Remote design reviews are often carried out using video conferencing apps and are limited by the lack of immersive interaction, which is believed to be addressable by using extended reality (XR). It is argued that giving design review participants control over their viewpoint through XR might enhance the design review process. This study investigates whether enhancing camera control can improve collaborative problem-solving without XR. We propose that the ability to create one’s own cognitive map of a space through self-navigation is the basis for improvement, not XR technology specifically.
The experimental setup involves a collaborative puzzle-solving task with two distinct conditions: one with fixed camera perspectives and another allowing personal camera control. Teams of three engage in a task requiring the assembly of a 3D puzzle, where two of them have half of the solution and work to guide a third individual in a puzzle assembly task.
We aim to measure outcomes in terms of completion time, the number of errors, and user satisfaction. Preliminary results indicate a complex interaction between camera control and collaborative dynamics. I intend to discuss our methodology, share initial observations, and explore the implications of these findings.