Latency Effects on Multi-Dimensional QoE in Networked VR Whiteboards.

Area of Science:

• Human-computer interaction
• Virtual reality
• Collaborative systems

Background:

• Networked virtual reality (NVR) whiteboards facilitate remote collaboration but are susceptible to latency.
• Latency, from network or system issues, degrades the Quality of Experience (QoE) in NVR whiteboard use.
• Understanding latency's impact is crucial for enhancing collaborative virtual environments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically investigate how network latency affects the Quality of Experience (QoE) in NVR whiteboards.
• To identify specific QoE sub-dimensions most sensitive to latency.
• To analyze latency's impact across different collaboration modes and VR whiteboard types.

Main Methods:

• Classified QoE into pragmatic and hedonic aspects with multiple sub-dimensions.
• Conducted controlled experiments to measure the impact of latency on identified QoE indicators.
• Compared latency effects in sequential collaboration (SC) versus free collaboration (FC) and between VR+ (with avatars), VR (without avatars), and PC-based whiteboards.

Main Results:

• Identified key QoE sub-dimensions significantly affected by latency.
• Quantified the varying impact of latency across different collaboration modes (SC vs. FC).
• Demonstrated differences in latency sensitivity between VR+ and VR whiteboard systems compared to a PC baseline.

Conclusions:

• Latency is a critical factor influencing QoE in NVR whiteboards, affecting both pragmatic and hedonic aspects.
• Optimizing NVR systems requires considering specific collaboration modes and VR interface designs (avatars vs. no avatars).
• Findings provide practical guidance for improving NVR whiteboard performance under real-world network conditions.