A 360 Video Editor Framework for Interactive Training

The adoption of consumer-level mobile devices and head-mounted displays (HMDs) has caused an increased consumption of 360° video content. This trend has led to accessible and immersive content creation for training and education in health and safety amongst other areas. Although 360° videos can provide realistic content, they often lack interactivity. We hypothesize that integrating interactive elements into 360° videos will affect its perceived immersion, engagement, and usability. In this paper, we present a framework for adding interactions to 360° videos composed of an editor and a video player. The Editor allows adding interactive content in the form of panels containing information, quizzes, pictures, and 3D models. A three-stage study was conducted with participants from the Ontario Tech University (n=45) to evaluate our VR framework's usability and engagement compared to a non-interactive 360° video by applying the SUS (System Usability Scale) and the GEQ (Game Experience Questionnaire) surveys. Results indicate that the interactions add tension, higher negative affect, and lower positive affect than non-interactive videos that led to higher perceived usability with the non-interactive version. We believe that this is caused by the need to locate and interact with elements while the video is playing.