Rubbing Interaction with Two-Handed Virtual Reality Controllers

Area of Science:

• Human-Computer Interaction
• Virtual Reality

Background:

• Rubbing is a common interaction technique for devices like touchscreens.
• Research on rubbing interactions with virtual reality (VR) controllers is limited.
• Understanding rubbing components is crucial for intuitive VR controller design.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the design space of rubbing interactions using two-handed VR controllers.
• To develop and evaluate a method for classifying rubbing actions in VR.
• To assess user preferences for the proposed rubbing technique in VR tasks.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a one-on-one interview with 10 participants to identify key rubbing components.
• Developed a classification method for rubbing actions based on hand use and direction.
• Evaluated the classification accuracy and the ability to reject non-rubbing actions.
• Assessed user preferences for the technique across five typical VR tasks.

Main Results:

• The proposed rubbing classification method achieved 96% overall accuracy.
• The method successfully distinguished rubbing actions from seven non-rubbing actions.
• User preference indicated the technique's viability for common VR tasks.
• Identified key components: hand use, rubbing direction, device type, and rubbing contact.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully defined and classified rubbing interactions for VR controllers.
• The developed method offers high accuracy and robustness in recognizing rubbing gestures.
• This research provides valuable insights for designing intuitive and effective VR controller interactions.