Ashu Adhikari

profile

Position:

MSc Student

Contact:

ashua@sfu.ca

Affiliations:

Biography

Ashu Adhikari joined the iSpace team in Fall 2018 as a grad­u­ate stu­dent. His research focuses on cre­at­ing embod­ied loco­mo­tion inter­faces in vir­tual reality.

He is a Professional Engineer with a bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering.

Projects

Awedyssey: VR for pro­mo­ting and enhancing well-being

Awedyssey: VR for pro­mo­ting and enhancing well-being

We are investigating and creating a new virtual reality (VR) experience, 'Awedyssey', for the promotion and enhancement of well-being. Today, digital technology pervasively intersects with our daily lives, and VR stands out as a digital tool capable of fostering adaptive coping and resilience skills, and authentic social connection. We welcome queries from potential collaborators and members of...

By denise quesnel, noah miller, katerina stepanova, john desnoyers stewart, jacob sauer, ashu adhikari, patrick pennefather, alex kitson, alexander stahn & bernhard riecke Read more
Autoethnographic Close Reading of Self-transcendent VR Experiences

Autoethnographic Close Reading of Self-transcendent VR Experiences

Sipping the Virtual Elixir: An autoethno­graphic close read­ing of Ayahuasca Kosmik Journey a self-transcendent vir­tual expe­ri­ence. Recently self-transcendent experiences are gaining interest in the research community because of their ability to support wellbeing. Experiences of self-transcendence can be transformative, leading to a diminishment of self/ego and the feeling of unity with n...

By noah miller, john desnoyers stewart, katerina stepanova, alexandra kiston, reese muntean, alexander bretin, ashu adhikari, jim bizzochi & bernhard riecke Read more
Telepresence

Telepresence

How can we improve telepresence systems (such as conference robots) so they are not just "zoom on wheels" but actually allow users to feel more present and navigate more easily around remote environments?" FeetBack: Augmenting Robotic Telepresence with Haptic Feedback on the Feet Telepresence robots allow people to participate in remote spaces, yet they can be difficult to manoeuvre with people ...

By bernhard riecke, carman neustaedter, brennan jones, wolfgang stuerzlinger, ernst kruijff, jens maiero, ivan aguilar, rob lindeman, ufuk batmaz, alireza mogharrab, ashu adhikari & yasamin heshmat Read more
HyperJump flying to combat motion sickness

HyperJump flying to combat motion sickness

HyperJumping in Virtual Vancouver: Combating Motion Sickness by Merging Teleporting and Continuous VR Locomotion in an Embodied Hands-Free VR Flying Paradigm Motion sickness, unintuitive navigation, and limited agency are critical issues in VR/XR impeding wide-spread adoption and enjoyable user experiences. To tackle these challenges, we present HyperJump, a novel VR interface merging advantages ...

By bernhard riecke, david clement, markus von der heyde, ashu adhikari, denise quesnel, daniel zielasko, ivan aguilar, kenneth karthik & ernst kruijff, Read more
Concurrent locomotion and interaction in VR

Concurrent locomotion and interaction in VR

Can more embodied and leaning-based interfaces help support concurrent locomotion and interaction in VR when physical walking isn't feasible? Physical walking is often considered the gold standard for VR travel whenever feasible. However, especially for larger-scale virtual travel the free-space walking areas are typically too small, thus requiring handheld controllers to navigate, which ...

By bernhard riecke, abraham hashemian, ashu adhikari, ivan aguilar, ernst kruijff & markus von der heyde Read more
SIRIUS - Virtual Earthgazing to mitigate effects of sensory isolation

SIRIUS - Virtual Earthgazing to mitigate effects of sensory isolation

SIRIUS (Scientific International Research in Unique Terrestrial Station) is a series of on-land isolation experiments modelling long-term spaceflight in order to assess the psychophysiological effects of isolation on a crew and prepare for long-duration spaceflights, such as a trip to Mars. An 8-month-long isolation study commenced in Moscow on Nov 4th, 2021, where a crew of 6 people (from Roscosm...

By noah miller, katerina stepanova, john desnoyers stewart, ashu adhikari, bernhard riecke, patrick pennefather, alex kitson, denise quesnel & alexander stahn Read more
Leaning-based interfaces improve ground-based VR locomotion

Leaning-based interfaces improve ground-based VR locomotion

Hand-held VR controllers are widely available and used, however they can contribute to unwanted side-effects, such as increased cybersickness, disorientation, and cognitive load. Here, we show how a leaning-based interfaces ("HeadJoystick") can help improve user experience, usability,and performance in diverse ground-based navigation including three complementary tasks: reach-the-target, follow-th...

