Emerging virtual technology suggests that we are moving into a new age of technology, Web 3.0, in which social networks and 3D virtual environments are prominent. Many new business opportunities present themselves in this context. However, business success in the new virtual world requires an understanding of how people behave in virtual worlds so that they can be effectively and efficiently ma...

Organization-based multi-agent systems (MAS) can be represented by means of 3D virtual worlds facilitating then the interaction among participants, i.e humans and agents. In this paper we propose a system that can automatically generate a 3D virtual world from formal specifications of both a MAS and a design visual style (i.e a shape grammar). We propose an extension of shape grammars in combin...

This study investigates how 3D virtual worlds (3DVWs) support team collaboration. Based on Media Synchronicity Theory, we pose that the shared environment and avatar-based interaction allowed by 3DVWs aid convergence processes in teams working on a decision making task, leading to increased shared understanding between team members. This increases performance of decision making teams. An experi...

Co-Space refers to interactive virtual environment modelled after the real world in terms of look-and-feel, functionalities and services. We have developed a 3D virtual world named Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Co-Space populated with virtual human characters. In order to create realistic virtual humans, we have designed a brain-inspired agent architecture with the properties of goal-d...

This work presents a methodology for designing online web presentations reusing a large scale, interactive and immersive VR installation by mapping assets as well as interactions to a low capability environment. With the emergence of WebGL plugin-free interactive 3D graphics inside limited information processing environments, e.g. browser technologies, becomes reality. However, macro VR worlds ...

1 Abstract VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) has already established itself as a standard for the exchange of 3D descriptions on the Internet. However, it is a completely static description, with no support for virtual worlds with several users and applications, or with a high number of dynamic objects. In this paper we want to examine how VRML can be extended to fit the requirements of ...

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in social presence among students who had participated in a traditional video conference environment and a 3D virtual world for distance education. Also, characteristics of the 3D environment most affected their social presence, and the users’ opinions concerning the 3D environment were revealed. For this purpose, an exploratory, mixed resear...

For the last few decades, there was tremendous interest in harnessing 3D virtual environments for education and training. Multi-user game-like environments make use of non-player characters and quest activities in tutoring and training. This approach incorporates successful active learning and incremental progress. This article presents issues encountered while adapting the multi-user online ga...

The use of 3D virtual worlds in the construction industry is not limited to simulation of building models. Whilst in a 3D virtual world, designers can view their work from various viewpoints by moving around. However explorations within these environments are not simple affairs due to the absence of many sensorial stimuli that exist in the physical world. Hence there needs to be a tool aiding d...

M arket acceptance of new personal computing products and services strongly depends on the quality of their user interfaces. Virtual reality is an emerging technology that promises significant advances in this area. The term itself is broad, ranging from simple 3D animation programs with no user interaction to systems with head-mounted displays, 3D manipulators, and other specialized hardware t...