Following the success of the 2022 series, the GuestXR project, in collaboration with the journal Frontiers in Virtual Reality, launched a series of webinars to disseminate the latest research on XR technologies. The series, entitled “Fostering inclusion and social interaction in XR technology” consisted of four webinars hosted by the GuestXR team that took place between May 17th and June 22nd, 2023.
This year’s topics ranged from an innovative software allowing remote participants to meet in shared 3D virtual spaces, to the use of binaural 3D sound in VR environments, the study of haptics as a way to support social interactions in XR technology or the use of multisensory features to improve accessibility. The webinars were attended by a total of 188 attendees from across the world.
The first online seminar, which took place on May 17th, was hosted by Bernhard Spanlang, Co-founder and CTO from Virtual Bodyworks. He introduced an innovative software system allowing remote participants to meet in a shared VR & AR reality space in full body realistic avatars and an AI agent for increased inclusivity.
The second webinar was in charge of Joanna Luberadzka, Researcher at the Multimedia Technology Unit from Eurecat. On June 1st, she explained how to include 3D audio in VR environments, and she shared basic techniques for working with audio in Unity, including audio listeners, sources, and spatialisers.
Anatole Lecuyer, Inria Research Director from the Inria Centre at Rennes University, explored on June 15th how haptic techniques can enhance empathy, co-presence, leadership, and trust. The webinar presented the latest results from the GuestXR project and showed how haptic techniques can be used to effectively foster empathy or increase co-presence in virtual meetings as envisaged in future metaverse applications.
The last webinar focused on the use of multisensory features to improve accessibility to VR environments. During this webinar, Amber Maimon and Iddo Wald, from the Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition and Technology from Reichman University, discussed innovative solutions to create immersive experiences accommodating diverse user needs.
