Section: Partnerships and Cooperations

National Initiatives

FUI SIFORAS

Participants : Bruno Arnaldi [contact] , Valérie Gouranton [contact] , Thomas Lopez.

SIFORAS (Simulation for training and assistance), based on GVT  5.2 , aims to propose Instructional Systems Design to answer the new objectives of training (Intelligent Tutorial System, mobility, augmented reality, high productivity).

SIFORAS involves Academic partners 4 (INSA Rennes, ENIB, CEA-List, ENISE) and 9 Industrial partners (Nexter Training, Delta CAD, Virtualys, DAF Conseils, Nexter Systems, DCNS, Renault, SNCF, Alstom).

In this project, INSA Rennes-VR4i aims ensuring consistency with respect to CORVETTE project (see section  8.1.3 ) in particular for the global architecture based on STORM and LORA models.

ANR Collaviz

Participants : Thierry Duval [contact] , Valérie Gouranton [contact] , Cédric Fleury, Van Viet Pham.

Collaviz is an innovative multi-domain remote collaborative platform (project ANR-08-COSI-003-11 funded by the french national research agency) for the simulation-based design applications.

Collaviz was involving 6 Academic partners (ECP, EGID, INPT, INSA Rennes, LIRIS, Scilab) and 11 Industrial partners (Artenum, BRGM, Distene, EDF, Faurecia, Medit, MCLP Consulting, NECS, Oxalya, TechViz, Teratec). The Collaviz ended at on 30th June 2012.

The major value brought by Collaviz to the scientific and industrial community is to make remote analysis and collaboration easily available and scalable. Web-based technologies, on the top of shared high-performance computing and visualization centers, will permit researchers and engineers handling very large data sets, including 3D data models, by using a single workstation, wherever in the world. Just a "standard" internet connexion will be needed. The classical approach is not adapted anymore: simulation-based design applications tend to generate Terabytes and even Petabytes of data.

We were leading the WP4 about Collaborative Virtual Environments and Techniques, whose aim was to manage the 3D collaborative interactions of the users. During 2012 we contributed to the second Collaviz prototype by building upon it new collaborative interaction metaphors. We also improved the Collaviz software architecture in order to provide interoperability, making it possible to share a virtual universe between heterogeneous 3D viewers. We added a JMonkeyEngine viewer dedicated to deploy Collaviz on mobile devices such as tablets. We also made a link with the VCoRE project by adding a C++ OpenSG viewer to the our Java Collaviz framework.

We have also deployed the Collaviz framework between London (in the immersive room of the University College of London) and Rennes (in our Immersia room). We setup an experiment of collaborative manipulation of a clipping plane inside 3D scientific data within VISIONAIR project. This first real deployment of Collaviz was a success, it has allowed efficient co-manipulation of a shared 3D object between two really distant users, and the experimental results have been presented in [20] . Collaviz has then been deployed in the Inria Sophia-Antipolis immersive system in the context of the VCoRE project.

ANR Corvette

Participants : Bruno Arnaldi [contact] , Valérie Gouranton [contact] , Florian Nouviale, Andrés Saraos Luna.

Corvette (COllaboRative Virtual Environment Technical Training and Experiment) based on GVT  5.2 , aims to propose a set of scientific innovations in industrial training domain (maintenance, complex procedures, security, diagnostic, ...) exploiting virtual reality technologies. This project has several scientific axes : collaborative work, virtual human, communication and evaluation.

Corvette involves 3 Academic partners (INSA Rennes, ENIB, CEA-List) and 4 Industrial partners (AFPA, Nexter Training, Virtualys, Golaem). We (INSA Rennes) are leading the ANR Corvette.

The project seeks to put in synergy a number of scientific axes:

• Collaborative work that can handle representative complex scenarios of industrial training

• Virtual Human for its ability to embody the user as an avatar and acting as a collaborator during training

• Natural communication between users and virtual humans for task-oriented dialogues

• Methodology in cognitive psychology for the assessment of the effectiveness of the collaboration of users and virtual humans to perform complex cooperative tasks in a virtual environment.

