Revisiting Walking-in-Place by Introducing Step-Height Control, Elastic Input, and Pseudo-Haptic Feedback

Area of Science:

• Virtual Reality
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Locomotion Techniques

Background:

• Walking-in-place (WIP) is a key virtual reality locomotion method allowing infinite virtual travel in limited physical spaces.
• Existing WIP methods often face limitations in control, input, and sensory feedback, impacting user experience and immersion.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate and introduce novel interaction schemes for walking-in-place (WIP) systems.
• To enhance control, input, and output mechanisms for more effective and immersive virtual locomotion.
• To evaluate the efficacy and user experience of these alternative WIP interaction schemes.

Main Methods:

• Introduced a novel height-based control scheme to modulate virtual walking speed.
• Developed a new input system utilizing elastic and passive strips for WIP.
• Implemented pseudo-haptic feedback as a novel output to simulate walking sensations.

Main Results:

• Height and frequency-based WIP control demonstrated superior efficacy and ease in achieving higher virtual speeds compared to frequency-only control.
• The elastic input system provided stable virtual speed control, though strong elastic forces could negatively affect usability.
• Pseudo-haptic feedback significantly improved the perceived realism of virtual slopes during WIP locomotion.

Conclusions:

• Alternative interaction schemes, including height-based control and elastic input, offer significant improvements for walking-in-place systems.
• Pseudo-haptic feedback enhances the immersive quality of virtual environments by improving perceived realism.
• Further research into these novel WIP interaction schemes is recommended for future virtual reality applications.