BoidVR: An Agent Simulation Environment Based on Freehand and Virtual Reality

Freehand-based Interaction Techniques (FITs) are an emerging technology of importance for effective Virtual Reality (VR). In this regard, most modern Head Mounted Displays (HMDs), such as the Oculus Quest, are equipped with inside-out cameras for egocentric hand tracking and natural hand gestures recognition. Following this technological evolution, we have developed an agent-based modeling and simulation VR application, called BoidVR, focused on freehand-based interaction with simulated agents. Our system enables users to view and interact with both the agents and the virtual environment using FIT-based tools. We illustrate a number of specific gestures that allow users to manipulate the virtual environment and affect agent behaviors. Finally, we conduct a user experiment in which we evaluate the usability and user sentiment of our BoidVR application.