Augmented and Virtual Reality Experiences for Planetary Research, Education, and Collaboration
Type
AR mobile application & VR application
Role
UI design, research,
Tools
Adobe XD, Figma. Unity
Teammates
Dr. Robert LiKamWa (Mentor), Lauren Gold (Project Lead), Kathryn Powell (Planetary Science Lead), Shaun Xiong, Justin Hertzberg, Alexander Gonzalez
Duration
1.5 years (Jan '19 - Apr '21)
Intro
JMARS is a free geospatial information system developed by ASU to provide mission planning and data-analysis tools to NASA’s orbiters, instrument team members, students, and the general public. My team and I created immersive experiences in which users could interact with complicated JMARS data in a comprehensible and intuitive way.
As an undergraduate research assistant, I designed high fidelity prototypes and developed interfaces for JMARS AR. The application received such a great response that my team and I were rehired to create a virtual reality version of JMARS.
Problem
JMARS data is too complicated to be understood by the general public
The JMARS dataset is filled with over a terabyte of complex numerical NASA orbiter data representing Mars terrain. This data is accessible to everyone, but the format is too complicated to be understood by the general public.
Product Goals
Make this complicated dataset understandable to anyone
We aimed to create an immersive experience in which users could see what Mars terrain (as captured in the JMARS data) actually looks like.
Initially we tackled this goal by creating an augmented reality mobile application, allowing users to see and interact with 3d models of the terrain from their mobile devices. After great success with JMARS AR we were rehired to create Planetary Visor. This allowed users to fully immerse into the Mars environment in virtual reality, to learn about the data that makes up the terrain model.
Design Evolution
Menu
Necessary buttons are organized in a menu to improve user interaction.
Iteration 1
Iteration 2
Iteration 3
The first design included all of the interactive items on one screen.
Iteration 2
User studies showed that users expected the “help” button to be symbolized by a question mark and located on the top left corner of the screen. The “Samples” button was circlerenamed to “Load Terrains” to better describe the action of the button. Fonts and colors were also changed to increase legibility.
Iteration 3
Research showed that the buttons were taking up too much of the screen and taking away from the AR visualizations. Buttons were made smaller and all moved to the bottom. Icons were added to increase clarity. A screenshot button was also added to the menu as a circle in the center, this was meant to resemble a common photo button on a mobile camera application.
Tutorial
A sequence of tutorial screens teaches users how to interact with the JMARS AR interface.
Iteration 1
Iteration 2
Iteration 3
Iteration 1 - Zoom
Five tutorial screens were available immediately after logging into the application. Two of the five slides were Zoom and Rotate.
Iteration 1 - Rotate
The circles are meant to resemble images that will represent zoom and rotate actions.
Iteration 2 - Zoom/Rotate
Tutorial is now accessible after logging in and by click on the help button. Similar instructional material, such as Zoom and Rotate, were combined to one slide to reduce tutorial length. Text was reduced and animations were added to increase clarity and conciseness.
Terrains
Users could access preloaded sample terrains or they could load any terrain from the JMARS website by generating and scanning a QR code.
Iteration 1
Iteration 2
Iteration 3
Iteration 1
Five tutorial screens were available immediately after logging into the application. Two of the five slides were Zoom and Rotate.
Iteration 2
The circles are meant to resemble images that will represent zoom and rotate actions.
Iteration 3 - QR Scan
Tutorial is now accessible after logging in and by click on the help button. Similar instructional material, such as Zoom and Rotate, were combined to one slide to reduce tutorial length. Text was reduced and animations were added to increase clarity and conciseness.
Iteration 3 - Sample Terrains
The background of the square is now clear to make it easier to understand where to scan the QR code.
Reposition Terrain
Users can move the terrain across the x, y, and z access so that it is augmented onto different surfaces in the real world. They can also scale the terrain by making a pinching motion with two fingers on the screen, and scale by twisting with two fingers.
Iteration 1
A reposition button sat at the bottom right corner of the menu screen. When this button was clicked, users were able to move, scale, or rotate the terrain.
Iteration 2
User studies showed that users understood move as one tool and grouped scale/rotate together as a separate tool. For this reason, we separated the two tools and added icons to help users understand the interaction.
Final JMARS AR Design
NASA scientists, instrument members, and the public use JMARS AR to view planetary terrain in AR. It is available on the App Store and Google Play Store.
Planetary Visor
JMARS in Virtual Reality
After great success with JMARS AR, my team was rehired to create a similar application in virtual reality.
Planetary Visor allows users to fully immerse themselves onto the Mars terrain. Virtual tools allow users to visualize and understand orbital and ground data around NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover's ongoing traverse in Gale Crater.
I was responsible for designing the 2D UI of the experience including start, main menu, settings, and instruction screens.
Start Screen
Instructions
Main Menu
Settings
Reflections
Importance of JMARS XR
JMARS AR and Planetary Visor make complicated data easily understandable to anyone. These tools can assist planetary scientists in communicating and disseminating their findings, in a comprehensible way.
This can bridge the education gap between planetary scientists and the general public to increase accessibility to planetary data. We also see this as a good opportunity for public outreach, to increase support for space exploration.
Personal Reflections
JMARS AR was the first professional project that I worked as a lead UI Designer on. I grew a lot from this project and learned many important hard and soft skills.
Enhanced visual design skills through research and continuous iteration.
Improved technical design skills while prototyping in Figma and designing responsive UI Unity.
Prepare and execute confident design decisions based on logic and empathy.
Delegation and effective communication while working with students who were balancing work and school.
I am honored to put my name on such an impactful project that is used by NASA scientists and instrument members. I really enjoyed working on JMARS XR, it will always be the project where I grew from someone who enjoys design, into a designer.
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