Exploring 3D Objects with Non-Linear Perspectives in Real-Time, a First User Study

Abstract

Non-linear perspectives have the potential to improve 3D scene perception by increasing the information bandwidth of 3D contents. As with the example of the Mercator projection of earth, they can reduce occlusions by showing more of the shape of an object than classical perspectives. However, an ill-advised construction of such "usually static" perspectives could make the original shape difficult to understand, drastically reducing the scene comprehension. Yet, despite of their potential, these perspectives are rarely used. In this paper we aim at making non-linear perspectives more widely usable on mobile devices. We propose to solve the understanding issue by allowing the user to control the transition between linear and non-linear perspectives in real-time with bending gestures. Using this approach, we present the first user study that investigates real-time manipulation of non-linear perspectives in an exploration task. Results show significant benefits of the approach, and give insights on the best bending gestures and configurations. CCS CONCEPTS • Human-centered computing → User studies.