Unit contributions and technologies are demonstrated. Each partner has integrated global constraints of the project to produce the technical elements in relation to their contributions. The next step is to combine the components into a unified environment and have it validated by industrial use cases.

For further information: http://corvette.irisa.fr/

ANR Acoustic

Participant : Maud Marchal [contact] .

The main objective of the project ACouStiC is to develop an innovative strategy based on models for helping decision-making process during surgical planning in Deep Brain Stimulation. Models rely on different levels involved in the decision-making process; namely multimodal images, information, and knowledge. The project aims at developing methods for 1) building generic and patient specific models and 2) automatically computing optimal electrodes trajectories from these models taking into account possible simulated deformations occurring during surgery. VR4i is involved in the project with Shaman Inria project-team and aims at providing models of deformations of the cerebral structures and electrodes for the surgical planning. The objective is to propose a biomechanical approach to model the brain and electrode deformations and also their mutual interaction.

ANR Open-ViBE2

Participants : Laurent Bonnet, Laurent George, Anatole Lécuyer [contact] , Jozef Legeny.

OpenViBE2 is a 3-year project funded by the French National Agency for Research. The objective of OpenViBE2 is to propose a radical shift of perspective about the use of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI). First, in OpenViBE2 we consider the possibility to merge a BCI with traditional peripherals such as joysticks, mice and other devices, all being possibly used simultaneously in a virtual environment. Therefore, BCI is not seen as a replacement but as a complement of classical HCI. Second, we aim at monitoring brain cognitive functions and mental states of the user in order to adapt, in real-time and in an automated fashion, the interaction protocol as well as the content of the remote/virtual environment (VE).

One major strength of OpenViBE2 consortium relies on the fact that four partners were already involved in the previous ANR project OpenViBE1 (2005-2009): Inria, INSERM, GIPSA-LAB, CEA. In addition, six partners have joined OpenViBE2 to bring their complementary expertise required by the scope of our proposal: CHART, CLARTE, UBISOFT, BLACK SHEEP, and KYLOTONN.

In parallel, the OpenViBE2 consortium contributes to the free and open-source software OpenViBE, which is devoted to the design, test and use of Brain-Computer Interfaces (see Section 5.3 ).

ANR HOMO TEXTILUS

Participants : Anatole Lécuyer [contact] , Jozef Legeny, Maud Marchal, Jonathan Mercier.

HOMO TEXTILUS is a 3-year project funded by the French National Agency for Research (2012-2015). The objective of HOMO TEXTILUS is to study what could be the next generation of smart and augmented clothes, and their influence and potential impact on behavior and habits of their users. The project is strongly oriented towards human science, with both user studies and sociological studies. The involvement of VR4i team in the project consists in contributing to the design of next-gen prototypes of clothes embedding novel kinds of sensors and actuators. Envisionned sensors relate to physiological measurements such as with EEG (electroencephalograpohy and Brain-Computer Interfaces), EMG (muscular activity), GSR (galvanic skin response) or Heart Rate (HR). Envisionned actuators relate to new sensory stimulations such as vibrotactile displays or novel visual (eg LED) displays. These prototypes will thus be used in the various experiments planned in the project.

Partbers of the project are : Inria, CHART, LIP6, TOMORROW LAND, RCP and potential end-user is Hussein Chalayan fashion creator.

ANR MANDARIN

Participants : Anatole Lecuyer [contact] , Maud Marchal [contact] , Merwan Achibet.

MANDARIN is a 3-year project funded by the French National Agency for Research (2012-2015). The objective of MANDARIN is to study the design of truly dexterous haptic peripherals allowing natural and intuitive mono or bi-manual interactions with force feedback in virtual environments. The design of an innovative and comfortable and high performance force feedback glove is planned in the project, based on accurate biomechanical models of the human hand. The involvement of VR4i team in the project consists in contributing to the design of novel multimodal 3D interactions techniques and metaphors allowing to deal with haptic gloves limitations and to assist the user in virtual applications requiring dexterous manipulation. The scientific results will be evaluated with a representative industrial application proposed by Renault, that is not feasible currently with existing technologies (bi-manual manipulation of complex rigid objects and cables bundles).

Partners of the project are : Inria, CEA, UTC, Haption, Renault (potential end-user)