Designing mobile augmented reality experiences using friendly markers

This paper discusses an approach for in-situ creation of augmented reality experiences using friendly markers. We introduce the notion of friendly markers and how we have empirically defined it. A mobile application is built for users to turn the physical markers into augmented reality experiences. The application enables users to recognize and interact with friendly markers. The bottleneck of marker recognition on a mobile device was overcome through a multiphase browsing experience which separates discovery and recognition of markers. A formative evaluation, conducted with 12 participants, shows the success of our approach in providing instant access to augmented reality experiences. The evaluation highlights several usability concerns when registering markers; nonetheless, it shows users' excitement about designing their own digital experiences for the real world.