Around-Device Interactions: A Usability Study of Frame Markers in Acquisition Tasks

Abstract

Abstract. Digital tabletops present numerous benefits in face-to-face collaboration environments. However, their integration in real settings is complicated by cost and fixed location. In this respect, building table-like environments using several handheld devices such as tablets or smartphones provides a promising alternative but is limited to touch interaction only. We propose instead another kind of "around-device" interaction (ADI) technique using the built-in front camera of these devices and fiducial frame markers, which presents advantages including better awareness and less interference. This paper contributes a first step in exploring the potential of this interaction technique by conducting a usability test comparing several ergonomic factors that may have an effect on the very first operation of the interaction: the acquisition of the marker.

From interactive surfaces to interactive game pieces in hybrid board games

“…ADI [11] expands the area of play outside the device's screen by enabling interaction using gestures or manipulation of passive or active augmented objects over (aerial interaction) or next to the interactive surface. This approach affords parallel interaction, allowing, for example, two players to interact with a tablet, both using physical objects and touch inputs at the same time without occluding each other's actions [17].…”

“…Despite technological advances, many MDE and ADI techniques are often limited to single-user applications. Reasons are that the interactions still call for proximity to a device (due to the limited recognition range of magnetic or optical sensors), although requiring the user to move closer to a target could cause occlusion and interference in MDEs [17].…”

Anyboard: A Platform for Hybrid Board Games

“…Anyboard source code and hardware schematics are open source 5 . Future work will have multiple efforts.…”

“…In recent years the large adoption of smartphones and tablets fostered the creation of hybrid games for mobile platforms. To address the limited screen size that impedes co-located play, technologies in the field of Multi-Display Environments (MDE) [20] and Around the Device Interaction (ADI) [5] were adopted. In hybrid games such as Capture the flag [20], gesturing and juxtaposition of private smartphone screens onto a shared screen reveal hidden layers and provide player-custom perspectives into the game.…”

“…For a review see Haller et al [8]. Hybrid games have been extensively implemented using interactive surfaces such as tabletop computers, recently complemented by novel technologies in the field of Multi-Display Environments (MDE) [20] and Around-the-Device Interaction (ADI) [5]. In hybrid games, large interactive surfaces recreate the social affordances typical of board games, whilst the use of active or passive playing pieces preserve physical affordances similar to traditional game pieces.…”