Design and Evaluation of First-/Third-Person Hybrid Locomotion Techniques in Virtual Reality for Enhanced Accessibility in Healthcare

Abstract

This paper presents the design and evaluation of two novel locomotion techniques for virtual reality that address key challenges of accessibility and motion sickness by enabling continuous traversal around a scene from a seated position, with the ability to seamlessly switch between first-person and third-person perspectives. The techniques presented are 'static hybrid camera', which uses fixed third-person camera angles designed for each scene, and 'dynamic hybrid camera', where the third-person camera dynamically moves with the user's avatar. Both techniques aim to provide intuitive and comfortable movement without exacerbating motion sickness. The locomotion techniques were compared to teleportation in a 12-participant user study, demonstrating that these hybrid techniques successfully expand locomotion options in VR, improving accessibility and comfort especially for seated use.