Wednesday, 8 November, 14:00 - 15:00
Keynote: Fabio Pellacini (Sapienza University of Rome, Italy)
The main research interest of Prof. Pellacini is the investigation of computational methods to support design of 3D objects, from their shape to their appearance, through the development of interactive rendering algorithms, intuitive design interfaces, novel fabrication methods, and user studies. This research led to various theoretical results and practical applications in the areas of interactive realistic rendering, 3D printing, user interfaces and visual perception.
Topic: Collaborative Content Creation, Initial Ideas and Future Trends
Virtual reality let us share immersive experience with other users. One possible application of these experiences is content creation, where seamless collaboration between peers is a highly desired feature. In this talk, we will discuss the main challenges of creating collaborative environment, establish some notion of different manner in which users might want to collaborate and show some of our ongoing work on these topics.
Thursday, 9 November, 09:00 - 10:00
Industry Keynote: Martin Enthed (IKEA Communications AB, Sweden)
Martin has been fully engaged in all aspects of 3D and Computer Graphics, from programming to modelling, animating and rendering since the early 90s. He has lead computer-generated imagery (CGI) teams for a number of global companies. In 2007 he joined IKEA Communications AB, IKEAs in house agency. There Martin has devoted his time to set up professional 3D processes within IKEA, creating standards and tools as well as workflows for working with large scale 3D in a truly global environment. Since 2011 he is acting as Development and Operations IT Manager. At VRST 2017, Martin will reveal cutting-edge VR/AR innovations and applications placing his lab at the global forefront of industry design.
Topic: IKEA VR/AR/MR and meatballs
In this session IKEA present the challenge of a retailer taking on the first steps into VR/AR and MR, taking the stance in the photographic CG renderings of indoor homes for catalog and web development done since 2005. We will share the progress, starting from the first stumbling steps with internal tests, some public and internal launches and learning's and how meatballs fits into the equation. You will also get to know how IKEA looks upon the future of VR/AR/MR with the IKEA Digital Lab and what we see needed to be solved in the next 10-15 years to be able to get there.
Thursday, 9 November, 14:00 - 15:00
Keynote: Anders Ynnerman (Linköping University, Sweden)
Professor Anders Ynnerman received a Ph.D. in physics from Gothenburg University, Sweden. From 1997 to 2002 he directed the Swedish National Supercomputer Centre and from 2002 to 2006 he directed the Swedish National Infrastructure for Computing (SNIC). Since 1999 he has held the chair in scientific visualization at Linköping University and since 2010 he is the director of the Norrköping Visualization Center C.
Ynnerman is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Swedish Royal Academy of Engineering Sciences. In 2007 Ynnerman was awarded the Akzo Nobel Science award. In 2010 he received the Swedish Knowledge Award for dissemination of scientific knowledge to the public. In 2011 he received the IVA gold medal from the King of Sweden and In 2017 he was awarded the King’s honorary medal for contributions to medical visualization.
Topic: Exploranation
This talk will take its starting point in the on-going convergence of exploratory and explanatory visualization paradigms. Based on the general availability of processing power, access to data and ever improving visualization methods, explanatory visualization can be data driven and fully interactive. This leads to a paradigm shift in visual learning and communication, enabling a new generation of installations and demonstrations at public venues such as, museums, planetariums and science centers. At the same time, explanatory methods can pave the path for new approaches to exploration and workflows for domain experts, and also improve internal team communication. The talk will elaborate on how the cycle from exploratory to explanatory visualization can be closed, leading to notion of “exploranation”. Examples will be taken from a range of applications domains such as the volumetric rendering of exotic animals and mummies on touch tables as well as visualization of space exploration using the OpenSpace software in large scale dome theaters.
Friday, 10 November, 09:00 - 10:00
Keynote: Shengdong Zhao (University of Singapore, Singapore)
Prof. Zhao is founder and head of the NUS-HCI Lab, the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory at the National University of Singapore. The lab’s mission is to create a word-class HCI research laboratory in Asia. Lab members’ research interests include interfaces and interaction techniques to facilitate creative expressions as well as encourage cooperative social interactions, a.k.a. creative social interaction.
Topic: AR as a key enabler in defining the next interaction paradigm for Human Computer Interaction
We live in an interesting time. Although we don’t know exactly what the future will be like, transformational change is a certainty. There are several noticeable trends: one is the change of the computing paradigm from reactive to pro-active. All major companies are working on this paradigm shift, investing heavily in AI and machine learning. This will redefine the role and responsibility of our personal devices and dramatically change our lifestyles over the next few years. Another interesting trend is the interaction shift from device-centric to human-and-environment-centric, which has the potential to allow humans to return to a more natural way of living. Inside this movement, a central enabling piece is AR technology, but this is not without significant challenges. It will be exciting to work on the problems to accelerate this paradigm transformation, to which I hope the VRST community can make a significant contribution.