Locomotion Interface for Walking in Virtual Environment

Abstract

Traveling on foot is an intuitive and natural practice in the real world. However, the problem of moving around in the virtual environment on foot is one of the major obstacles to be tackled in virtual reality research. We usually explore a virtual environment using a hand-held controller, even if walking is the most natural locomotion method for human beings. In order to realize sensation of walking in a virtual environment, constructing the same environment in the real world is the best method. However, it is difficult to construct such environment since it costs too much. Therefore, many locomotion interfaces that can give a user the sense that he/she is walking while his/her actual position remains localized in the real world have been developed. In this talk, I will introduce their basic configurations and some applications of locomotion interfaces such as a sharing sense of walking environment and gait rehabilitation system.