Category: CAD Development Week 2

Progress

• Methodology –  Practice-based V Practice as Research  
• Research – VR Narrative in Games/Animation and Annecy/Sundance Festival examples. 
• Research – VR Narrative – Wayfinding as a multidisciplinary concept. 
• Research – Natural Form, Function, Phenomena in Natural and Digital Environments. 
• Research – Generative Terrain Research, Turbulenz, Heat Map Metrics  
• Practice Experiments – Lighting to influence player wayfinding in Unity Game Engine. 
• Brief retrospective of previous research  
• Personal & Professional Goals – SecondStory/Holovis/Research/Commercial Work

Recommended Next Step

• White Box Experiments
• ProBuilder 
• First Person Controller 
• C# Code

Progress

• Methodology –  Practice-based V Practice as Research  
• Research – VR Narrative in Games/Animation and Annecy/Sundance Festival examples. 
• Research – VR Narrative – Wayfinding as a multidisciplinary concept. 
• Research – Natural Form, Function, Phenomena in Natural and Digital Environments. 
• Research – Generative Terrain Research, Turbulenz, Heat Map Metrics  
• Practice Experiments – Lighting to influence player wayfinding in Unity Game Engine. 
• Brief retrospective of previous research  
• Personal & Professional Goals – SecondStory/Holovis/Research/Commercial Work

Recommended Next Step

• White Box Experiments
• ProBuilder 
• First Person Controller 
• C# Code

After identifying a number of ways in which a participants behaviour might be influenced through lighting, materiality and sound, I have began to explore this through practice-based experiments.

During this process, I have become interested in the notion of ‘wayfinding’ which is a multidisciplinary concept found in neuro-science, biology, computer science etc. I will need to locate further relevant text that explore ‘wayfinding’ in VR narrative media.

In the meeting we discussed how I wanted ‘Nature’, natural form and mechanics to inform my project. I expressed a wish to keep Nature and the centre of my enquiry. I had previously shifted away from through as I focused on HCI and research app development in m previous research. This had taken me down a different track but I could now see a way to synthesise the technical with theme in new work.

It was agreed that although I personally didn’t feel confident that I could become an expert in Unity programming and that I felt this would take years, we agreed that maybe through consistently exploring unity experimentally In practice (and in  theory – with which we agreed to this is already well established strength) I can acquire a high level of Unity expertise over the next 24 weeks. This will be valuable in both my experimental practice, research and will transfer easily to my more commercial projects.

I expressed concerns about ‘audience’ and the need for two different portfolio and journals. I was advised to read Foucault and embrace all aspects of the self (my wicked sense of humour and joy of life together with my more serious, quietened and deeply reflective selves). Foucault influenced Rancier (once influential in my decision to suspend a research project).

http://www.critical-theory.com/who-the-fuck-is-jacques-ranciere/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/144110805X/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=144110805X&linkCode=as2&tag=criticatheory-20

After identifying a number of ways in which a participants behaviour might be influenced through lighting, materiality and sound, I have began to explore this through practice-based experiments.

During this process, I have become interested in the notion of ‘wayfinding’ which is a multidisciplinary concept found in neuro-science, biology, computer science etc. I will need to locate further relevant text that explore ‘wayfinding’ in VR narrative media.

In the meeting we discussed how I wanted ‘Nature’, natural form and mechanics to inform my project. I expressed a wish to keep Nature and the centre of my enquiry. I had previously shifted away from through as I focused on HCI and research app development in m previous research. This had taken me down a different track but I could now see a way to synthesise the technical with theme in new work.

It was agreed that although I personally didn’t feel confident that I could become an expert in Unity programming and that I felt this would take years, we agreed that maybe through consistently exploring unity experimentally In practice (and in  theory – with which we agreed to this is already well established strength) I can acquire a high level of Unity expertise over the next 24 weeks. This will be valuable in both my experimental practice, research and will transfer easily to my more commercial projects.

