“Transformed Skin: Changing own skin texture feeling for VR avatar embodiment”
Conference:
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Title:
- Transformed Skin: Changing own skin texture feeling for VR avatar embodiment
Organizer(s)/Presenter(s):
Description:
With the development of the metaverse society, avatars are increasingly used for self-expression in games and communication services. However, the visual immersion of avatars often fails to intrinsically transform one’s physical body into the avatar, creating a qualitative gap between the two. This gap reduces immersion and the overall quality of the experience. Here we introduce our novel “texture swapping” illusion, where one’s skin texture feels as if it has been transformed into textures such as balloon, fur, or leaf. This illusion can be remarkably powerful, with most people feeling its effect even in a mirror condition. In Transformed Skin, we utilises the illusion as a method to enhance embodiment to various avatars. It significantly enhances the sensation of being transformed into the avatar’s skin texture and increases the sense of body ownership, leading to new forms of avatar communication and an enriched sense of avatar transformation.
References:
[1]
Kenri Kodaka, Yutaro Sato, and Kento Imai. 2022. The slime hand illusion: Nonproprioceptive ownership distortion specific to the skin region. i-Perception 13, 6 (2022), 1–9.
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