Influence of Hand Tracking in Immersive Virtual Reality for Memory Assessment.

Few works analyze the parameters inherent to immersive virtual reality (IVR) in applications for memory evaluation. Specifically, hand tracking adds to the immersion of the system, placing the user in the first person with full awareness of the position of their hands. Thus, this work addresses the influence of hand tracking in memory assessment with IVR systems. For this, an application based on activities of daily living was developed, where the user must remember the location of the elements. The data collected by the application are the accuracy of the answers and the response time; the participants are 20 healthy subjects who pass the MoCA test with an age range between 18 to 60 years of age; the application was evaluated with classic controllers and with the hand tracking of the Oculus Quest 2. After the experimentation, the participants carried out presence (PQ), usability (UMUX), and satisfaction (USEQ) tests. The results indicate no difference with statistical significance between both experiments; controller experiments have 7.08% higher accuracy and 0.27 ys. faster response time. Contrary to expectations, presence was 1.3% lower for hand tracking, and usability (0.18%) and satisfaction (1.43%) had similar results. The findings indicate no evidence to determine better conditions in the evaluation of memory in this case of IVR with hand tracking.

Face, content, and construct validity of the virtual immersive operating room simulator for training laparoscopic procedures.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this work is to present the face, content, and construct validation of the virtual immersive operating room simulator (VIORS) for procedural training of surgeons' laparoscopic psychomotor skills and evaluate the immersive training experience. METHODS: The VIORS simulator consists of an HMD Oculus Rift 2016 with a visor on a 1080 × 1200 pixel OLED screen, two positioning sensors with two adapted controls to simulate laparoscopic instruments, and an acrylic base to simulate the conventional laparoscopic setup. The immersion consists of a 360° virtual operating room environment, based on the EndoSuite at Hospital Infantil de Mexico Federico Gomez, which reproduces a configuration of equipment, instruments, and common distractions in the operating room during a laparoscopic cholecystectomy procedure. Forty-five surgeons, residents, and medicine students participated in this study: 27 novices, 13 intermediates, and 5 experts. They completed a questionnaire on the realism and operating room immersion, as well as their capabilities for laparoscopic procedural training, scored in the 5-point Likert scale. The data of instrument movement were recorded and analyzed using 13 movement analysis parameters (MAPs). The experience during training with VIORS was evaluated through NASA-TLX. RESULTS: The participants were enthusiastic about the immersion and sensation levels of the VIORS simulator, with positive scores on the realism and its capabilities for procedural training using VIORS. The results proved that the VIORS simulator was able to differentiate between surgeons with different skill levels. Statistically significant differences were found in nine MAPs, demonstrating their construct validity for the objective assessment of the procedural laparoscopic performance. At cognitive level, the inversion experience proves a moderate mental workload when the laparoscopic procedure is carried out. CONCLUSION: The VIORS simulator has been successfully presented and validated. The VIORS simulator is a useful and effective device for the training of procedural laparoscopic psychomotor skills.

Assessing the Soundscape Appropriateness in the Vicinity of a Heliport in an Urban Park of Quito (Ecuador) Using Immersive Audio-Visual Scenarios.

Heliports are facilities that play a fundamental role in security and emergency operations. Since rotorcrafts do not need much space for take-off and landing, heliports are normally immersed in the urban fabric of our cities. However, they generate high noise levels, which can cause a nuisance, especially in outdoor areas intended for the recreation of citizens. This paper studies how helicopter noise affects the perception of the soundscape appropriateness and landscape quality in the vicinity of a heliport located in an urban park, using semantic differential scales and appraisals on the noise sources. The study area was the "Parque del Bicentenario" in Quito, Ecuador. Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR) laboratory tests using 360-degree videos and spatial audio were preferred to on-site questionnaires, given the difficulty of predicting when helicopter noise events would occur. For the statistical analysis, objective acoustic and psychoacoustic parameters have also been considered. Results show that the soundscape is perceived as more pleasant and less chaotic when there is no helicopter noise. Furthermore, with the same visual stimuli, the appraisals of the landscape are much better in the scenarios without the helicopter noise. Sharpness is the psychoacoustic parameter that best explains the variance of the subjective variables evaluated.

Two new virtual reality tasks for the assessment of spatial orientation Preliminary results of tolerability, sense of presence and usability.

Spatial orientation is a cognitive domain frequently impaired in Alzheimer's Disease and can be one of its earliest symptoms. OBJECTIVE: This paper describes the results of tolerability, sense of presence and usability of two immersive virtual reality tasks for the assessment of spatial orientation, using VR headset in adults. METHODS: 31 healthy adults recruited from university and the local community performed two experimental immersive virtual reality tasks of spatial orientation: the SOIVET-Maze for the assessment of allocentric to egocentric spatial abilities and the SOIVET-Route for the assessment of spatial memory and landmark recognition. Participants completed questionnaires about sense of presence, cybersickness symptoms, technology use profile and motion sickness history. Usability measures were assessed by spontaneous feedback from participants. RESULTS: All participants were able to understand the task instructions and how to interact with the system. Both tasks seemed to induce a strong sense of presence, as assessed by the Witmer and Singer Presence Questionnaires (M=128 and 143 for SOIVET-Maze and SOIVET-Route, respectively). The SOIVET-Route had a small numeric advantage over the SOIVET-Maze tolerability scores assessed by the Cybersickness Questionnaire (M=4.19, SD=5.576 and M=3.52, SD=6.418 for SOIVET-Maze and SOIVET-Route respectively). Also, there were no drop-outs on the SOIVET-Route due to tolerability issues, unlike the SOIVET-Maze, which had two drop-outs. However, this difference was not statistically significant (Z= -.901, p= 0.368, Wilcoxon signed-rank test).

