Liarokapis F, et al., Navigating within the urban environment using Location and Orientation-based Services. Up to now most attempts to develop pedestrian navigation tools for the urban environment have used GPS technologies to display position on two-dimensional digital maps (as in the classic 'satnav ' systems on the market). Although GPS is the key technology for location-based services (LBS), it cannot currently meet all the requirements for navigation in urban environments. Specifically, GPS technologies suffer from multipath signal degradation and they cannot provide orientation information at low or zero speed, which is an essential component of navigation. It has also been demonstrated in research that maps are not always the most effective interfaces to pedestrian navigation applications on mobile devices. This paper will explore solutions to the orientation and interface challenges in pedestrian navigation on mobile devices. Orientation information is necessary to help the user self-localise in an unknown environment and can be provided by calibrated digital compass integrated with the GPS positioning. Further orientation assistance can be provided by

Computer games are continuously improving graphics capabilities and game-play but the market demands show that more compelling gaming applications are required. In this paper, the requirements of modern gaming applications are investigated and a classification of the most significant game design issues is presented. To understand the issues related to video and virtual reality gaming, an interactive game engine is designed and as a case study a traditional two-dimensional arcade game, called Breakout, is ported. Collision detection is supported between the graphics components of the application based on Newton laws of physics. To test the effectiveness of our approach, a tangible platform for playing interactive three-dimensional games using video see-through augmented reality techniques is proposed. To evaluate the effectiveness of each application a pilot study was performed and the initial results of this study are presented.

This paper presents an overview of the most significant issues when designing mixed reality interfaces including displays, tracking, interface design, interactivity and realism. Multimodal issues regarding visualization and interaction are integrated into a single interface. Three case studies in diverse areas including automotive, archaeology and navigation are presented, illustrating the use of the above issues addressed. Furthermore, the experiences gained and lessons learned are discussed including our plans for future work.

In this paper we propose the use of specific mobile system architecture for navigation in urban environments. The aim of this work is to evaluate how virtual and augmented reality interfaces can provide location and orientation-based services using different technologies. The virtual reality interface is entirely based on sensors to detect the location and orientation of the user while the augmented reality interface uses computer vision techniques to capture patterns from the real environment. The knowledge obtained from the evaluation of the virtual reality experience has been incorporated into the augmented reality interface. Some initial results in our experimental augmented reality navigation are presented.

In this paper, we propose the use of specific system architecture, based on mobile device, for navigation in urban environments. The aim of this work is to assess how virtual and augmented reality interface paradigms can provide enhanced location based services using real-time techniques in the context of these two different technologies. The virtual reality interface is based on faithful graphical representation of the localities of interest, coupled with sensory information on the location and orientation of the user, while the augmented reality interface uses computer vision techniques to capture patterns from the real environment and overlay additional way-finding information, aligned with real imagery, in real-time. The knowledge obtained from the evaluation of the virtual reality navigational experience has been used to inform the design of the augmented reality interface. Initial results of the user testing of the experimental augmented reality system for navigation are presented. Digital Peer Publishing Licence Any party may pass on this Work by electronic means and make it available for download under the terms and conditions of the current version of the Digital Peer Publishing Licence (DPPL). The text of the licence may be accessed and retrieved via Internet at

The study introduced in this paper examines some of the issues involved in the design and implementation of serious games that make use of tangible AR environments. Our motivation is to understand how augmented reality serious games (ARSG) can be applied to some very difficult problems in the real gaming world. Emphasis is given on the interface and the interactions between the players and the serious games themselves. In particular, two case studies are presented, ARPuzzle and ARBreakout. Results from both case studies indicate that AR gaming has the potential of revolutionizing the way that current games are played and used as well as that it can help educate players while playing.