Interfaccia di locomozione a mappatura di pressione su seduta per realtà virtuale = VR locomotion interface with seat pressure mapping

The vestibular response is demonstrated to have great importance in motion sickness and virtual reality experiences. We hypothesize that using the user’s torso orientation in space would give the user enough proprioceptive and vestibular stimuli that, together with the optical flux generated by the Head Mounted Display, might result in a reduced motion sickness and would allow a comfortable and intuitive locomotion in virtual environments. In this thesis we aim to establish the possibility to use the user’s position while sitting to navigate the virtual environment using a HMD. The goal is to register the user’s center of mass’s projection on the seat and its orientation in space using a device with built-in pressure sensor, gyroscope, and wireless communication to be positioned on any revolving seat, and to use this data to move the virtual avatar accordingly. To the best of our knowledge no similar interface has been developed with such a simple approach. The development of this device required us to create both the software and the hardware. To measure the quality of this novel interface, we compared the technology with existing locomotion systems using a locomotion evaluation technique to measure the quality of this technique in several scenarios whilst confronting it with other approaches. Using the Arduino suite and Unity editor, we managed to create a functioning device suited for a locomotion technique that allows the user to execute front-rear movement with fine left-right correction decoupled from headset orientation. Several are the possible improvements in this project, such as a finer weight readance using a more precise pressure mapping device and using machine learning to better understand the weight distribution during different tasks. This device might also be used to enhance seat quality of any given seat and monitor the user’s posture to prevent discomfort (i.e. back pain prevention and work welfare).