I expressed concerns about ‘audience’ and the need for two different portfolio and journals. I was advised to read Foucault and embrace all aspects of the self (my wicked sense of humour and joy of life together with my more serious, quietened and deeply reflective selves). Foucault influenced Rancier (once influential in my decision to suspend a research project).

http://www.critical-theory.com/who-the-fuck-is-jacques-ranciere/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/144110805X/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=144110805X&linkCode=as2&tag=criticatheory-20

Wayfinding Perspectives : Static and Digital Wayfinding Systems : Can  wayfinding symbiosis be achieved ?

http://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/5125/1/01WayfindingBook%20Chapter-ColetteJeffrey.pdf

The author begins by introducing the main thrust of the paper. She explains that the text will explore how people navigate natural and built environments with static and digital systems. The paper refers to environments that include land, sea, sky and virtual worlds with features such as landmarks, artworks and ‘the sense of direction’. She also refers to tools such as maps, journey planning websites and spoken directions.

She begins by defining a general definition of ‘wayfinding’ as human navigation where information is used to guide orientate and inform but then continues to explore multidisciplinary research at the intersection between Design, Neuro-science, biology, cognitive science, computer science and geography where definitions can differ.

The author offers various definitions of ‘wayfinding’ as a spatial problem solving process:

• Decision making – decision executing – information processing      Arthur and Passini 
• Decision making processes – memory processes – learning processes – planning processes Wiener et Elm 2009, 6. 
• Knowing where you are – knowing your destination – knowing and following the best route – recognising destination on arrival – finding the back out. Carpman and Grow, 1993
• Seek – Decide – Move / Search – Decision – Motion Mollerup 2013, 2

Wayfinding Perspectives : Static and Digital Wayfinding Systems : Can  wayfinding symbiosis be achieved ?

http://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/5125/1/01WayfindingBook%20Chapter-ColetteJeffrey.pdf

The author begins by introducing the main thrust of the paper. She explains that the text will explore how people navigate natural and built environments with static and digital systems. The paper refers to environments that include land, sea, sky and virtual worlds with features such as landmarks, artworks and ‘the sense of direction’. She also refers to tools such as maps, journey planning websites and spoken directions.

She begins by defining a general definition of ‘wayfinding’ as human navigation where information is used to guide orientate and inform but then continues to explore multidisciplinary research at the intersection between Design, Neuro-science, biology, cognitive science, computer science and geography where definitions can differ.

The author offers various definitions of ‘wayfinding’ as a spatial problem solving process:

• Decision making – decision executing – information processing      Arthur and Passini 
• Decision making processes – memory processes – learning processes – planning processes Wiener et Elm 2009, 6. 
• Knowing where you are – knowing your destination – knowing and following the best route – recognising destination on arrival – finding the back out. Carpman and Grow, 1993
• Seek – Decide – Move / Search – Decision – Motion Mollerup 2013, 2

Unity 2019.2.7f2
File: E:UNITYProjectX_01

Note: VR Lightweight RP

• Can be used if using primarily baked lighting. 
• Uses the lightweight scriptable render (a single pass forward render) 
• Used with a VR Device (use with correct SDk for the device) 
• Is currently in development and does not offer unity support. 
• Uses new shader graph tool
• Has a post-processing stack 
• Has a package manager 

I have decided not to use VR Lightweight for the VR narrative direction experiments as I feel that a standard 3D project will allow a clean sheet approach to experimentation.

> Change lightbox to solid colour black
> Add Plane with mesh collider
> Add cube (1m)
> Add Capsule with mesh collider
> Add Rigid Body
> Add Camera and move inside capsule
> Move the camera underneath the capsule in the hierarchy
> in Constraints – Freeze rotation y Axis (to stop the character from falling over!)
> Add keyboard controller script (temporary until headset decided)
> change camera skybox to solid black
> Add second cube

> Delete Directional Light

> Add Point Light

> Move point light in front of left cube

> Move point light closer to left cube (the right cube darkens)

> Change intensity to 0.5 (the right cube darkens more)

> Move point light behind left cube (The cube is now a silhouette)

> Increase point light range to 20 (radiating light affects right cube but leaves left cube in silhouette)

> Increase point light to 2 and move above left cube (bounce light not supported on point light)

> Vary shadow as this seems to visually extends cube into foreground (similar to an Arrow)

> Turn off point light

> Add Spotlight

> Move Spotlight above left cube (right cube is completely in darkness)

> Duplicate Spotlight and place over right cube at the same position on the cube (Attention seems equal)

> Reduce right light intensity to 1, to 50%  (attention seems to be on the left cube)

> Reduce right light intensity to 0.5 to 25% (attention is more on the left cube)

> equalise both spotlights to intensity 1  and spot angel to 50.

