The basic concept and design tool of the VR design guide produced by Google designers

In the second part of this article, we will look at some of the basic concepts of VR and related design tools that we need to master as designers. We will not explore the too in-depth, the function of the designer can be.

The impact of the new space dimension and immersive experience has never been greater. To create a comfortable interactive experience in a three-dimensional world, you need to know some design and technical principles that may not have been in contact with before. Our cardboard team has packaged a range of conceptual knowledge into the cardboard design Lab app, where you can work with cardboard to immerse yourself in the VR world.

Also remember to watch Alex's detailed demo (Youtube) at the 2015 I/O conference. Here we will summarize some knowledge points from these learning resources.

If you only have the energy to remember two principles:

Keep the number of frames stable

Keep your head on track.

When people are immersed in the virtual world, they instinctively react to external events. As a designer, take into account the impact of environmental factors.

　　physiological Comfort Level .

The problem with vertigo is that we have to face it. Especially when the role of the increase, deceleration should pay special attention to. Keep the horizon as stable as possible to avoid the appearance of seasickness symptoms.

　　The comfort of the environment .

People in some specific virtual environment will also experience with the reality of the discomfort, such as altitude and fear of heights, small space caused by claustrophobic, open space caused by the square phobia, and so on. Attention should be paid to the dimensions of the virtual object and the interactive relationship. In reality, if someone throws an object at you, you will instinctively crawl, dodge, or protect yourself. Rational use of the reality of the interaction between people and the environment, do not do the opposite.

Design the boot element around the user's sensory capabilities. Think about how game designers often guide players to explore the environment:

Help the player to identify the location by sound

Show the direction to the player through the light

Avoid making users feel tired. That sounds obvious, but it's one of the easiest things for a VR designer to make a mistake. We've seen too many cool man-machine interactions in sci-fi movies, but you know that most of them are contrary to the basics of ergonomics, such as the "Minority Report" in which gestures are put into reality that can quickly cause fatigue and discomfort.

I made a simple schematic that describes the comfort zone where the head moves on the X and Y axes. Green represents the best, yellow is acceptable, and red means discomfort. Some of the research reports available on the Web will help you learn more about this topic, such as the VR Best Practices guidelines (PDF format, 4.7M) from LeapMotion, and we will provide more resources at the end of this article for your reference.

Improper design can cause serious physical discomfort to people. Have you heard of the "SMS Neck"? In a study published in Neuro and Spine surgery (PDF format, 314KB), we can learn about the pressure changes that people make to their necks when they use their mobile phones. From the natural head-up state to the head down browsing, the neck pressure increased by 440%, muscle and ligament will become sore fatigue, nerves tend to tense, spine pressure is also increasing. These improper uses may even cause long-term health problems for the body, such as permanent nerve damage, and so on.

In short, this particular study can at least tell us to avoid prolonged bow-and-go interactions as much as possible.

　　Freedom

Three-dimensional space provides us with six modes of motion, including rotation and movement on X, Y, and z three axes.

　　Three Degrees of freedom (direction tracking)

Mobile-based VR devices, such as cardboard or Gear VR, can be tracked by a built-in gyroscope for rotation on three axes (3DOF).

　　Six Degrees of freedom (direction + position Tracking)

The sensors owned by HTC Hive and Oculus Rift, a high-end VR device, can also track displacements that occur on three axes (+x, x, +y, Y, +z,-Z) to achieve six degrees of freedom (6DOF).

　　Tracking

The infrared tracking system made up of one or more sensors makes the 6DOF possible. The Oculus tracking sensor is located on a fixed camera, while Vive is placed in the HMD (head-mounted display).

Comparison of beacon position tracking patterns between Oculus and Vive