PhD Thesis

PhD thesis in Computer Science attended at Ecole Centrale de Lyon, december 16, 2004. 212 pages.

Abstract

One of the main weaknesses with traditional computing is the fact that the numerical world of the computer is decoupled from the users’ real world. The application of Mixed Reality (MR) can provide interactive systems in which real objects and computer data are combined in a cohesive way.
In our state of the art, we review several applications and technologies that have been developed  during the last decade. Most of these applications are home made and were developed in an independent and autonomous way. Therefore, it is important to propose comprehensive model and an associated design methodology.

As we illustrated it, the current models of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), are not suitable for Mixed Reality systems. It is because they are limited in terms of modeling the real artefacts.

Therefore, the proposed IRVO model (Interacting with Real and Virtual Objects) aims at formalizing the interaction between the users, the real and virtual objects. It identifies the entities that have a role in the system (users, tools, objects of the task and the application) and their relationships. Its expressiveness help us to model the applications we reviewed while helping us in understanding, comparing and classifying them.

We will also show how IRVO supports the design of a new generation of Mixed Reality based applications. IRVO can be used either as a starting point, or at the end of the analysis phase to help the designer in checking  the completeness, coherence, continuity of the design. We investigated also the relation between IRVO and traditional HCI and CSCW models and more specifically with the AMF-C and Arch models. In a Model-Based Approach (MBA), IRVO can supplement the task and dialog models.

Keywords: Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Supported Collaborative Work, Mixed Reality, Augmented Reality, interaction model.