Development of software for analyzing the impact of virtual reality technologies on human locomotion processes

Abstract

Among the common approaches to organizing movement in virtual reality, one can single out the use of specialized controllers, treadmills, and omnidirectional platforms. Within the framework of this study, the influence of virtual reality on the process of moving a person on various types of platforms is considered. To track the specifics of this process, two types of equipment are used: virtual reality sensors (trackers) that track the trajectory of movement and a muscle activity sensor attached to the user’s leg. An algorithm for collecting, processing, and analyzing information about the movement process using the selected equipment has been developed and formalized. Experimental studies have been carried out on the influence of virtual reality on the process of human movement in two environments: under normal conditions and on a treadmill. The developed algorithm has been successfully tested in the framework of experimental studies, which made it possible to evaluate the effect of the influence of virtual reality on the trajectory of movement and muscle activity. The collected data (trajectories and speeds of trackers, muscle activity) were processed by statistical methods (the Shapiro-Wilk test and Mann-Whitney U-test), which made it possible to assess the normality of the data distribution and carry out a pairwise comparison of the samples obtained while moving, like in a virtual reality, and without it. As a result, no statistically significant difference was found between the trajectories of leg movement. The difference in human muscle activity and movement speed during the process of using virtual reality was revealed. Thus, the hypothesis is partially confirmed. As a result of the study, it was confirmed that there is a certain difference in the nature of a person’s movement when using virtual reality technologies.