Virtual Reality Privacy Mode via Gesture Recognition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Virtual reality environments lack the ability to facilitate private communication among users, as existing systems do not provide mechanisms for users to share information discreetly within a multi-user space, leading to potential exposure of user-entered data and interactions to all participants.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method that allows users to initiate a privacy mode by performing a preconfigured gesture, which is detected and matched by the system, enabling private communication between specific users while modifying communications to obscure them from others in the virtual reality environment, using a combination of software, firmware, and hardware configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If users interact in a multi-user VR space with tracking mechanisms capturing and recording user actions, then user interactions can be monitored and recorded, but user privacy and confidentiality of communications are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the multi-user VR environment into private communication channels between specific user pairs. When two users establish a private conversation through gesture recognition, their communication is segmented from the general public space, allowing selective privacy while maintaining overall system connectivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary privacy mode that mediates between public VR space interactions and private communications. This intermediary layer captures gestures, determines intent, and selectively routes communications to either public or private channels, protecting user information while enabling legitimate private interactions.
2Loss of information
If the system provides private communication capabilities between specific users, then information privacy is enhanced, but system complexity increases due to gesture detection and matching mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs self-service mechanisms where users automatically initiate private communication by performing predefined gestures. The system autonomously detects these gestures, identifies the intended recipient, and establishes the private channel without requiring manual configuration or complex user setup procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the interaction parameter from explicit privacy configuration to implicit gesture-based initiation. By transforming the privacy activation method from complex settings to simple recognizable gestures, the system reduces operational complexity while maintaining strong privacy protection capabilities.
3Reliability
If the system modifies communications to obscure them from other users, then privacy mode effectiveness is improved, but detection and measurement of gesture accuracy becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by establishing clear gesture recognition criteria before private communication begins. Predefined gestures are registered and stored, allowing the system to accurately match and verify user intentions without ambiguity, ensuring both privacy effectiveness and gesture detection accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms to verify gesture recognition accuracy. By providing confirmation when gestures are successfully detected and matched, the system ensures precise measurement and detection while maintaining effective privacy obscuration for legitimate private communications.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods are described that include generating a virtual reality experience in a virtual reality environment, detecting, a first gesture from a first user accessing the virtual reality environment, the first gesture being configured as a command to initiate a privacy mode with a second user accessing the virtual reality environment, and generating a prompt for display to the second user, the prompt corresponding to the command. In response to detecting a second gesture from the second user, the second gesture determined to substantially match the first gesture, initiating the privacy mode between the first user and the second user in the virtual reality environment, and sharing communications occurring in the virtual environment from the first user to the second user and from the second user to the first user while modifying, for users other than the first user and the second user, the communications occurring between the first user and the second user.