A Context Menu for the Real World: Controlling Physical Appliances Through Head-Worn Infrared Targeting

Abstract

We introduce a novel method for selecting and controlling smart appliances in physical spaces through a head-worn computing device with near-eye display and wireless communication. We augment a commercial wearable computing device, Google Glass, with a narrow-beam IR emitter for this purpose. This configuration yields a usable beam width of 2 to 4 feet (60 to 120cm) for targeting at room scale. We describe a disambiguation technique if infrared targeting hits multiple targets simultaneously. A target acquisition study with 14 participants shows that selection using head orientation with our device outperforms list selection on a wearable device. We also report qualitative data from using our device to control multiple appliances in a smart home scenario.

Exploring gestural interaction in smart spaces using head mounted devices with ego-centric sensing

“…In contrast to previous work in this domain [6], we believe that interacting directly through gestures can be more effective than using GUI-based controls on the HMD. Gestures, for example, allow more possibilities to fine tune certain parameters that are of interest when controlling ambient lighting, for instance, fine-tuning the lights' brightness and hue settings.…”

“…Chen et al [6] showed ways how physical home appliances could be controlled by using head orientation as input for their prototype. They compared head orientation selection versus the device's touchpad (i.e.…”

“…Examples of such devices could be small embedded wireless devices, e.g., Chen et al [6] or and smartphones [10].…”

“…In the context of smart space interaction this poses usability problems, as, for instance, it can be difficult to select external devices in the environment. Previous works have already tried to address this problem [6], although the interactions presented there still seem cumbersome as they still rely on the limited existing input mechanisms provided by the HMD they used. A further issue which we touch tangentially is the question whether smart spaces should be instrumented to (externally) track users, or if the users themselves should be instrumented for input tracking in an ego-centric manner, which is possible using HMDs with embedded sensors, e.g., depth cameras, that are able to track gestural input.…”

QuickTalk: An Association-Free Communication Method for IoT Devices in Proximity

“…Considering the typical spacing of IoT devices, it is fair to say that it is of a sharp pinpointing. According to a recent study [17], the decodable angle of an IR transmi er can be physically controlled without manufacturing a high-cost transmi er only by adjusting the depth of installing an IR transmi er in its housing. Fig.…”