Video Mediated CommunicationProducing a sense of presence between individuals

in a shared virtual reality

http://gt.kth.se

Claus J. KnudsenAmbjörn NaeveLeif Handberg

Division of Media Technology and Graphic ArtsThe Knowledge Management Research group

Department of Numerical Analysis and Computing ScienceThe Royal Institute of Technology

Stockholm, Sweden

http://kmr.nada.kth.se

Keynote address at the ISEC conference, Banff, Calgary, Canada, June 1, 2002

I-2-I

Alleviating absence by useof the "Telephonoscope".A mirror is envisage as thedisplay screen.

[From Albert Robida "Le Vingtième Siècle, 1880s]

iSpace project meeting between Royal Institute of Technology andStanford University

TelepresenceAs described by teleoperators, presence is the sensation of being at the remote worksite rather than at the operator`s control station.

Marvin Minsky (1980) in reference to teleoperation systems Teleoperators and Telerobotics, (Held & Durlach, 1992)Simulated environments, (Rheingold, 1991; Sheridan, 1992).

Definition of Presence at a Distance

Presence at a distanceis defined as the subjective experience of being in one place or environment, even when one is physically situated in another.

Presence journal 2000

Definition of Presence in Virtual Environments

Presence is defined as the subjective experience of being in one environment (there) when one is physically located in another environment (here).

Measuring Presence in Virtual Environments, (Witmer Bob G. and Singer Michael J., 2000)

As applied to my own research, presence refers to the experiencing of both mediated bodies and spaces.

Two models of mediated communication

• traditional communication model

• telepresence view

Defleur & Ball-Rokeach, 1989; Schramm, 1974; Shannon & Weaver, 1962

Steuer (1993) after Krueger (1991)

BA

BA

Shared virtual reality

The main research question

How do we produce a sense of presence and reality at a distance between individuals physically separated in space?

Factors creating a sense of presence and reality

• sensory environment

• individual preconditions

• content characteristics

• vividness

• interactivity and control• company of others

• depth & breadth

• imagination• emotional state• associative context• suspension of disbelief

• plot and story• narration and dramaturgy• presentation and execution

[Enlund N.]

Experiments and user studies

• experiment with new methods of creating human-to-human Interaction, including for musical and artistic performance.

• strong international collaboration

• produce “pre-competitive” results in the form of prototypes, demonstrators and user studies .

The blue-screen background was mapping out the person by use of colour keying.

Physical background

Virtual space with two non-physical projected walls

Physical background

Mix of audio/ video sources

Virtual marriage

As seen from KTH

As seen from Gjøvik

Synchronous virtual communicative spacestransparent technology for producing

a sense of presence at a distance

The audience ”point of view” at Academic Forum ”camera space”.

Synchronous virtual communicative spacesTransparent Technology for Producing

a Sense of Presence and Reality at a Distance

A student watching a video from the teachers computer at a distance.

Two students learning a dance from a teacher at a distance.

Synchronous virtual communicative spacestransparent technology for producing

a sense of presence at a distance

Synchronous virtual communicative spacestransparent technology for producing

a sense of presence at a distance

Two students acting at a distance

Two musicans playing with a singer at a distance

Telepresence Production Course

New Learning Modes in the Production of Presence Distance Technique for Education

Interactive storytelling and presence production

New Learning Modes in the Production of Presence Distance Technique for Education

Interactive storytelling and presence production

New Learning Modes in the Production of Presence Distance Technique for Education

Interactive storytelling and presence production

- Games and competitions- Instruction- Role play and ceremonies- Multipoint cooperation- Interactive information package

Topics chosen for the exam projects:

New Learning Modes in the Production of Presence Distance Technique for Education

• Storytelling

• Interactivity

• Technical level

• Technology using skills

Evaluation criteria

The Cave Experience People and Technology in an Experimental Performance Space connected to the Internet

Connecting Sweden on ISDN to Hungary on the Internet

Distance Learning Applications across Multiple Platforms and Networks A Media Laboratory Test Model

Distance Learning Applications across Multiple Platforms and Networks A Media Laboratory Test Model

