1. Designing our VR Experience
GatorVRse: Virtual Reality for Social Good
Designing our VR Experience
JOU 4930 (Section 77B2 - Undergraduates)
MMC 6936 (Section 77E7 - Graduate)
Summer 2017
Dr. Shiva Halan

3. Bridging Theory with Technology
Bridging Theoretical Knowledge with Technical Skill
How do we use the VR theory/constructs that we have learned so far to build an immersive experience in Unity utilizing the skills that we have acquired?
Operationalize the theory/constructs to build robust and impactful immersive experiences
Informed decision-making: Ground the design decisions we make on the theory/constructs we have learned
Where do we start?

4. Designing our VR experience
Virtual World

5. Designing our VR experience
Virtual World

6. Designing our VR experience
Virtual World

7. Designing our VR experience
Virtual World
USER

8. Designing our VR experience
Virtual World
USER

9. Fundamental Four What do you want your user to experience?
What are the (3D) objects that make up your virtual world?
What are the properties/behaviors of these objects?
How does the user experience your world?

10. Designing our VR experience in UNITY
Scene
Interfaces
GameObjects
USER

11. What is missing/wrong with this diagram?
Virtual World
USER

12. Designing our VR experience
Virtual World

13. Fundamental Four What do you want your user to experience?
What are the (3D) objects that make up your virtual world?
What are the properties/behaviors of these objects?
How does the user experience your world?

14. Fundamental Five What do you want your user to experience?
What are the objects that make up your virtual world?
What are the properties/behaviors of these objects?
How is the user represented in your world?
How does the user interact with the objects in your world?

15. Fundamental Five – Unity Version
What scene do you want your user to experience?
What are the GameObjects that make up your scene?
What are the Components/Scripts of these GameObjects?
How is the user represented in your scene?
How does the user interact with the objects in your world?

16. What do you want your user to experience?
What is the goal of your immersive experience (FOR THE USER)?
Gain an insight/perspective
Visualize some data or information
Explore an artifact or exhibit
Create a piece of art
Have fun (recreational)
Train or learn a skill in VR
Communicate with other people
Complete a particular real-world or virtual task
Break down your user goals into sub-goals

17. What do you want your user to experience?
What is the goal of your immersive experience (FOR THE USER)?
When does the user’s experience end?
When the user has experienced a particular insight
When the user has spent X amount of time exploring an artifact
When the user has learnt a skill
When the user has completed some task(s) in the virtual world

18. What are the objects that make up your world?
What 3D models are part of your virtual world/scene?
Iterative process: Work on 3-5 models at a time
Source: How are you going to find/create these 3D models?
Do not reinvent the wheel
Standard assets that come with Unity
Always start at the Unity Asset Store
External sources: 3D Warehouse, TurboSquid, Blue Brain 3D
Most common format for Unity is FBX
Characters: Autodesk Character Generator, Adobe Fuse

19. What are the properties/behaviors of your objects?
What are the properties of each object in your scene?
What component values change during the experience?
Example: Position, Orientation, Size, Color, Material etc.
What controls the change in these property values?
Example: Time, User, Interaction with other objects, Random, Mathematical model
What are the behaviors of each object in your scene?
What component behaviors are customizable during the experience?
Example: Animations, Audio, Emotions, Narrative, Perspective

20. How is the user represented in your world?
Passive observer Vs Active participant
Representations
Camera perspective
Character or Avatar
Perspective of another character or 3D Model

21. How does the user interact in your world?
Cause and effect relationship between the Interfaces and the GameObjects in the scene
User uses _(INTERFACE)_ to manipulate _(PROPERTY/BEHAVIOR)_ of _(GAMEOBJECT)_ in the virtual world.
User uses arrow keys on the keyboard to manipulate the position and orientation of the Camera in the virtual world
User uses VIVE controllers to manipulate the size of the dress in the virtual shopping cart
User uses Oculus Touch controllers to manipulate the speed of the car in the virtual race track

22. Virtual 3D Model Race

23. Comments/ Questions?
Shiva Halan
Office Hours : Wed 3 – 4 pm