Pointing and selection methods for text entry in augmented reality head mounted displays

Wenge Xu, Hai Ning Liang*, Anqi He, Zifan Wang

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book or Report/Conference proceedingConference Proceedingpeer-review

56 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Augmented reality (AR) is on the rise with consumer-level head-mounted displays (HMDs) becoming available in recent years. Text entry is an essential activity for AR systems, but it is still relatively underexplored. Although it is possible to use a physical keyboard to enter text in AR systems, it is not the most optimal and ideal way because it confines the uses to a stationary position and within indoor environments. Instead, a virtual keyboard seems more suitable. Text entry via virtual keyboards requires a pointing method and a selection mechanism. Although there exist various combinations of pointing+selection mechanisms, it is not well understood how well suited each combination is to support fast text entry speed with low error rates and positive usability (regarding workload, user experience, motion sickness, and immersion). In this research, we perform an empirical study to investigate user preference and text entry performance of four pointing methods (Controller, Head, Hand, and Hybrid) in combination with two input mechanisms (Swype and Tap). Our research represents a first systematic investigation of these eight possible combinations. Our results show that Controller outperforms all the other device-free methods in both text entry performance and user experience. However, device-free pointing methods can be usable depending on task requirements and users' preferences and physical condition.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings - 2019 IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality, ISMAR 2019
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Pages279-288
Number of pages10
ISBN (Electronic)9781728109879
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2019
Event18th IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality, ISMAR 2019 - Beijing, China
Duration: 14 Oct 201918 Oct 2019

Publication series

NameProceedings - 2019 IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality, ISMAR 2019

Conference

Conference18th IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality, ISMAR 2019
Country/TerritoryChina
CityBeijing
Period14/10/1918/10/19

Keywords

  • Augmented Reality
  • Pointing Methods
  • Selection Mechanisms
  • Text Entry
  • User Performance
  • User Preference

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