A scenario was set up and used to verify the usability of the
DesignAR system. Twenty-four subjects participated in the
evaluation process. Prior to the execution of the scenario, the
interface manipulation was explained to the participants to aid
their full understanding of the interface. The participants used
DesignAR according to the scenario of this paper and then
afterward responded to the questionnaire that was created to
determine DesignAR’s scores in various usability principles.
Since the score system is based on usability principles, an item
can be scored higher as the participants feel better in terms of
its usability. The highest score is five points and the lowest
score one point. Other than the score points, the participants’
responses to each item were received in the form of brief
comments
http://www.aleeshainstitute.com/interior-designing-course.php
A. Usability evaluation scenario
To use the DesignAR system, the user installs a portable
projector-camera system in the test bed. When the space
analysis results are synthesized after constructing the 3D map
of the test bed, let’s assume that the optimal plane is analyzed
as a wall and a desk. The user wants to replace the front wall
wallpaper and then position the clock on the top left (design:
user decisions, position: indicator). The picture frames’
positions on the left wall are changed and then the user
completes the interior design by selecting and using the most satisfactory frame (design: indicator, position: user decisions).
On the right wall, the user draws copies of the given figures of
different sizes (design, position: indicator). Finally, the interior
design with the desk in the center is left to the user's decisions
(design, location: user decisions).
B. Establishing usability principles
To establish the usability principles of the questionnaire
that assesses the overall usability of the DesignAR system, two
usability principles were collected: Software-User-Interaction
[22], which was created for the development and evaluation of
user interactions, and the HCI usability principles [23]. Eight
usability principles were selected to establish the usability
principles that could be appropriately evaluated through the
proposed scenarios. Then, by adding the items that were
evaluated by this system and determined to be important, the
final fourteen usability principles were established, as shown in
Table I.
C. Usability evaluation result
After the usability evaluation tests, using the usability
principle questionnaires, the usability of each item of the
DesignAR system can be computed, as shown in Table II.
Table II lists the items in the order of the highest scores. The
results showed a high usability evaluation; an average of 3.98
points was obtained for each item overall. Personal opinions on
each item were also obtained through comments, and these
comments allowed the analysis of the strengths and
weaknesses of the DesignAR system.
Concurrency and
Fulfillment received the highest score (4.38) because the user
can directly design the interior in the actual space and feel a
significant sense of accomplishment. In addition, the
participants responded that DesignAR is collaboration-friendly
thanks to its ability to link with mobile devices. On the other
hand, three items with lower-than-average scores were also
found: Accuracy (3.20), Low physical efforts (3.08), and
Visibility (4.16). Subjects who gave lower scores for the
Accuracy attribute felt that its spatial user interface was
inaccurate due to occlusion, a chronic problem of front
projection systems, but they also responded that, when they
used a mobile device, DesignAR was highly accurate. In the
case of the low physical effort item, users tend to work on
interior design until they are satisfied and therefore the
participants felt overall fatigue. In addition, they responded that
they were greatly fatigued when designing the interior space
using a spatial user interface in a spacious area. It is expected
that the usability score will increase when the interior design is
controlled mainly by mobile devices. Finally, in the case of the
visibility item, the menu used metaphor graphics and the space
was constructed as a 3D map, and providing it to the user
received aggressive responses. However, when designing an
interior, because the job is done in a 2D-based virtual object,
the participants responded that DesignAR was unsatisfactory in
terms of graphic elements.
The knowledge of the DesignAR system’s usability was
gained at a glance through usability evaluation experiments,
and interior design was performed intuitively in real space via
the spatial user interface. Since its users can perform the
interior design directly in the actual space by employing the
ability of projectors to project directly into the actual scene,
people feel a great sense of accomplishment. In addition, when
installed on mobile devices, DesignAR system can be
effectively used in various situations.
The DesignAR system is a projection-based, portable, pantilt system constructed specifically for interior design
prototyping. With DesignAR, it is possible to construct a 3D
map by the user inputting spatial information. DesignAR
provides an optimal plane through analysis and an interface
that can offer various interior designs for its users. Users can
perform interior design directly in the projected space via the
spatial user interface or even via mobile devices. In order to
verify the usability of the DesignAR system, a total of fourteen
usability principle items were established and then the usability
evaluation results were obtained through proposed scenarios. It
became evident through the usability evaluation results that
linking DesignAR to mobile devices enhances the system’s
usability.
In the future, in order to increase the usability of the
visibility attribute, both a 2D-based virtual interior design and a
higher-dimensional interior design should be performed.
Further studies will be undertaken to explore interior design
with a more realistic AR system while linking the system with
various devices, including as mobile devices.
Comments
Post a Comment