By bernhard riecke, abraham hashemian, ashu adhikari, ivan aguilar, ernst kruijff & markus von der heyde Read more
Integrating Continuous and Teleporting VR Locomotion into a Seamless "HyperJump" Paradigm

Integrating Continuous and Teleporting VR Locomotion into a Seamless "HyperJump" Paradigm

Here we propose a hybrid interface that allows user to seamlessly transition between a slow 'continuous' mode and a fast 'hyperjump' mode. The interface aims to maintain the immersion, presence, accuracy and spatial updating of continuous locomotion while adding the travel efficiency and minimizing the cybersickness. Continuous locomotion in VR provides uninterrupted optical flow, which mimics re...

By ashu adhikari, alexander bretin, daniel zielasko, kenneth karthik, markus von der heyde, ernst kruijff & bernhard riecke Read more
Embodied & Intuitive Flying for VR, Gaming, and TeleOperation

Embodied & Intuitive Flying for VR, Gaming, and TeleOperation

Flying has been a dream for mankind for millenia - but flying interfaces for VR, gaming, and teleoperation (e.g., drones) typically rely on cumbersome double-joystick/gamepads and do not allow for intuitive and embodied flying experiences. Here, we develop low-cost embodied flying interfaces that adapt leaning-based motion cueing paradigms thus freeing up hands for additional tasks beyond just na...

By bernhard riecke, abraham hashemian, ashu adhikari, ivan aguilar, noah miller, alexander bretin, matin lotfaliei & ernst kruijff, Read more
NaviBoard: Efficiently Navigating Virtual Environments

NaviBoard: Efficiently Navigating Virtual Environments

Here we propose a novel and cost-effective setup of a leaning-based interface ("NaviBoard") that allows people to efficiently navigate virtual environments - with performance levels matching the gold standard of free-space walking, without any increase in motion sickness Abstract Walking has always been the most common locomotion mode for humans in the real world. As a result, it has also been co...

By thinh nguyen vo, bernhard riecke, wolfgang stuerzlinger, duc minh pham, ernst kruijff, noah miller & ashu adhikari Read more
Gamified Research

Gamified Research

Gamifying Research - Researchifying Games While traditional experimental paradigms offer tight stimulus control and repeatability, then tend to be a bit boring and removed from many real-world situations, which can limit real-world transferability of results. How can we bring together the methodological strenghs of research with the intrinsic motivation of playfulness and gaming? The ...

By bernhard riecke, thinh nguyen vo, abraham hashemian, noah miller & ashu adhikari Read more

