Description

Create one contextual AR experience that augments a real or simulated object/workspace. You choose one track based on available hardware:

Track 1: Mobile AR — AR Foundation mobile/XR Simulation path. Plane detection, image tracking or anchor placement, touch interaction.
Track 2: Quest Passthrough AR — OpenXR + Unity OpenXR: Meta path. Plane/raycast placement, local anchor where supported, XRI controller/hand interaction, Quest Build and Run or supervised TA demo.

Scope note: Do not build oversized “mega-projects.” You only need one compact demo, not a full app.

Goals

Configure and develop a contextual AR experience on one approved track.
Implement spatial placement/alignment appropriate to your track.
Design meaningful user interaction with augmented content.
Validate tracking/alignment behavior under at least two conditions.
Communicate design intent, limitations, and robustness through documentation.

Structured Core Tasks

Complete one track only: build a compact contextual AR experience that augments a real or simulated workspace with one meaningful interaction, then validate how well tracking and alignment hold up under at least two conditions.

Shared Required Design

One real or simulated target object/workspace.
One virtual augmentation.
One meaningful interaction.
One validation/reflection showing tracking/alignment limitations.

Track 1: Mobile AR Requirements

Spatial awareness — plane detection in mobile build or XR Simulation.
Tracking/alignment — image tracking OR anchor/raycast placement. If image tracking is used, include the reference image in your PDF.
Touch interaction — at least one touch-based interaction: toggle label, change model state, reveal info, reposition, or trigger animation.
Visual integration — lighting estimation, shadow, scale check, or occlusion where supported.
Validation — test at least two conditions, such as:
- Good vs. poor lighting,
- Close vs. far viewing distance,
- Stable vs. angled marker,
- Simulated vs. device behavior.

Track 2: Quest Passthrough AR Requirements

Quest passthrough scene — OpenXR / Meta Quest feature group, AR Camera Manager, transparent camera background, XRI rig/interactors.
Placement/alignment — plane/raycast placement from controller, hand ray, or camera/head ray; local anchor where supported.
Interaction — XRI Select/Activate, hand pinch, controller ray, grab, poke, or world-space UI.
Feedback — visual feedback plus audio or haptic/simulated feedback.
Validation — Build and Run on Quest or demonstrate during TA office hours. Check scale, registration, drift, lighting, physical safety, comfort, and interaction reliability.
- For Quest passthrough AR, Editor-only or XR Simulation-only evidence is not sufficient. Use Build and Run on Quest, Quest Link/Meta Horizon Link for preview plus final device validation, or a supervised TA demo on Quest hardware.

Occlusion is optional enrichment unless it is part of your chosen implementation. It will not be required for full credit. You do not need to demonstrate plane detection, occlusion, image tracking, and interaction simultaneously.

Suggested time: ~5–7 hours.

Testing Options

XR Simulation is acceptable for the Mobile AR Track.
A mobile device build is encouraged but not required for Track 1.
Validate Quest passthrough AR on Quest hardware through Build and Run or a TA demo. XR Simulation is not a substitute for Quest passthrough validation.
Quest Link / Meta Horizon Link can support rapid preview where available but is not final validation.

Evidence Checklist

Include this table in your PDF and fill it in with video timestamps:

Required item	Track 1 Mobile AR	Track 2 Quest Passthrough AR	Video timestamp
Target object/workspace
Spatial/placement setup
Tracking/alignment method
Interaction
Feedback/visual integration
Validation condition 1
Validation condition 2

Graduate Extension

Complete the core assignment and submit a short Research-Informed Design Memo. Your goal is to connect one or two peer-reviewed research findings to a specific design or implementation decision in the assignment.

This is not a full literature review, a separate project, or a baseline-vs-variant study. The research connection should visibly inform one part of your existing assignment work.

1. Research Reading

Read 2 peer-reviewed papers related to the assignment topic.
Papers must come from credible XR, HCI, engineering, manufacturing, robotics, simulation, training, visualization, or human factors venues.
At least one paper should have a clear engineering, industrial, training, robotics, manufacturing, maintenance, healthcare engineering, infrastructure, product design, or systems-engineering connection.
Avoid generic papers that only discuss broad UI design, general education technology, or unrelated VR/AR experiences without a clear connection to the assignment.

Suggested topics for Assignment E:

Industrial AR for task guidance, assistance, or similar use cases,
AR maintenance and assembly guidance,
AR tracking/registration accuracy,
Anchoring and drift in real workspaces,
Mobile AR robustness for engineering tasks,
AR for human–robot/machine interaction,
Human factors in AR-supported technical work,
AR for inspection, safety, manufacturing, robotics, healthcare engineering, or infrastructure,
Context-aware AR guidance.

