The Impact of Spatial Misalignment and Time Delay on Collaborative Presence in Augmented Reality

TL;DR

Collaborative AR tasks rely on precise spatial alignment and low latency, yet the joint impact of misalignment and delay on workload and experience is not well understood. The authors conducted a 2-factor within-subject study manipulating spatial alignment (perfect vs misaligned) and time delay (0.0, 0.1, 0.4 s) across six conditions using a Collaborative Tower Building Task, measuring workload with NASA-TLX and user experience with the UEQ. Results show spatial misalignment substantially increases perceived workload and lowers Pragmatic Quality and Attractiveness, while time delay has limited effects and Hedonic Quality remains stable. The study highlights the primacy of spatial accuracy in sustaining collaboration quality in AR and informs design goals for more robust, user-friendly shared AR experiences.

Abstract

Precise temporal and spatial alignment is critical in collaborative Augmented Reality (AR) where users rely on shared visual information to coordinate actions. System latency and object misalignment can disrupt communication, reduce task efficiency, and negatively impact the overall user experience. While previous research has primarily focused on individual AR interactions, the impact of these inconsistencies on collaboration remains underexplored. This article investigates how user experience and task load are affected by object misalignment and time delay in a shared AR space. To examine these factors, we conducted an experiment with 32 participants, organized into 16 pairs, who collaboratively completed a spatial placement task. Within each condition, both participants alternated roles, taking turns as the leader-providing verbal placement instructions-and the builder-executing the placement. Six conditions were tested, manipulating object alignment (perfectly aligned vs. randomly misaligned) and time delay (0s, 0.1s, 0.4s). The misalignment was applied randomly to each virtual object with a shift of +-20 cm on every axis to create a clear distinction in spatial perception. User experience and task load were assessed to evaluate how these factors influence collaboration and interaction in AR environments. Results showed that spatial misalignment significantly increased perceived workload (NASA-TLX) and lowered user ratings in Pragmatic quality and Attractiveness (UEQ), while time delay had a more limited effect. These findings highlight the critical role of spatial accuracy in maintaining collaboration quality in AR.

Figures (2)

• Figure 1: Builder and Leader collaborating on building the red tower (left); Leader's view (center); Builder's view (right).
• Figure 2: Distribution of NASA-TLX total workload scores across all six experimental conditions (A–F). Each boxplot displays the median (horizontal line), interquartile range (IQR; box), and 1.5 × IQR range (whiskers). Outliers are represented by individual points. Mean values and standard deviations are indicated above each box in the format M (SD). Higher scores indicate higher perceived workload.