Publications

Hashemian, A. M., Adhikari, A., Kruijff, E., Heyde, M. von der, & Riecke, B. E. (2021). Leaning-based interfaces improve ground-based VR locomotion in reach-the-target, follow-the-path, and racing tasks. IEEE Transaction on Visualization and Computer Graphics TVCG, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1109/TVCG.2021.3131422
Riecke, B. E., Hashemian, A. M., Adhikari, A., Aguilar, I., Kruijff, E., & Heyde, M. von der. (2021). Simultaneous Locomotion and Interaction in VR: Walking > Leaning > Controller [Talk]. ICSC 2021: 8th International Conference on Spatial Cognition, Rome, Italy. https://youtu.be/jzoaBAd6gPY
Adhikari, A., Riecke, B. E., Hashemian, A. M., Nguyen-Vo, T., Kruijff, E., & Heyde, M. von der. (2021). Embodied VR Flying Improves Spatial Orientation while Reducing Cybersickness [Talk]. ICSC 2021: 8th International Conference on Spatial Cognition, Rome, Italy. https://youtu.be/FbmE4SEISWU
Hashemian, A., Lotfaliei, M., Adhikari, A., Kruijff, E., & Riecke, B. E. (2020). HeadJoystick: Improving Flying in VR using a Novel Leaning-Based Interface. IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, 28(4), 1792–1809. https://doi.org/10.1109/TVCG.2020.3025084
Adhikari, A., Hashemian, A. M., Nguyen-Vo, T., Kruijff, E., Heyde, M. von der, & Riecke, B. E. (2021). Lean to Fly: Leaning-Based Embodied Flying can Improve Performance and User Experience in 3D Navigation. Frontiers in Virtual Reality, 2, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.3389/frvir.2021.730334
Kitson, A. J., Desnoyers-Stewart, J., Miller, N., Adhikari, A., Stepanova, E. R., & Riecke, B. E. (2020). Can We Trust What’s Real? Using Fiction to Explore the Potential Dissociative Effects of Immersive Virtual Reality. Ethics of MR’20  Workshop at ACM CHI 2020 (Exploring Potentially Abusive Ethical, Social and Political Implications of Mixed Reality Research in HCI), Honolulu, HI, USA.
Adhikari, A., Zielasko, D., Bretin, A., von der Heyde, M., Kruijff, E., & Riecke, B. E. (2021). Integrating Continuous and Teleporting VR Locomotion into a Seamless “HyperJump” Paradigm. 2021 IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops (VRW), 370–372. https://doi.org/10.1109/VRW52623.2021.00074
Jones, B., Maiero, J., Mogharrab, A., Aguliar, I. A., Adhikari, A., Riecke, B. E., Kruijff, E., Neustaedter, C., & Lindeman, R. W. (2020). FeetBack: Augmenting Robotic Telepresence with Haptic Feedback on the Feet. Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Multimodal Interaction, 194–203. https://doi.org/10.1145/3382507.3418820
Sirius. (2021, October 1). [Curated & peer-reviewed Virtual Reality Exhibition]. V-Unframed, Vancouver, BC, Canada. https://www.alliancefrancaise.ca/v-unframed/the-artworks/sirius/
Riecke, B. E., Adhikari, A., Zielasko, D., Bretin, A., Heyde, M. von der, & Kruijff, E. (2021). HyperJump: Merging Teleporting and Continuous VR Locomotion into one Paradigm [Talk]. ICSC 2021: 8th International Conference on Spatial Cognition, Rome, Italy.
Stepanova, E. R., Brauns, K., Friedl-Werner, A., Miller, N., Desnoyers-Stewart, J., Adhikari, A., Riecke, B. E., & Stahn, A. C. (2022). A Neurophenomenological Approach to Better Understand the Effects of Eliciting Positive Experiences in Virtual Reality [Poster]. Phenomenological Methods in Neuroscience and Consciousness Research workshop, University of Zürich.
Miller, N., Stepanova, E. R., Desnoyers-Stewart, J., Adhikari, A., Kitson, A., Pennefather, P., Quesnel, D., Brauns, K., Friedl-Werner, A., Stahn, A., & Riecke, B. E. (2023). Awedyssey: Design Tensions in Eliciting Self-transcendent Emotions in Virtual Reality to Support Mental Well-being and Connection. Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference, 189–211. https://doi.org/10.1145/3563657.3595998
Hashemian, A. M., Adhikari, A., Aguilar, I. A., Kruijff, E., von der Heyde, M., & Riecke, B. E. (2023). Leaning-Based Interfaces Improve Simultaneous Locomotion and Object Interaction in VR Compared to the Handheld Controller. IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics (TVCG), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1109/TVCG.2023.3275111
Adhikari, A. (2021). Improving Spatial Orientation in Virtual Reality with Leaning-based Interfaces [MSc Thesis, Simon Fraser University]. https://summit.sfu.ca/item/34755
Hashemian, A. M., Adhikari, A., Bretin, A., Aguilar, I., Kruijff, E., Heyde, M. von der, & Riecke, B. E. (2021). Is Walking Necessary for Effective Locomotion and Interaction in VR? 2021 IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops (VRW), 395–396. https://doi.org/10.1109/VRW52623.2021.00084
Adhikari, A., Zielasko, D., Aguilar, I., Bretin, A., Kruijff, E., Heyde, M. von der, & Riecke, B. E. (2022). Integrating Continuous and Teleporting VR Locomotion into a Seamless “HyperJump” Paradigm. IEEE Transaction on Visualization and Computer Graphics TVCG, 29(12), 5265–5281. https://doi.org/10.1109/TVCG.2022.3207157
Riecke, B. E., Clement, D., Quesnel, D., Adhikari, A., Zielasko, D., & von der Heyde, M. (2022). HyperJumping in Virtual Vancouver: Combating Motion Sickness by Merging Teleporting and Continuous VR Locomotion in an Embodied Hands-Free VR Flying Paradigm. Siggraph ’22 Immersive Pavilion, 1–2. https://doi.org/10.1145/3532834.3536211
Miller, N., Desnoyers-Stewart, J., Stepanova, E. R., Adhikari, A., Kitson, A. J., Quesnel, D. T., Pennefather, P., & Riecke, B. E. (2021, October 1). Sirius [Curated & peer-reviewed Virtual Reality Exhibition]. V-Unframed, Vancouver, BC, Canada. https://www.alliancefrancaise.ca/v-unframed/the-artworks/sirius/
Miller, N., Desnoyers-Stewart, J., Stepanova, E. R., Adhikari, A., Riecke, B. E., Pennefather, P. P., Kitson, A., & Quesnel, D. (2023, November 23). Awedyssey [Curated Mixed Reality Exhibition]. Cosmic Nights: Humans in Space, H.R. MacMillan Space Centre. https://events.sfu.ca/event/37966-cosmic-nights-humans-in-space