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Presentation
The Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Pointing Device For a Wearable Computer
Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 56th Annual Meeting
  • Andres Calvo, Ball Aerospace
  • Gregory Burnett, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
  • Victor Finomore, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
  • Saverio Perugini, University of Dayton
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2012
Abstract

U.S. Air Force special tactics operators at times use small wearable computers (SWCs) for mission objectives. The primary pointing device of a SWC is either a touchpad or trackpoint, embedded into the chassis of the SWC. In situations where the user cannot directly interact with these pointing devices, the utility of the SWC is decreased. We developed a pointing device called the G3 that can be used for SWCs used by operators. The device utilizes gyroscopic sensors attached to the user’s index finger to move the computer cursor according to the angular velocity of his finger. We showed that, as measured by Fitts’s law, the overall performance and accuracy of the G3 was better than that of the touchpad and trackpoint. These findings suggest that the G3 can adequately be used with SWCs. Additionally, we investigated the G3's utility as a control device for operating micro remotely piloted aircrafts.

Inclusive pages
521-525
ISBN/ISSN
1071-1813
Document Version
Published Version
Comments

Paper was nominated for the best paper award for computer systems.

Publisher
Human Factors and Ergonomics Society
Peer Reviewed
Yes
Citation Information
Andres Calvo, Gregory Burnett, Victor Finomore and Saverio Perugini. "The Design, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Pointing Device For a Wearable Computer" Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 56th Annual Meeting (2012)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/saverio_perugini/11/