Natural Interaction: 3D Modeling in Wearable VR Using a Gesture and Speech Interface

Designers often rely on keyboard and mouse for 3D modeling, a method that can feel unintuitive or restrictive—especially in collaborative or spatially immersive settings. This thesis explores how multimodal interaction, specifically the combination of hand gestures and voice commands, can support more natural, efficient, and accessible 3D modeling in virtual reality (VR). Built on a custom Unity-based system integrating Meta Quest hand tracking and Wit.ai voice recognition, the study investigates how these two input modes—gesture and speech—can be used together to manipulate and modify 3D geometry in real time. The research proceeds in three phases: (1) a formative study analyzing how users intuitively deploy gestures, revealing common preferences, task breakdown strategies, and limitations in gesture inputs; (2) system design and implementation of both gesture-only and gesture + speech interfaces for navigation and object manipulation (e.g., translation, scaling, duplication); and (3) a comparative user study evaluating gesture-only, gesture + speech, and keyboard + mouse workflows in terms of learning curve, task efficiency, and user satisfaction. Results show that gesture + speech enables smoother transitions across modeling subtasks and allows users to offload certain parameters (e.g., numeric values, distances) to voice while using gestures for spatial control. Participants reported higher engagement and lower cognitive load compared to keyboard-based workflows, especially in tasks involving spatial scale and collaboration. This thesis demonstrates the feasibility and design potential of multimodal interaction for immersive modeling workflows and offers insights for future XR design tools that seek to blend precision with embodied interaction.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Architecture

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Bei, Yining

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Nagakura, Takehiko

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
• Copyright retained by author(s)

Licence dc:rights.uri

• https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/163569

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/163569