HCVR Scene Generation: High Compatibility Virtual Reality Environment Generation for Extended Redirected Walking

TL;DR

HCVR is a new framework that generates virtual environments optimized for redirected walking, significantly reducing physical collisions and improving layout quality by aligning virtual scenes with physical spaces using a novel compatibility metric and LLM-guided asset placement.

Contribution

The paper introduces HCVR, a novel scene generation framework that enhances physical-virtual space compatibility for RDW by employing a new metric and LLM-guided layout optimization.

Findings

22.78 times fewer physical collisions with HCVR scenes

35.89% reduction in ENI++ incompatibility score

12.5% higher user satisfaction on layout quality

Abstract

Natural walking enhances immersion in virtual environments (VEs), but physical space limitations and obstacles hinder exploration, especially in large virtual scenes. Redirected Walking (RDW) techniques mitigate this by subtly manipulating the virtual camera to guide users away from physical collisions within pre-defined VEs. However, RDW efficacy diminishes significantly when substantial geometric divergence exists between the physical and virtual environments, leading to unavoidable collisions. Existing scene generation methods primarily focus on object relationships or layout aesthetics, often neglecting the crucial aspect of physical compatibility required for effective RDW. To address this, we introduce HCVR (High Compatibility Virtual Reality Environment Generation), a novel framework that generates virtual scenes inherently optimized for alignment-based RDW controllers. HCVR first employs ENI++, a novel, boundary-sensitive metric to evaluate the incompatibility between physical and virtual spaces by comparing rotation-sensitive visibility polygons. Guided by the ENI++ compatibility map and user prompts, HCVR utilizes a Large Language Model (LLM) for context-aware 3D asset retrieval and initial layout generation. The framework then strategically adjusts object selection, scaling, and placement to maximize coverage of virtually incompatible regions, effectively guiding users towards RDW-feasible paths. User studies evaluating physical collisions and layout quality demonstrate HCVR's effectiveness with HCVR-generated scenes, resulting in 22.78 times fewer physical collisions and received 35.89\% less on ENI++ score compared to LLM-based generation with RDW, while also receiving 12.5\% higher scores on user feedback to layout design.