Towards Augmented Reality Driven Human-City Interaction: Current Research on Mobile Headsets and Future Challenges

Interaction design for Augmented Reality (AR) is gaining attention from both academia and industry. This survey discusses 260 articles (68.8% of articles published between 2015–2019) to review the field of human interaction in connected cities with emphasis on augmented reality-driven interaction. We provide an overview of Human-City Interaction and related technological approaches, followed by reviewing the latest trends of information visualization, constrained interfaces, and embodied interaction for AR headsets. We highlight under-explored issues in interface design and input techniques that warrant further research and conjecture that AR with complementary Conversational User Interfaces (CUIs) is a crucial enabler for ubiquitous interaction with immersive systems in smart cities. Our work helps researchers understand the current potential and future needs of AR in Human-City Interaction.

Synthesis of Zinc Oxide (ZnO) Nanoparticle using Non-Transferred DC Thermal Plasma Method: A Morphology Review

The increase of nanomaterialusagesuch as nano-ZnO application indeveloping countries is a type of progressthat is beneficial from the engineering standpoint.Being able to controlthe results of nanomaterial production is crucialin this development. To control the outcome is to obtainZnO nanomaterialsproperties which are suitable and in accordance to its intended application.Thisstudy focuses on the morphology ofZnO nanomaterialswhich aresynthesized by non-transferred DC thermal plasmamethod. In this review,parameters of the apparatus regulating the outcomes of the synthesisis studied and analyzed to find certain guidelines that affect nanomaterial morphology. Some of the findings includethe influence ofnon-transferred DC thermal plasma torches main variables such as gas output and powerinputwhich are involved in plasma jet production. It also finds precursor input techniques in which affects the ZnO nanomaterial production outcome. The study indicates that each production parameters on the DC thermal plasma device have different ways in affecting the morphology of the synthesized nanomaterialand it is possible to control them

Augmenting Around-Device Interaction by Geomagnetic Field Built-in Sensor Utilization

In this paper, we investigate the possibilities for augmenting interaction around the mobile device, with the aim of enabling input techniques that do not rely on typical touch-based gestures. The presented research focuses on utilizing a built-in magnetic field sensor, whose readouts are intentionally affected by moving a strong permanent magnet around a smartphone device. Different approaches for supporting magnet-based Around-Device Interaction are applied, including magnetic field fingerprinting, curve-fitting modeling, and machine learning. We implemented the corresponding proof-of-concept applications that incorporate magnet-based interaction. Namely, text entry is achieved by discrete positioning of the magnet within a keyboard mockup, and free-move pointing is enabled by monitoring the magnet’s continuous movement in real-time. The related solutions successfully expand both the interaction language and the interaction space in front of the device without altering its hardware or involving sophisticated peripherals. A controlled experiment was conducted to evaluate the provided text entry method initially. The obtained results were promising (text entry speed of nine words per minute) and served as a motivation for implementing new interaction modalities. The use of neural networks has shown to be a better approach than curve fitting to support free-move pointing. We demonstrate how neural networks with a very small number of input parameters can be used to provide highly usable pointing with an acceptable level of error (mean absolute error of 3 mm for pointer position on the smartphone display).

Controller-based Text-input Techniques for Virtual Reality: An Empirical Comparison

Existing consumer VR systems support text input using handheld controllers in combination with virtual keyboards and many designers have attempted to build on these widely used techniques. However, information on current and well-established VR text-input techniques is lacking. In this work, we conduct a comparative empirical evaluation of four controller-based VR text-input techniques, namely, raycasting, drum-like keyboard, head-directed input, and split keyboard. We focus on their text-entry rate and accuracy, usability, and user experience. Twenty-two participants evaluated the techniques by completing a typing session, answering usability and user-experience questionnaires, and participating in a semi-structured interview. The drum-like keyboard and the raycasting techniques stood out, achieving good usability scores, positive experiential feedback, satisfactory text-entry rates, and moderate error rates that can be reduced in future studies. The specific documented usability and experiential characteristics of the techniques are presented and discussed herein.

Techniques of the tactile body: A cultural phenomenology of toddlers and mobile touchscreens

A key dimension of young children’s mobile media engagement and play centres on their embodied relations, and how these are shaped with and through the interfaces, materiality and mobility of haptic media. This article explores these embodied dimensions of young children’s mobile media use, drawing on research from (1) ethnographic observation of young children’s play practices in family homes, (2) analysis of videos of young children’s tactile media interaction shared on YouTube and (3) analysis of user interface (UI) and mobile app developer literature, such as the ‘Event Handling Guide for iOS’, which encodes touchscreen interaction through the design constraints and possibilities of gesture input techniques. Taking as its starting point Marcel Mauss’ famous reflection on body techniques, this article draws on past and present research on mobile technologies, tactility and everyday life, to explore what might be involved in developing a ‘cultural phenomenology’ of mobile touchscreens. This research and analysis reveals the emergence of what we term a haptic habitus or cultivation of embodied dispositions for touchscreen conduct and competence.

Biometric variables and photosynthetic pigments in tamarind seedlings irrigated with saline water and biofertilizers

Saline level of water or soil beyond the limit tolerated by crops may impair morphological, physiological, and biochemical processes of plants in general, including tamarind. This problem requires the adoption of management and input techniques to reduce the degenerative effects of salts on plant species. In this sense, the aim of this study was to assess the effect of bovine biofertilizers on biometric variables and chlorophyll contents in tamarind seedlings irrigated with saline water. The experiment was conducted from October 2012 to January 2013, in Areia, PB, Brazil, in a randomized block design with four replications and five plants per plot in a 5 × 3 factorial scheme, consisting of electrical conductivity of water of 0.5, 1.5, 3.0, 4.5, and 6.0 dS m?1 and soil without and with common and chemically enriched biofertilizers. Leaf area, shoot dry matter, and contents of chlorophyll a, b, total, and carotenoids were assessed at 100 days after sowing. The increased water salinity reduced leaf area and seedling biomass formation, with a higher intensity in the soil without biofertilizer. The addition of biofertilizers allows the formation of tamarind seedlings irrigated with water of a salinity not tolerated by them when cultivated in the soil without the tested inputs.