Continuous Presence – a virtual Meetingpoint

Interaction between musicans and audience in a learning process on the Internet

The first performance for motivation

The concert based on the creative material library on the Internet

Unified Language ModelingVideo mediated communication

The KMR-group at CID

People:

• Ambjörn Naeve (senior researcher, head of the group)

• Mikael Nilsson (grad. student, mathematics didactics)

• Matthias Palmér (grad. student, computer science)

• Fredrik Paulsson (grad. student, MDI)

• Claus Knudsen (grad. student, media technology)

Knowledge Management Research areas

• Knowledge Manifolds

• Conceptual Modeling

• Conceptual Browsing

• New paradigms and tools for mathematics education

• E-learning frameworks / Semantic web technologies

• Component-based learning technologies

• Semantic Interoperability

• Presence production

A Knowledge Manifold

• is a structured information architecture that supports a number of different strategies for information hiding (encapsulation).

• can be regarded as a Knowledge Patchwork, with a number of linked Knowledge Patches, each with its own Knowledge Gardener.

• gives the users the opportunity to ask questions and search for certified human Knowledge Sources.

• can be used to design learner-centric, knowledge-pulling interactive learning environments that support Question Based Learning.

A Knowledge Manifold (cont.)

• has access to distributed archives of resource components.

• allows teachers to compose components and construct customized learning environments.

• makes use of conceptual modeling to support separation of content from context.

• contains a concept browser (Conzilla) that supports these principles and activites.

The different Knowledge Roles of a KM

• The knowledge cartographer

• The knowledge composer

• The knowledge librarian

• The knowledge coach

• The knowledge preacher

• The knowledge plumber

• The knowledge mentor

• constructs context-maps.

• fills the context-maps with content.

• composes content components into learning modules.

• cultivated questions.

• provides live answers.

• connects questions with appropriate preachers.

• provides motivation and supports self-reflection.

Design principles for Concept Browsers

• separate context (= relationships) from content.

• describe each context in terms of a context-map.

• assign an appropriate set of components as the content of a concept or a conceptual relationship.

• filter the content components through different aspects.

• label all resources with a standardized data description (metadata) scheme (LOM-IEEE).

• transform a content component which is a context-map into a context by contextualizing it.

Mathematical Knowledge Manifold work at KMR

• Virtual Mathematics Exploratorium (Conzilla)

• New ways to study geometrical constructions

• Interacting with mathematical formulas, using

• Shared 3D interactive learning environments

• Interactive geometry with PDB.

• Graphing Calculator (Ron Avitzur).

• LiveGraphics3D (Martin Kraus).

• framework for archiving and accessing components

• CyberMath.

created with these (and other) techniques.

Virtual Mathematics Exploratorium 1

Virtual Mathematics Exploratorium 2

CyberMath: A Shared Virtual Environment for the Interactive Exploration of Mathematics

• teaching of both elementary, intermediate and advanced mathematics and geometry.

Goals: The CyberMath system should allow:

Means:• Making use of advanced VR technology (e.g. DIVE).

• global sharing of resources.

• the teacher to teach in a direct manner.

• students to work together in groups.

• teachers to present material that is hard to visualize using standard teaching tools.

CyberMath: The cylindrical exhibition hall

Presence Productionin a Distributed Shared Virtual Environment

for Exploring Mathematics

CyberMath: The Teacher in Stockholm

STUDENTS / DIS, UPPSALA

ALL / CYBERMATH, VR

TEACHER / CID, STOCKHOLM

PERSON

AVATAR

CAMERA

COMPUTER SCREEN / VR REPRESENTATION

MONITOR / PRESENCE PRODUCTION

CyberMath: Experimental Lecture Connectivity

CyberMath: Students in Uppsala

CyberMath: The Virtual Museum Mode

CyberMath: Changing the Learning Mode

CyberMath: From Control to Chaos

Car

Vehicle

is a:Car

kind of

is a kind of

a

Unified Language Modeling

:Wheel Wheel

abstraction of

part of has

is a

a

is a part of ahas a

a kind of

Basic principles

Unified Language ModelingThe CyberMath lecture

Relevant web sites

http://kmr.nada.kth.se

http://www.gt.kth.se

http://www.r1.kth.se