A Survey on Synchronous Augmented, Virtual and Mixed Reality Remote Collaboration Systems

Abstract

Remote collaboration systems have become increasingly important in today's society, especially during times where physical distancing is advised. Industry, research and individuals face the challenging task of collaborating and networking over long distances. While video and teleconferencing are already widespread, collaboration systems in augmented, virtual, and mixed reality are still a niche technology. We provide an overview of recent developments of synchronous remote collaboration systems and create a taxonomy by dividing them into three main components that form such systems: Environment, Avatars, and Interaction. A thorough overview of existing systems is given, categorising their main contributions in order to help researchers working in different fields by providing concise information about specific topics such as avatars, virtual environment, visualisation styles and interaction. The focus of this work is clearly on synchronised collaboration from a distance. A total of 82 unique systems for remote collaboration are discussed, including more than 100 publications and 25 commercial systems.

Comparing technologies for conveying emotions through realistic avatars in virtual reality‐based metaverse experiences

“…Figure 1b shows some excerpts from the scenes that the participants spectated and rated. The original full scripts in Italian, their English translations, and the recordings of the six scenes are available for download 6 . In order to minimize the possible sources of bias associated with the need to watch the same scenes multiple times, it was decided to avoid relying on an a live performance of the actor in a real multi-user scenario, but rather to opt for a simulated one.…”

“…They can be realistic, 4 or cartoon-looking. 5 They can also differ in terms of complexity, 6 ranging from ergonomic and minimalist visualizations 7 in which only the user's head and hands are shown, up to configurations much closer to reality, with complete figures from head to toes. 8 The latter may be also provided with facial expressions.…”