Compression rate can predict cybersickness

Do you endure from cybersickness? It affects galore virtual world (VR) users and remains a important challenge.

Cybersickness, similar different forms of question sickness, is caused by a disconnect betwixt what the eyes spot and the assemblage feels. In this case, the eyes spot fast-changing ocular stimuli successful a VR situation portion the assemblage is still, oregon lone makes insignificant movements.

It tin impact one's consciousness of balance, and leads to symptoms that see nausea, headaches and dizziness.

"Many radical get cybersickness portion playing VR games, since galore of the games are fast-paced and necessitate changeless movements successful the VR environment," says Professor Hai-Ning Liang, from the Department of Computing astatine Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University.

In bid to combat cybersickness, researchers archetypal request to cognize astatine which points of a crippled it's much apt to occur.

A squad from the School of Advanced Technology astatine XJTLU developed a caller prediction method based connected the trajectory compression complaint derived from however users determination successful the virtual environment.

"When we navigate successful a virtual environment, we determination successful a circumstantial trajectory, which tin beryllium represented oregon recorded arsenic a bid of information points. Some of these points tin beryllium removed without affecting the practice accuracy of the trajectory way by a process called compression.

"The compression complaint of a way trajectory refers to however overmuch unnecessary accusation tin beryllium taken retired without immoderate nonaccomplishment successful the details of the path. For example, if you are walking successful a straight line, the presumption doesn't alteration arsenic overmuch arsenic if you're turning frequently, due to the fact that a consecutive line's information points amusement the aforesaid properties of the path.

"Therefore, erstwhile a idiosyncratic is walking successful a consecutive line, the compression complaint volition beryllium higher, arsenic there's much redundant accusation that tin beryllium removed.

"Based connected this, we theorized that erstwhile the compression complaint is low, the trajectory is apt much analyzable (such arsenic with much turns), causing much ocular changes successful the virtual environment. As such, the level of cybersickness is likely to beryllium high," helium says.

Let's play a game

To trial this, the probe squad designed 2 experiments. In the first, they observed test subjects playing 2 games—a racing crippled and a maze game—and periodically asked them astir their level of discomfort portion playing. They utilized the information to cipher and comparison the compression complaint of antithetic navigation patterns. The results showed that their proposal was correct.

In the 2nd experiment, the researchers developed a machine-learning approach to foretell the participants' discomfort levels, and past matched it to their feedback.

"The instrumentality learning attack was effective, and the real-time prediction was accurate," says Professor Liang. "This is the archetypal clip trajectory compression rates person been utilized to foretell cybersickness."

Using this method allows developers to place the sections of a crippled wherever players oregon viewers are apt to consciousness ill, and instrumentality steps to mitigate it.

For example, they tin let in-game teleportation to get to different country alternatively of making players determination done the space, oregon see a spot to intermission the game and let users to instrumentality a break.

Professor Liang besides mentions that this attack to prediction is elemental and practical, since it doesn't request further hardware components oregon equipment.

"This prediction method is each bundle based, which makes it cheaper and little intrusive to foretell cybersickness. Other methods whitethorn beryllium much expensive, arsenic they necessitate sensors to show the player's tegument and brainwaves, oregon seizure different types of physiological information to consciousness erstwhile they're feeling ill," helium says.

"By helping trim feelings of illness, this prediction method tin let radical who are delicate to question sickness bask the VR situation overmuch more," Professor Liang says.

The probe was presented astatine the 2021 IEEE International Symposium connected Mixed and Augmented Reality (ISMAR).

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More information: Diego Monteiro et al, Using Trajectory Compression Rate to Predict Changes successful Cybersickness successful Virtual Reality Games, 2021 IEEE International Symposium connected Mixed and Augmented Reality (ISMAR) (2021). DOI: 10.1109/ISMAR52148.2021.00028