A propos du centre ou de la direction fonctionnelle

The Inria Saclay-Île-de-France Research Centre was established in 2008. It has developed as part of the Saclay site in partnership with Paris-Saclay University and with the Institut Polytechnique de Paris .

The centre has 40 project teams , 32 of which operate jointly with Paris-Saclay University and the Institut Polytechnique de Paris; Its activities occupy over 600 people, scientists and research and innovation support staff, including 44 different nationalities.

Contexte et atouts du poste

This PhD is part of the Inria "Défi" GéolAug project in collaboration with BRGM:

https://inria.fr/fr/geolaug

The candidate will be working at the ILDA team, at Inria Saclay, but will be involved in multidisciplinary work between both institutes.

Mission confiée

Augmented Reality (AR) superimposes information in the user's field of view and is particularly relevant to outdoor contexts of use, where users can access digital data and seamlessly relate those data to their physical surroundings. This can be useful for leisure activities (outdoor games, tourism), but in a variety of work contexts as well such as urban planning, construction work, and a variety of scientific activities.

To take one particular example, geologists often need to access data about the location they are currently visiting: terrain models, soil sample data analyses, databases and documents about the area, including maps. Augmented Reality can provide effective support to such users, by enabling them to display data in their field of view, directly integrating digital information with the physical environment. Users can then interact with the virtual content using freehand gestures, combining them with pen-based input on a handheld tablet when relevant.

However, designing visualization techniques for such outdoor contexts raises multiple challenges that stem from the scale of the physical environment considered, varying outdoor conditions (weather, natural light), the need for geologists to effectively switch between different situations, and the need for geologists to orient themselves and plan the next steps of their terrain explorations, among many others.

The goal of this PhD is to design, prototype and evaluate interaction techniques and visualization techniques to effectively support geologists in the field, addressing the above challenges using combinations of interactive devices: augmented reality eyewear; handheld tablets and digital pens; and a combination thereof.

More details about the PhD offer can be found in the following link: https://ilda.saclay.inria.fr/jobs/PhD_GeolAug_WP3.pdf

Principales activités

Described in previous section.

Compétences

Training in Human-Computer Interaction. Design and software development skills, in addition to user evaluation and prototyping methods. Knowledge of Unity, WebXR or other Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality development frameworks is a big plus.

Avantages

• Subsidized meals
• Partial reimbursement of public transport costs
• Leave: 7 weeks of annual leave + 10 extra days off due to RTT (statutory reduction in working hours) + possibility of exceptional leave (sick children, moving home, etc.)
• Possibility of teleworking and flexible organization of working hours
• Professional equipment available (videoconferencing, loan of computer equipment, etc.)
• Social, cultural and sports events and activities
• Access to vocational training
• Social security coverage

Rémunération

2200€ gross/month