We propose a novel display method, EnchanTable, that can augment a table surface with mid-air images. Users can interact with visual images displayed on the table by using real objects. In our optical design, we place an optical imaging device behind a table, and the light from the device forms a vertically standing mid-air image reflected at the table surface. This design displays the image right on the table. The merit of our method is that the requirement for the table is only a reflective surface. Utilizing this, we can add extra devices, such as touch sensors, around the table, or display mid-air images on a tablet whose surface is sufficiently reflective. Owing to its compactness, this method can be applied to other tabletop-interaction systems.

We report a new method of facilitating illusory self-motion perception (vection). Participants held either a full glass of water or a half glass of water while experiencing vection, and were instructed not to spill any of the water. Vection strength was indexed by its latency, duration, and magnitude. Results showed that vection was enhanced in the full glass of water condition. We want to name this method of vection facilitation “full-glass-water method”.

Most game players want to improve their skills, but if they don't sense improvement they'll give up playing. So, we suggest a new way of dynamically adjusting a game's difficulty, in a way that is transparent to the player. In an experiment with a platforming game that focuses on jumping and hitting a target, players felt they were becoming better at the game instead of noticing the decrease in difficulty.

An actor seems to assert the traditions that it is related to, occasionally. This paper analyses the culturality of the audience behaviour of a trilogy. The trilogy is a kind of interactive space. Culturality is multifaceted and waxes symbolic at times, as do traditional behaviour. It has provisionally three types: referential culturality, analogous one and habitual one. As a boundless, or self-critically trans-active concept, culturality enables one's elastic understanding of cultures. It is a kind of wave, rather than a substance, transmitted and inherited, or interfered, through the agency of history. Through the analysis of culturality carried out, one could point out the cultural linkages between those contemporaneous and traditions transmitted, like hyperlinks between a time and another time. Those engaged seemed to be often culturally self-assertive like Narcissus. However, they were not only so. That is, as a result of the analysis, it was discovered that the referential culturality that refers to a tradition may overcome seemingly existing cultural barriers by fusing any culturalities belong to different traditions like a performance with a meta-culturally synthetic behaviour, or self-critically and trans-actively symbolic action. As such concept, culturality could be applied to the behavioural observation of relationships emergent in the fields from anthropology to zoology, as well as techno-cultural ecology/-nomy and practice, such as interaction design. With the culturality, human beings and their behaviour are neither anonymous nor definite anymore, but a sort of heir, from which designers and observers of a paradigm can take account from now on.

Recently, 3D-Scanned Data/3D-printable Data of a personal body are flowing on the Internet. Serious discussions on legal and social approach appeared in last couple of years. In this paper, we report our works called “I am” for questioning both possibilities and issues about this new democratized technology. Especially, we focus on changing the degree of abstraction with controlling the resolutions on 3D Data. We introduce our concept, making process, experiment/exhibition and future perspectives.

How motion lines were used in modern Japanese animated TV programs was investigated. We made a survey of the motion-related lines on Japanese Manga and Anime. We found that motion lines were used in 40% of panels in Manga. Even in Anime, motion lines were used in 5% of shots. We describe how expressions of motion with motion lines used in Anime are extended from those used in stationary panels in Manga.

In this paper, we propose DR-PreVis system as an expansion of the previous work, MR-PreViz. MR-PreViz is a mixed reality-based PreVis system that can superimpose CG animated characters to real backgrounds such as open sets or outdoor locations. The proposed system not only uses the real backgrounds but also diminishes undesirable objects in the real backgrounds by using diminished reality (DR) technologies. We re-designed the concept and the workflow of MR to accommodate DR technologies. We rationally selected and implemented several DR methods and camera tracking methods to apply our DR-PreVis system to various scenarios in the film industry. We also implemented color correction schemes that could handle dynamic illumination changes, especially in outdoor scenarios. Finally, we tested the proposed system in an indoor set and also in the outdoor open sets to verify the usefulness of our system.

In this paper, we present an MR-based attraction, “DOMINO (DO MIxed-reality NOn-stop) Toppling,” as a case study of MR-based entertainment systems, focusing on the Real-Virtual (R-V) and Virtual-Real (V-R) continuum. In this attraction, the user experiences that real and virtual domino blocks seamlessly push each other through a video-seethrough head-mounted display. Therefore, the user may believe that attractive MR effects happen in the real space. To achieve the seamless R-V/V-R transitions, we designed and implemented simple switching devices. We carried out demonstrations of our system at an international symposium and found such seamless R-V/V-R transitions effectively entertained people.

This research proposes augmenting physical experience with virtual sound effects which we define ”sound animation” to enhance children's emotional experience of the play on the table. We aim that people who believe it was magic to hide technology. And, we present Dramagic, a playful table that enhances real sounds on children's play with animated sound effects. We conducted public field test to observe children experiencing and creativity. The results indicated that augmenting sound experience intrigued more physical actions, such as touching, scratching, and rubbing. Moreover, children became more creative and tend to make stories with the playful sound interactions, and they were communicating much.

We propose a system to prevent identification of an individual identity by changing the size and position of one's facial regions. Invasion of privacy and the right of publicity have been a problem along with the popularization of social media and improvement of image resolution. The mosaic and the blur have been used to prevent identification of a person's identity. These techniques, however, make people difficult to understand the context of the video, because the facial expressions of the characters and the background in the video are masked. In this paper, we focus on naturally conversing the facial appearance in images for protecting their privacy. We examined the proper degree of facial changing parameters, and performed user studies to evaluate these parameters.

