Context-adaptive notification placement for smart glasses in augmented reality environment

Abstract

In this research, we dealt with a method to properly place notification information in smart glasses when performing a dual task. In an augmented reality (AR) environment, smart glasses allow users to easily receive notifications while participating in other tasks by projecting information directly into their field of view. Although smart glasses offer such benefits in displaying notifications, there is insufficient research on the effective placement of AR notifications in consideration of the notification characteristics and context. To this end, we conducted three research to investigate effective placement methods in the context of AR notifications. In the first research, we explored effective placement methods for two types of virtual information when users were engaged in a locomotor task as a primary task. Two different coordinate systems and three different positions were compared for icon-type and text-type notifications. The experimental results confirmed that there is an appropriate notification placement method for each information type. Through this, we aimed to understand how users perceive and comprehend AR notifications in this context. Building on the findings of the first research, the second aimed to examine the impact of notification interruptions on users. As the presentation of AR notifications considering expected user reactions remained unclear, this research differentiated between immediate handling notification (high) and notification to be processed later (low). Similar to the first research, we compared two coordinate systems and three positions for the notification placement during walking. We revealed significant effects of notification type and placement on how notifications are perceived during the AR notification experience in this corresponding context. In the third research, we expanded the investigation to generalize notification placement methods for smart glasses in AR environment, extending the scope of the primary task to the visuo-motor task. We divided the types of notifications into high and low, like the second research. We compared and evaluated three coordinate systems and three positions. That way, we uncovered notable impacts of notification types and their placement while performing the dual task at a time. Based on the results of these three consecutive research, this dissertation aimed to derive recommendations for future adaptive notification designs in AR environments for users wearing smart glasses in various contexts.