arXiv subjects

Ching-Yi Tsai

Publications and source records attributed to Ching-Yi Tsai.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Uncertain Pointer: Situated Feedforward Visualizations for Ambiguity-Aware AR Target Selection

Target disambiguation is crucial in resolving input ambiguity in augmented reality (AR), especially for queries over distant objects or cluttered scenes on the go. Yet, visual feedforward techniques that support this process remain underexplored. We present Uncertain Pointer, a systematic exploration of feedforward visualizations that annotate multiple candidate targets before user confirmation, either by adding distinct visual identities (e.g., colors) to support disambiguation or by modulating visual intensity (e.g., opacity) to convey system uncertainty. First, we construct a pointer space of 25 pointers by analyzing existing placement strategies and visual signifiers used in target visualizations across 30 years of relevant literature. We then evaluate them through two online experiments (n = 60 and 40), measuring user preference, confidence, mental ease, target visibility, and identifiability across varying object distances and sparsities. Finally, from the results, we derive design recommendations in choosing different Uncertain Pointers based on AR context and disambiguation techniques.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2026

Gesturing Toward Abstraction: Multimodal Convention Formation in Collaborative Physical Tasks

A quintessential feature of human intelligence is the ability to create ad hoc conventions over time to achieve shared goals efficiently. We investigate how communication strategies evolve through repeated collaboration as people coordinate on shared procedural abstractions. To this end, we conducted an online unimodal study (n = 98) using natural language to probe abstraction hierarchies. In a follow-up lab study (n = 40), we examined how multimodal communication (speech and gestures) changed during physical collaboration. Pairs used augmented reality to isolate their partner's hand and voice; one participant viewed a 3D virtual tower and sent instructions to the other, who built the physical tower. Participants became faster and more accurate by establishing linguistic and gestural abstractions and using cross-modal redundancy to emphasize key changes from previous interactions. Based on these findings, we extend probabilistic models of convention formation to multimodal settings, capturing shifts in modality preferences. Our findings and model provide building blocks for designing convention-aware intelligent agents situated in the physical world.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2023

Clonemator: Composing Spatiotemporal Clones to Create Interactive Automators in Virtual Reality

Clonemator is a virtual reality (VR) system allowing users to create their avatar clones and configure them spatially and temporally, forming automators to accomplish complex tasks. In particular, clones can (1) freeze at a user's body pose as static objects, (2) synchronously mimic the user's movement, and (3) replay a sequence of the user's actions in a period of time later. Combined with traditional techniques such as scaling, positional rearrangement, group selection, and duplication, Clonemator enables users to iteratively develop customized and reusable solutions by breaking down complex tasks into a sequence of collaborations with clones. This bypasses implementing dedicated interaction techniques or scripts while allowing flexible interactions in VR applications. We demonstrate the flexibility of Clonemator with several examples and validate its usability and effectiveness through a preliminary user study. Finally, we discuss the potential of Clonemator in VR applications such as gaming mechanisms, spatial interaction techniques, and multi-robot control and provide our insights for future research.

cs.HC↗

arXiv2012

New empirical tests of the multifractal Omori law for Taiwan

We report new tests on the Taiwan earthquake catalog of the prediction by the Multifractal Stress Activation (MSA) model that the p-value of the Omori law for the rate of aftershocks following a mainshock is an increasing function of its magnitude Mm. This effort is motivated by the quest to validate this crucial prediction of the MSA model and to investigate its possible dependence on local tectonic conditions. With careful attention to the long-term as well as short-term time-dependent magnitude completeness of the Taiwan catalog, and with the use of three different declustering techniques, we confirm the universality of the prediction p(Mm) = (0.09 \pm 0.03) \times Mm + (0.47 \pm 0.10), valid for the SCEC Southern California catalog, the Harvard-CMT worldwide catalog, the JMA Japan catalog and the Taiwan catalog. The observed deviations of the two coefficients of the p(Mm) linear dependence on Mm from catalog to catalog are not significant enough to correlate meaningfully with any tectonic features.

physics.geo-ph↗