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FlexiCamAR: Enhancing Everyday Camera Interactions on AR Glasses with a Flexible Additional Viewpoint

Ziming Li, Hongji Li, Jialin Wang, Pan Hui, Hai-Ning Liang

Abstract

The recent emergence and popularity of consumer-grade augmented reality (AR) glasses from major technology companies highlight their potential to become the next daily computing platform. A dominant design trend in this context is the integration of a front-facing camera to deliver a first-person perspective. While this approach is intuitive, there is limited evidence that it is optimal (or sufficient) for supporting users in daily tasks. This paper explores a more effective camera interaction technique for AR glasses, which we term ``FlexiCamAR." This novel method aims to enhance both efficiency and the range of applications for AR glasses by offering flexible and comfortable secondary camera viewpoints. To investigate the applicability and usability of this approach, we developed a ring camera prototype that can be attached to users' fingers. We then conducted a user study with 12 participants, comparing FlexiCamAR against the baseline, a traditional front-facing AR camera setup, across two common tasks: taking photos and scanning QR codes. Our findings show that FlexiCamAR significantly reduces physical load. We also explore potential scenarios where the additional viewpoint afforded by FlexiCamAR proves valuable, such as capturing low-angle perspectives or navigating confined spaces. Participant feedback further suggests strong potential for additional applications, including selfie taking, video conferencing, and object scanning. Overall, FlexiCamAR presents a novel interaction approach that can serve as a powerful supplement or alternative to the first-person perspective, significantly improving the adaptability of AR glasses for everyday use.

FlexiCamAR: Enhancing Everyday Camera Interactions on AR Glasses with a Flexible Additional Viewpoint

Abstract

The recent emergence and popularity of consumer-grade augmented reality (AR) glasses from major technology companies highlight their potential to become the next daily computing platform. A dominant design trend in this context is the integration of a front-facing camera to deliver a first-person perspective. While this approach is intuitive, there is limited evidence that it is optimal (or sufficient) for supporting users in daily tasks. This paper explores a more effective camera interaction technique for AR glasses, which we term ``FlexiCamAR." This novel method aims to enhance both efficiency and the range of applications for AR glasses by offering flexible and comfortable secondary camera viewpoints. To investigate the applicability and usability of this approach, we developed a ring camera prototype that can be attached to users' fingers. We then conducted a user study with 12 participants, comparing FlexiCamAR against the baseline, a traditional front-facing AR camera setup, across two common tasks: taking photos and scanning QR codes. Our findings show that FlexiCamAR significantly reduces physical load. We also explore potential scenarios where the additional viewpoint afforded by FlexiCamAR proves valuable, such as capturing low-angle perspectives or navigating confined spaces. Participant feedback further suggests strong potential for additional applications, including selfie taking, video conferencing, and object scanning. Overall, FlexiCamAR presents a novel interaction approach that can serve as a powerful supplement or alternative to the first-person perspective, significantly improving the adaptability of AR glasses for everyday use.

Paper Structure

This paper contains 25 sections, 11 figures, 1 table.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Related Work
  3. Wearable Cameras
  4. Finger-based Interaction Paradigms
  5. The FlexiCamAR Approach and Prototype
  6. Prototype Implementation
  7. Core Principles of FlexiCamAR
  8. Evaluation
  9. Tasks
  10. Apparatus
  11. Participants
  12. Study Design and Procedure
  13. Metrics
  14. Results and Discussion
  15. Average Completion Time
  16. ...and 10 more sections

Figures (11)

  • Figure 1: The proof-of-concept prototype and its main components. (a) 1-meter type-C to USB cable link. (b) The camera unit. (c) The 3D-printed enclosure. (d) A size 10 (US standard) ring. (e) The assembled ring camera prototype.
  • Figure 2: Ergonomic principles for the physical instantiation of FlexiCamAR. (a) The recommended posture, leveraging natural wrist flexion for comfort. (b-d) Postures that were not recommended as they require extra forearm rotation or cause discomfort. (e) The action sequence from a resting state to active use of the approach.
  • Figure 3: The two display modes explored for presenting the secondary viewpoint of FlexiCamAR. (a) In follow-view, the virtual screen is head-stabilized, following the user's rotation. (b) In anchor-view, the screen is world-stabilized, anchored at a fixed position in mid-air.
  • Figure 4: Visual illustrations of the four experimental conditions. (a) Baseline with Follow-View. (b) FlexiCamAR with Follow-View. (c) Baseline with Anchor-View. (d) FlexiCamAR with Anchor-View.
  • Figure 5: The experiment tasks. (a) The photo-taking task: Participants take photos of a cup from three angles. (b) The QR code-scanning task: Participants scan the QR codes from left to right. The QR code in the red block is the start marker, and the QR codes in the blue block are the task codes.
  • ...and 6 more figures