The Influence of AR Scene Complexity on Map Reading Tasks: A User Study using Eye-Tracking Approach
Liuduozi Yang, Lina Huang · 2022
It is generally agreed that augmented reality(AR) maps can effectively integrated various virtual location based information and the real geographical environment. Unlike the conventional printed and digital maps, AR maps use real scene directly as base map, which provides a stronger sense of immersion. However, it is unknown whether and how the introduction of real world may affect the cognition of AR maps. In this study, we conducted a controlled experiment using eye- tracking approach to explore the influence of AR scene complexity on map reading tasks. Both indoor and outdoor scenes in varied complexity levels were considered. Then a total of 34 participants were recruited to perform several POI search tasks with the AR Maps, and their response time, accuracy rate and eye movement data were recorded. We analyzed the effect of AR scene complexity on map reading from three aspects, i.e. perceptual efficiency, cognitive load and cognitive performance. The results show that when the amount of present POI is reasonable, AR scene complexity has little effect on POI searching. This finding could help us to set visual strategy for displaying virtual map symbols with complex real scene and support AR map design.