In this study, we developed a novel immersive display with the world's largest encapsulated space, the LargeSpace. The display consists of an immersive screen, 12 projectors, 10 computers, and 20 motion-capture cameras. To stitch projected images continuously, the screen has not only flat shape, but also toroidal and cylindrical surfaces. We optimized the position and attitude of the projectors for filling the screen with pixels and minimizing perceived occlusion. The motion capture system derives the position of user's eyes and the cluster computers generate user's perspective in the virtual world. We discussed today's best implementation of large immersive displays and mentioned about screen shapes, projection systems, optimum projector arrangement and position tracking systems. Additionally, we proposed a method to compare a front projection system with a rear projection system by the size of the effective area users can walk around without impairing a large display's field of view. Additionally, we mentioned the "Bird Song Diamond Project in Japan" (BSD). BSD uses the LargeSpace and motion base system to deliver an artistic experience.

In Mixed-Realty (MR) space, the visual appearance (shape, texture, etc.) of a real object can be changed by superimposing a virtual object on it. Therefore, by creating systematic differences between visual and haptic perceptions using MR technology, we can analyze their influence on temperature perception. In our research group, we defined the changes in the visual information of a real object in MR space as “MR visual stimulation” and examine the influence of the haptic sense using MR visual stimulation. For our research, we focused on the temperature perception of the skin. In the first step, we verified the influence presenting MR visual stimulation has on the perceived position of the temperature perception. In the experiment, we presented MR visual stimulation and temperature stimulation in different positions. We confirmed the influence this difference has on the temperature perceived position. Our results demonstrate that temperature perception is strongly affected by visual stimulation.

We propose Ketsuro-Graffiti, a novel display that shows images with computer generated water condensation and enables users to interact them freely. Water condensation (Ketsuro in Japanese) is a natural canvas found on a car window or a glass on which we often scribble figures, illustrations, and messages. We implemented the prototype of Ketsuro-Graffiti using peltier devices, thermistors and Arduino, and evaluated the implemented prototype. The evaluation indicates the prototype can control the generation, evaporation and thickness of water condensation.

Motion lines have been studied as expression of motion in static images. We investigated an effect of motion lines in apparent-motion displays. The smoothness of two-frame apparent motion was enhanced by presentation of a motion line between the frames, and even by simultaneous presentation of a motion line attached to an object in the first or the last frame. We additionally proved that the effect of motion lines becomes highlighted with an extended distance between apparent-motion components. The use of motion lines may contribute to production of various types of movies from the point of smoother motion impression with reduced computational load.

This paper proposes an interactive aquarium type display. In this display, a user can make virtual objects and interact with these objects by moving his/her own hand in the water. This system consists of a three dimensional (3D) display, which is set under the water tank, a touch panel for making objects and a leap motion sensor for detecting user's hand. In the proposed system, the user wears 3D glasses, makes three types of virtual objects by pushing the touch panel, and interacts with these objects with his/her hand whose position and direction is detected by the sensor. This device makes the user feel he/she moves virtual objects directly via water interface.

In this paper, we propose a novel virtual reality entertainment system using a car as a motion platform. The motion platform is usually installed in special locations such as theme park since it requires large cost and space. On the contrary, by using a car as a motion platform, it is already prevalent and it can be transported easily. We developed a prototype system based on the small-sized electric vehicle. Experiment with immersive contents showed that all users responded quite positively to the experience played on a small parking area.

For quantitative assessments of tactile qualities, many previous studies have used subjective ratings in terms of several pairs of adjective words (i.e., Semantic Differential method). However, this method requires observers to report their perceptual experiences one by one, and it takes substantial efforts, when the number of objects and/or the number of adjectives is increased. This research is, therefore, aimed at establishing a simple principle for analyzing the relationship of tactile qualities among objects, and selecting objects based on the differences of the qualities efficiently. Our principle asks observers only to classify objects into several groups according to the similarities of their tactile qualities. We can generate a distribution diagram and tree diagram of the objects, and then select appropriate objects on the basis of similarities of the tactile qualities.

To make it possible for the deaf and hard of hearing to enjoy to appreciate the performance of tap dancers, we developed a system called “Karada Tap”, which transfers the haptic sensation of Tap Dance from the stage to the audience seats in collaboration with a tap dance unit and a science museum. This system was used in a public performance and we confirmed that the system could provide the sense of rhythm to the deaf and hard-of-hearing audience so that we could help the tap dancers to share the fun of dance to the audience with disabilities.

This paper discusses quantification method of proficiency of sport skill with Iaido as a subject. Iaido is a modern Japanese martial art using a Japanese sword. A player executes a sequence of actions: drawing the sword from scabbard, cutting a virtual opponent, removing blood from the blade, and sheathing the sword. We measured motions of athlete playing the Iaido by motion capture system, then analyzed motion trajectory to predict the skill level as a score. The predicted scores were compared with the professional rating scores to evaluate the validity of the subjective assessment of professional. The comparing result shows the validity and fairness of subjective assessment of professional. Also, the results shows the validity of our proposed rating algorithm.