Multimodal 'eyes-free' interaction techniques for wearable devices

Mobile and wearable computers present input/output problems due to limited screen space and interaction techniques. When mobile, users typically focus their visual attention on navigating their environment - making visually demanding interface designs hard to operate. This paper presents two multimodal interaction techniques designed to overcome these problems and allow truly mobile, `eyes-free' device use. The first is a 3D audio radial pie menu that uses head gestures for selecting items. An evaluation of a range of different audio designs showed that egocentric sounds reduced task completion time, perceived annoyance, and allowed users to walk closer to their preferred walking speed. The second is a sonically enhanced 2D gesture recognition system for use on a belt-mounted PDA. An evaluation of the system with and without audio feedback showed users' gestures were more accurate when dynamically guided by audio-feedback. These novel interaction techniques demonstrate effec...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2003
• Where: CHI
• Authors: Stephen A. Brewster, Joanna Lumsden, Marek Bell, Malcolm Hall, Stuart Tasker
• Keywords: Audio Radial Pie, CHI 2003, Feedback Showed Users, Human Computer Interaction, Multimodal Interaction Techniques