Wayfinding in large-scale virtual worlds

Abstract

A13STRACTThe spatial nature of large-scale virtual worlds introduces way finding problems which are often overlooked in the design process. In order to design and build useful virtual worlds in which real work can take place, these issues must be addressed. The research described here is a study of human way finding in virtual worlds and how real world solutions can be applied to virtual world design. The objective of this work is to develop design principles which will lead to a design methodology for virtual worlds in which wayfinding problems are alleviated.

Spatial Ability Skills: A correlation between Augmented Reality (AR) and conventional way on wayfinding system

“…We will refer to navigation as a directed movement action and wayfinding as cognitive action connecting route determination. Therefore, augmentations such as direction indicators, maps, and path restriction can all greatly improve both wayfinding performance and overall user satisfaction (Darken, 1996). § Spatial ability Spatial ability is the capacity to understand and recall the spatial relations among objects.…”

“…There are two categories of design principles; those that guide the organizational structure of the environment, and those that guide the use and presentation of maps. (Darken, 1996).…”

Improving list revisitation with ListMaps

“…Spatial knowledge in two-dimensional spaces is built up primarily through interaction; that is, people remember locations after having had experience with that location [5]. People may remember particular items based on landmarks in the space, or with more experience, may be able to maintain a more complete 'mental map' in which they can remember and find many different objects very quickly [8,17].…”

“…Learning spatial locations is a function of experience with the items in the data space [5,6]. Therefore, the degree to which a user will be able to build a mental map is related to the amount of revisitation in the task.…”

An Exploratory Study on the Relationship between Orientation Map Reading and Way-finding in Unfamiliar Environments

“…According to Lynch (1960), an environment should have, among other things, the following elementspaths, edges, districts, nodes, and landmarks -because they offer environmental clues during way-finding. Darken (1995) also believed that environments without proper structures are not preferred, because men normally feel terribly uncomfortable in an environment in which there are no clues for reference; they rely heavily on any environmental structures or objects to determine what direction they are pointing and which direction to take. One's cognitive map reflects one's mental image of a place.…”