaly computed by our exclusive topic modeling processes. To show the effectiveness of our system, we present several usage scenarios using real-world datasets as well as comprehensive user study results.2018MCMinsuk Choi et al.Korea UniversityInteractive Data VisualizationGeospatial & Map VisualizationUser Research Methods (Interviews, Surveys, Observation)CHI
HCI Interventions for Science CommunicationIn this paper we describe the practices used by alternate reality game (ARG) designers to engage fans with the issues and effects of global climate change under the scientific guidance of key non-profit organizations. Our multiple case study is based on three projects: Future Coast (2014), the Disaster Resilience Journal (2014) and Techno Medicine Wheel (2007 – ongoing). Our analysis derives from each ARG designer's interview and observations of their game's narrative structure, postmortem. Findings provide HCI practitioners with a list of best practices related to the designer’s use of narrative style and physical locations to support fan engagement. These practices emphasize the goals of non-profit organizations (NPO) through science communication utilizing popular media forms.2018VMVicki Moulder et al.The University of TokyoSTEM Education & Science CommunicationClimate Change Communication ToolsCHI