CAVE-AR: A VR Authoring System to Interactively Design, Simulate, and Debug Multi-user AR Experiences

Abstract

Figure 1: CAVE-AR is a virtual reality (VR) authoring tool aimed at assisting designers in creating, simulating and debugging augmented reality (AR) experiences. In the left image, a user in the real world is seeing AR content through his mobile device. On the right, a second user is able to monitor in real-time, through our authoring system, what the real-world user is seeing, and debug eventual faults. A dedicated panel displays hardware information about the user's mobile device (a), whose horizontal positioning accuracy is represented by a red circle (b). Two additional views display the estimated perspective of the user (c) and the live AR video feed from the device camera (d). ABSTRACTDespite advances in augmented reality (AR), the process of creating meaningful experiences with this technology is still extremely challenging. Due to different tracking implementations and hardware constraints, developing AR applications either requires low-level programming skills, or is done through specific authoring tools that largely sacrifice the possibility of customizing the AR experience. Existing development workflows also do not support previewing or simulating the AR experience, requiring a lengthy process of trial and error by which content creators deploy and physically test applications in each iteration. To mitigate these limitations, we propose CAVE-AR, a novel virtual reality system for authoring, simulating and debugging custom augmented reality experiences. Available both as a standalone or a plug-in tool, CAVE-AR is based on the concept of representing in the same global reference system both in AR content and tracking information, mixing geographical information, architectural features, and sensor data to simulate the context of an AR experience. Thanks to its novel abstraction of existing tracking technologies, CAVE-AR operates independently of users' devices, and integrates with existing programming tools to provide maximum flexibility. Our VR application provides designers with ways to create and modify an AR application, even while others are in the midst of using it. CAVE-AR further allows the designer to track how users are behav-*

Authoring Interactive and Immersive Experiences Using Programming by Demonstration

“…It allows in-context remote authoring. Using CAVE-AR [9], users can simulate and debug AR experiences from a VR CAVE. In DistanciAR [40] and Corsican Twin [31] users author the AR experience in a virtual scan of the place.…”

Corsican Twin

“…Only very recently has there been some initial exploration of VR authoring for AR. For example, CAVE-AR [6] is a CAVE 2 VR system which allows AR design by placing virtual objects in a 3D scene. Similarly, Microsoft Layout [28] allows developers to provide the layout of a room in VR and subsequently augment the same space in AR.…”

Augmented Reality Creation Platform Based on Graphical Programming

“…However, they overlook the fact that triggering behaviors can be defined based on the associated states between multiple AR models. Researchers Yoonsik Yang [15] and Marco Cavallo [16] have also conducted relevant studies. Their common features include non-textual programming and visual design, focusing on the display of AR models and simple "move, rotate, and scale" functionalities.…”