Daphne Economou Sony Broadcast and Professional Research Labs.pdfVIP

User Centred Virtual Actor Technology Daphne Economou Sony Broadcast and Professional Research Labs Jays Close, Viables, Basingstoke, RG22 4SB, England ++44 (0) 1256 483700 econd@ William Mitchell Department of Computing and Mathematics, The Manchester Metropolitan University Chester Street, M1 5GD, England ++44 (0) 161 247 1493 B.Mitchell@doc.mmu.ac.uk Steve Pettifer Jon Cook James Marsh Advanced Interfaces Group The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, M13 9PL, England ++44 (0) 161 275 6259 srp@cs.man.ac.uk ABSTRACT This paper argues that the development of virtual actor technology must be guided by application and end user needs. Two objectives drive the development of the ‘Senet’ project described in this paper: to develop a set of design guidelines for the use of virtual actors in Collaborative Virtual Environments (CVEs) for learning, and to inform the development of the underlying virtual actor technology following a user centred approach. The methodological approach followed involves the development of prototype virtual learning environments in a series of distinct phases. These are based on an ancient Egyptian game (senet) and are aimed at children at Key Stage Level 2 of the National Curriculum for education in England. Two-dimensional multi- media technology has been used to develop robust prototypes, which were then observed in use by children. The result of this study derived a set of design guidelines, which were then used to guide the implementation of a 3D CVE using the Deva CVE technology. Keywords Collaborative virtual environments, pedagogy, evaluation, interaction analysis, design guidelines, technology requirements. 1. INTRODUCTION This paper describes the Senet project, which has two main aims. Firstly, to develop design guidelines for the use of virtual actors in CVEs for learning. Secondly, to inform the development of underlying virtual actor technology. Virtual actors model human figures