3DTouch: Towards a Wearable 3D Input Device for 3D Applications

TL;DR

3DTouch is a wearable fingertip device designed for intuitive 3D interaction, combining touch input with motion tracking to improve usability and accuracy across various 3D platforms.

Contribution

The paper introduces 3DTouch, a novel wearable 3D input device that integrates touch and motion sensing for versatile and accurate 3D interaction.

Findings

Tracking accuracy of 1.10 mm and 2.33 degrees.

Effective implementation of selection, translation, and rotation techniques.

Reduced fatigue compared to traditional 3D spatial devices.

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) applications have come to every corner of life. We present 3DTouch, a novel 3D wearable input device worn on the fingertip for interacting with 3D applications. 3DTouch is self-contained, and designed to universally work on various 3D platforms. The device employs touch input for the benefits of passive haptic feedback, and movement stability. Moreover, with touch interaction, 3DTouch is conceptually less fatiguing to use over many hours than 3D spatial input devices such as Kinect. Our approach relies on relative positioning technique using an optical laser sensor and a 9-DOF inertial measurement unit. We implemented a set of 3D interaction techniques including selection, translation, and rotation using 3DTouch. An evaluation also demonstrates the device's tracking accuracy of 1.10 mm and 2.33 degrees for subtle touch interaction in 3D space. With 3DTouch project, we would like to provide an input device that reduces the gap between 3D applications and users.