3D HUMANOID CHARACTERS IN AUGMENTED AND VIRTUAL REALITY: DEVELOPMENT OF IMMERSIVE ENVIRONMENTS AND EVALUATION OF THE PERCEPTION OF THE UNSTRANGE VALLEY

Abstract

With the advancement of immersive technologies and the growing use of humanoid characters in digital games, simulations, training systems, and educational applications, it becomes necessary to understand how different visualization modes influence users’ perception of these characters. This paper presents the development of augmented reality and virtual reality environments to evaluate the perception of the Uncanny Valley in 3D humanoid characters with facial and body movements. The study compares three visualization conditions: computer monitor, virtual reality headset, and augmented reality headset. The methodological approach is quantitative, using Likert-scale questionnaires and statistical analysis through one-way ANOVA and Tukey post-hoc tests. The results indicate that the type of display influences the perception of similarity, strangeness, likability, presence, and movement naturalness. Immersive devices tend to attenuate perceived strangeness, whereas computer monitors tend to intensify perceptual discomfort in characters with facial and body movements. The augmented reality headset presents favorable performance in the perception of similarity and likability, while the virtual reality headset stands out in measures associated with presence and naturalness under specific conditions. It is concluded that the development of humanoid characters for immersive media should consider not only visual realism, but also the type of display and the dynamic naturalness of movements.