Hands-free interaction in immersive virtual reality: A systematic review

Area of Science:

• Virtual Reality (VR) and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Virtual Reality

Background:

• Hands are essential for interaction in virtual environments, yet often occupied during critical tasks.
• Surgeons in VR, for example, need hands for instruments, limiting interaction for secondary tasks.
• Hands-free interfaces are vital to maintain task flow and enable secondary interactions without disruption.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review literature on hands-free interfaces in virtual environments.
• To identify interfaces used, interaction tasks performed, evaluation metrics, and their outcomes.
• To understand the landscape of hands-free interaction in VR for improved usability.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature review of 79 eligible studies.
• Analysis of identified hands-free interfaces, interaction tasks, and evaluation metrics.
• Synthesis of reported results for interface effectiveness.

Main Results:

• Voice interfaces are the most studied, followed by eye and head gaze.
• Novel interfaces include brain interfaces and facial expressions.
• System control and selection are the primary interaction tasks studied, with usability as a common evaluation metric.
• Voice interfaces demonstrated versatility and positive results across multiple studies.

Conclusions:

• Voice interfaces are a versatile and effective hands-free option for virtual reality interactions.
• The choice of interface depends on specific task requirements and study contexts.
• Further research is recommended for formal evaluation and practical application enhancement of hands-free interfaces.