> increase left spotlight angle to 100 (Although casting a wider spot it is less intense on the left cube than on the right) The level of attention is unclear.

> Decreasing White Box intensity on right Box to 0.5 places attention on the left box.

> Turn off right Spotlight and replace with point light placed behind the cube (The right cube is now in silhouette but the Spotlight is on the left cube (Attention seems to be on the left cube)

> Moving the left point light to the right of the cube begins to compete with the left cube as the luminance on the left cube is less bright than the point light’s  reflection on the environment plane.

Adding Shadows the the left box better reveals that there is a form there but the clearer lighting on the right box could direct the participants attention.   

Next:

1) I can conduct further academic and grey literature to inform my practice based experiments.
 
2) I can conduct user research to better understand the user experience and gather more detailed evidence. This could be done by isolating the in game play footage images and asking the user whether their attention is drawn to cube A or B (left or right).       

Unity 2019.2.7f2
File: E:UNITYProjectX_01

Note: VR Lightweight RP

• Can be used if using primarily baked lighting. 
• Uses the lightweight scriptable render (a single pass forward render) 
• Used with a VR Device (use with correct SDk for the device) 
• Is currently in development and does not offer unity support. 
• Uses new shader graph tool
• Has a post-processing stack 
• Has a package manager 

I have decided not to use VR Lightweight for the VR narrative direction experiments as I feel that a standard 3D project will allow a clean sheet approach to experimentation.

> Change lightbox to solid colour black
> Add Plane with mesh collider
> Add cube (1m)
> Add Capsule with mesh collider
> Add Rigid Body
> Add Camera and move inside capsule
> Move the camera underneath the capsule in the hierarchy
> in Constraints – Freeze rotation y Axis (to stop the character from falling over!)
> Add keyboard controller script (temporary until headset decided)
> change camera skybox to solid black
> Add second cube

> Delete Directional Light

> Add Point Light

> Move point light in front of left cube

> Move point light closer to left cube (the right cube darkens)

> Change intensity to 0.5 (the right cube darkens more)

> Move point light behind left cube (The cube is now a silhouette)

> Increase point light range to 20 (radiating light affects right cube but leaves left cube in silhouette)

> Increase point light to 2 and move above left cube (bounce light not supported on point light)

> Vary shadow as this seems to visually extends cube into foreground (similar to an Arrow)

> Turn off point light

> Add Spotlight

> Move Spotlight above left cube (right cube is completely in darkness)

> Duplicate Spotlight and place over right cube at the same position on the cube (Attention seems equal)

> Reduce right light intensity to 1, to 50%  (attention seems to be on the left cube)

> Reduce right light intensity to 0.5 to 25% (attention is more on the left cube)

> equalise both spotlights to intensity 1  and spot angel to 50.

> increase left spotlight angle to 100 (Although casting a wider spot it is less intense on the left cube than on the right) The level of attention is unclear.

> Decreasing White Box intensity on right Box to 0.5 places attention on the left box.

> Turn off right Spotlight and replace with point light placed behind the cube (The right cube is now in silhouette but the Spotlight is on the left cube (Attention seems to be on the left cube)

> Moving the left point light to the right of the cube begins to compete with the left cube as the luminance on the left cube is less bright than the point light’s  reflection on the environment plane.

Adding Shadows the the left box better reveals that there is a form there but the clearer lighting on the right box could direct the participants attention.   

Next:

1) I can conduct further academic and grey literature to inform my practice based experiments.
 
2) I can conduct user research to better understand the user experience and gather more detailed evidence. This could be done by isolating the in game play footage images and asking the user whether their attention is drawn to cube A or B (left or right).