A orientação espacial é um domínio cognitivo freqüentemente comprometido na doença de Alzheimer e pode ser um dos primeiros sintomas manifestados. OBJETIVO: Este artigo descreve os resultados de tolerabilidade, sensação de presença e usabilidade de duas tarefas imersivas de realidade virtual para avaliação da orientação espacial, utilizando óculos de RV em adultos. MÉTODOS: 31 adultos saudáveis, ​​recrutados entre estudantes universitários e da comunidade local, realizaram duas tarefas de realidade virtual imersiva para avaliação da orientação espacial: A tarefa SOIVET-Maze para avaliação da capacidade de transposição da orientação alocêntrica para egocêntrica e a tarefa SOIVET-Route para avaliação da memória espacial e reconhecimento de pontos de referência. Os participantes também responderam questionários sobre Sensação de Presença, Sintomas de cybersickness, Perfil de Uso de Tecnologia e Histórico de cinetose. Feedback espontâneo dos participantes foi utilizado como medida de usabilidade. RESULTADOS: Todos os participantes conseguiram compreender as instruções da tarefa e como interagir com o sistema. Ambas tarefas parecem induzir forte sensação de presença, avaliada pelo Questionário de Presença de Witmer e Singer (M=128 e 143 para SOIVET-Maze e SOIVET-Route, respectivamente). A tarefa SOIVET-Route teve uma pequena vantagem numérica em relação à tarefa SOIVET-Maze na pontuação de tolerabilidade avaliada pelo Questionário de Cybersickness (M=4,19, SD=5,576 e M=3,52, SD=6,418 para SOIVET-Maze e SOIVET-Route respectivamente). Além disso, não houve desistências na SOIVET-Route devido a problemas de tolerabilidade, ao contrário da SOIVET-Maze, que teve dois drop-outs. No entanto, essa diferença não foi estatisticamente significativa (Z= -901, p=0,368, teste de postos sinalizados de Wilcoxon).

Two new virtual reality tasks for the assessment of spatial orientation: preliminary results of tolerability, sense of presence and usability / Duas novas tarefas de realidade virtual para avaliação da orientação espacial: resultados preliminares de tolerabilidade, sensação de presença e usabilidade

Abstract Spatial orientation is a cognitive domain frequently impaired in Alzheimer's Disease and can be one of its earliest symptoms. Objective: This paper describes the results of tolerability, sense of presence and usability of two immersive virtual reality tasks for the assessment of spatial orientation, using VR headset in adults. Methods: 31 healthy adults recruited from university and the local community performed two experimental immersive virtual reality tasks of spatial orientation: the SOIVET-Maze for the assessment of allocentric to egocentric spatial abilities and the SOIVET-Route for the assessment of spatial memory and landmark recognition. Participants completed questionnaires about sense of presence, cybersickness symptoms, technology use profile and motion sickness history. Usability measures were assessed by spontaneous feedback from participants. Results: All participants were able to understand the task instructions and how to interact with the system. Both tasks seemed to induce a strong sense of presence, as assessed by the Witmer and Singer Presence Questionnaires (M=128 and 143 for SOIVET-Maze and SOIVET-Route, respectively). The SOIVET-Route had a small numeric advantage over the SOIVET-Maze tolerability scores assessed by the Cybersickness Questionnaire (M=4.19, SD=5.576 and M=3.52, SD=6.418 for SOIVET-Maze and SOIVET-Route respectively). Also, there were no drop-outs on the SOIVET-Route due to tolerability issues, unlike the SOIVET-Maze, which had two drop-outs. However, this difference was not statistically significant (Z= -.901, p= 0.368, Wilcoxon signed-rank test).

Resumo A orientação espacial é um domínio cognitivo freqüentemente comprometido na doença de Alzheimer e pode ser um dos primeiros sintomas manifestados. Objetivo: Este artigo descreve os resultados de tolerabilidade, sensação de presença e usabilidade de duas tarefas imersivas de realidade virtual para avaliação da orientação espacial, utilizando óculos de RV em adultos. Métodos: 31 adultos saudáveis, ​​recrutados entre estudantes universitários e da comunidade local, realizaram duas tarefas de realidade virtual imersiva para avaliação da orientação espacial: A tarefa SOIVET-Maze para avaliação da capacidade de transposição da orientação alocêntrica para egocêntrica e a tarefa SOIVET-Route para avaliação da memória espacial e reconhecimento de pontos de referência. Os participantes também responderam questionários sobre Sensação de Presença, Sintomas de cybersickness, Perfil de Uso de Tecnologia e Histórico de cinetose. Feedback espontâneo dos participantes foi utilizado como medida de usabilidade. Resultados: Todos os participantes conseguiram compreender as instruções da tarefa e como interagir com o sistema. Ambas tarefas parecem induzir forte sensação de presença, avaliada pelo Questionário de Presença de Witmer e Singer (M=128 e 143 para SOIVET-Maze e SOIVET-Route, respectivamente). A tarefa SOIVET-Route teve uma pequena vantagem numérica em relação à tarefa SOIVET-Maze na pontuação de tolerabilidade avaliada pelo Questionário de Cybersickness (M=4,19, SD=5,576 e M=3,52, SD=6,418 para SOIVET-Maze e SOIVET-Route respectivamente). Além disso, não houve desistências na SOIVET-Route devido a problemas de tolerabilidade, ao contrário da SOIVET-Maze, que teve dois drop-outs. No entanto, essa diferença não foi estatisticamente significativa (Z= -901, p=0,368, teste de postos sinalizados de Wilcoxon)