Navigating in VR using free-hand gestures and embodied controllers: A comparative evaluation

PubDate:Oct 2023

Teams: Concordia University

Writers:Puneet Jain

PDF:Navigating in VR using free-hand gestures and embodied controllers: A comparative evaluation

Abstract

While natural body-based movements are essential features for immersive VR (Virtual Reality) experiences, most of the available input techniques for navigation in VR involve the use of hand-held controllers. Alternatively, while body-based input for VR navigation has previously been explored in HCI using external tracking devices, there is little to no work that utilizes the in-built tracking functionalities of the predominant VR headsets (such as Meta Quest 2) for gesture-based navigation in VR. This paper addresses this research gap by proposing five free-hand gestures for 3-D navigation in VR using internal gesture-tracking functionality of Quest 2 headset. Additionally, a qualitative and quantitative comparison is presented between free-hand and controller-based navigation in VR using a custom designed task (with 10 users). Overall, the findings from the task-analysis indicate that while in-built tracking functionalities in VR headsets open doors for inexpensive gesture-based VR navigation, the mid-air hand-gestures result into greater fatigue as compared to using controllers for navigation in VR.