Avoid generic mobile AR novelty papers unless they address tracking, alignment, interaction reliability, or engineering task support.

2. Reading Evidence

For each paper, include a short reading note with:

Full citation,
Research problem or application domain,
Method or study type,
One specific finding relevant to the assignment,
One sentence explaining why the finding matters for your design.

Do not submit AI-generated paper summaries. The notes should show evidence that you actually read the paper, such as a specific method, condition, design factor, measured outcome, limitation, or finding from the paper.

3. Research-to-Assignment Connection

Choose one research-informed decision you made in the assignment. Explain:

What you changed, emphasized, configured, or evaluated,
Which paper finding informed it,
Where it appears in your Unity scene, script, interaction, UI, validation, or evidence PDF,
What trade-off or limitation remains.

This can be a small design decision inside the normal assignment work. It does not need to be a separate variant, extra feature, or full comparison study.

Paper	Engineering/XR relevance	Specific finding used	How it influenced my assignment

4. Graduate Research Memo

Submit AE_GraduateMemo_FirstName_LastName.pdf as a separate PDF, 2 pages maximum. Include citations, reading notes, and the research-to-assignment connection.

Submission

Because Unity projects can become large and difficult to submit, the default submission is a short demo video plus a concise PDF evidence document. Submit source files only as requested below. The TA may request source files if a feature cannot be verified from the video.

Required (both tracks)

Demo video (4–6 minutes) OR a brief TA office-hours demo if recording/deployment is difficult. Show required features in order with narration or captions.
- The video does not need to be professionally edited. A clear screen recording with narration or captions is sufficient. Make sure UI text, scene objects, and required interactions are visible.
AE_Evidence_FirstName_LastName.pdf (≤ 2 pages) — required by the deadline even if you use a TA demo instead of a video. Include:
- project title and student name,
- selected track,
- evidence checklist table with timestamps,
- target object/workspace,
- reference image if using mobile image tracking,
- validation observations and limitations,
- video link and timestamps.
2–4 screenshots if helpful.

If You Are a Graduate Student

AE_GraduateMemo_FirstName_LastName.pdf (≤ 2 pages) — separate from the undergraduate evidence PDF. Include citations, reading notes, and the research-to-assignment connection.

Source Package

No full Unity project required by default.
Source package only if requested by TA or if a feature cannot be verified from video.
Do not submit Library/, Temp/, Obj/, Logs/, or full project caches.

Fallback

If file upload, recording, or Unity packaging fails, submit the evidence PDF by the deadline and sign up for a brief TA demo during office hours. TA demos must be scheduled by the assignment deadline. The TA demo is a fallback verification method, not an extension.

Submit individually via Canvas.

Grading Rubric

If a required feature is not visible in the video or TA demo and not clearly documented in the evidence PDF, it may receive little or no credit even if it exists in the Unity scene.

Core (100 points)

Criterion	Objective evidence	Points
Track setup and scope	Student clearly selects one track and builds one compact contextual AR demo	10
Spatial placement/alignment	Mobile: plane/image/anchor setup works; Quest: raycast/plane/anchor placement works where supported	20
Tracking/anchoring behavior	Augmentation remains reasonably stable; tracking/anchor limitations are observed and explained	20
Interaction	Mobile: touch interaction; Quest: XRI controller/hand/UI interaction; action is meaningful and responsive	15
Feedback and visual integration	Uses visual feedback plus lighting/scale/occlusion/shadow/audio/haptic where appropriate	10
Validation	Tests two conditions and reports tracking/alignment limitations	15
Demo/evidence quality	Video or TA demo plus PDF checklist clearly show required features	10

Graduate Requirement (25 points)

Criterion	Objective evidence	Points
Paper relevance	2 credible peer-reviewed papers; at least one has clear engineering/industrial/training/robotics/manufacturing/systems relevance	6
Reading evidence	Notes identify problem/domain, method or study type, specific finding, and limitation or design implication	6
Research-to-assignment connection	One specific finding is clearly connected to a design, implementation, UI, interaction, validation, or documentation decision	9
Memo clarity	Memo is concise, cited, within 2 pages, and not just a generic literature summary	4

If you are a graduate student, this graduate requirement is required—not optional extra credit. Your assignment grade includes the core rubric above plus these graduate criteria.