An empirical practice of design and evaluation of freehand interaction gestures in virtual reality

Nowadays, virtual reality (VR) technologies are increasingly used in various domains. Thus, there is an urgent need to sufficiently explore a natural approach to human–computer interaction that can be customized to various situations across different user groups. In this study, we explored hand gesture types that are more effective and natural for manipulating three-dimensional (3D) objects for application in freehand interaction within a VR environment. More specifically, gestures for 3D manipulation including directional navigation, rotation, scaling, and teleportation were tracked and recognized through a Leap Motion sensor equipped in front of a head-mounted VR device and on top of 3D glasses, respectively. To systematically validate the efficiency, usability, and reliability of the hand gestures, we designed a series of representative tasks in a specifically designed VR application and then recruited 40 participants to complete all required interaction tasks using the newly designed gestures and baseline hand controller. The results showed that the gestural interaction method was sufficiently effective for accomplishing most of the interactive tasks, indicating that this method could be a viable alternative to the conventional hand controller interaction method. Moreover, users preferred the new gestural interaction method more than the conventional one in terms of user experience and immersion. Based on these results, guidelines and strategies were discussed for developing freehand interaction techniques in general VR applications.