Designing Touch-Based Gestures for Thigh-Worn Wearable Device in Passenger-Focused Vehicular XR Environments

With the rapid expansion of extended reality (XR) technologies in vehicular contexts, there is a growing need for innovative interaction methods that enhance user experience without compromising safety. In a research project, we explored the potential of a thigh-worn wearable device that allows passengers to interact with the onboard system and operate a roof-mounted surveillance camera. This includes actions such as navigating menus, selecting items, controlling media playback, and adjusting camera orientation, zoom, or recording. We conducted a Gesture Elicitation Study (GES) in a simulated vehicular XR environment with 24 referents, where 21 participants ( = 21) interacted with our prototype, ThighTouchI. This empirical study identified 79 unique gestures from 504 proposals, revealing that users favored ThighTouchI as a pad for selection tasks, using single-finger gestures for simple actions and multi-finger gestures for complex tasks. Additionally, a consensus gesture set was derived, and mapping of the tactile surface showed that 88.7% of the gestures were proposed in the central area. Participants utilized different zones of the touch surface depending on the referent, underscoring its ergonomic importance.