Walking improves your cognitive map in environments that are large-scale and large in extent

Abstract

________________________________________________________________________This study investigated the effect of body-based information (proprioception, etc.) when participants navigated large-scale virtual marketplaces that were either small (Experiment 1) or large in extent (Experiment 2). Extent refers to the size of an environment, whereas scale refers to whether people have to travel through an environment to see the detail necessary for navigation. Each participant was provided with full body-based information (walking through the virtual marketplaces in a large tracking hall or on an omni-directional treadmill), just the translational component of body-based information (walking on a linear treadmill, but turning with a joystick), just the rotational component (physically turning but using a joystick to translate) or no body-based information (joysticks to translate and rotate). In large and small environments translational body-based information significantly improved the accuracy of participants' cognitive maps, measured using estimates of direction and relative straight line distance but, on its own, rotational body-based information had no effect. In environments of small extent, full body-based information also improved participants' navigational performance. The experiments show that locomotion devices such as linear treadmills would bring substantial benefits to virtual environment applications where large spaces are navigated, and theories of human navigation need to reconsider the contribution made by body-based information, and distinguish between environmental scale and extent.

Assessing the Impact of Automatic vs. Controlled Rotations on Spatial Transfer with a Joystick and a Walking Interface in VR

“…Due to the significant effects absence of the Rotation factor with the Treadmill, we can suppose that for increasing allocentric representations, translational vestibular information is more important than rotational vestibular information. These results are consistent with the findings of [14] [17], regarding the importance of walking activity in the development of allocentric representations. However, these results could be different with a joystick condition with gamers participants, accustomed to use a joystick.…”

“…Finally, the Rotation (and rotational vestibular information), had no impact for the Treadmill. These results are coherent with [14] where the importance of the translational vestibular information on distance estimation is confirmed, and where no effect of rotational vestibular information was found. In contrast, in the two Joystick conditions (only visual information provided), we can see an overestimation only with the Controlled Rotation condition.…”

“…These three acquisition stages need not follow a strict order but may be obtained in a parallel process [29]. Concerning the sensorimotor component, body-based information required during a navigational activity can be divided in three types of information [14]: 1) the optic flow, consisting of all visual input used to detect forms, textures, semantic landmarks, movements of objects, etc. always in relation with body position, 2) the vestibular system provides translational (acceleration/deceleration of the head and body) as well as rotational information (rotation of the head and body), and 3) the kinesthetic information, which informs about the perception of our members according to our body.…”

“…However, most of the studies agree that the extent of body-based information provided by a treadmill locomotion interface (compared to a joystick) was considered largely favorable for spatial learning in a VE [11][13] [14], due to the improvement in egocentric [11] and allocentric spatial representation [14], as well as navigational measurements [19]. Recently, Ruddle et al [14] assessed the role of both translational and rotational vestibular information on survey knowledge, using different locomotion interfaces (translational displacements with walking or treadmill Vs. no translational displacements with joystick), sometimes with the possibility of really turning the head (i.e., rotational vestibular condition or not) during rotational movement. Performances revealed an improvement of survey knowledge with a walking activity, but little effect about rotational vestibular information was observed.…”

Virtual Distance Estimation in a CAVE

“…Interfaces for large-scale virtual locomotion often do not allow for the types of body-based translation movements, such as walking, that may lead to construction of accurate spatial representations [17]. In fact, Sun et al [19] showed that providing body-based proprioceptive/efferent information improved path length estimates, even if it was inconsistent with reality as experienced visually.…”