We’re heading toward a future where lightweight, all-day wearable augmented reality (AR) glasses could become our main way of interacting with digital technology. These glasses will be able to see what the user sees and seamlessly place virtual information into the real world around them. As such glasses afford mobility, people are likely to use them while on the move, for example, when walking to work or going for a run.

But there's a challenge: we still don’t fully understand how to design 3D user interfaces (UIs) that work well while the user is physically moving. Pavel Manakhov’s research tackles this problem by exploring how positioning UIs relative to the moving user in various dynamic ways affects perception of information displayed in the interface and user input, specifically when using eye movements (gaze) to control the interface, and what UI placement means in the context of 3D UI research and design.

This work offers new insights into the role UI placement plays in interaction while on the move, and provides practical guidelines for designing effective 3D interfaces for use on the go.

The PhD study was completed at the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Aarhus University.

This summary was prepared by the PhD student.

Time: Monday 17 November 2025
Place: TBA
Title of PhD thesis: 3D UI Placement for Interaction on the Go
Contact information: Pavel Manakhov, e-mail: pmanakhov@cs.au.dk, tel.: +45 52 76 59 78
Members of the assessment committee:
Professor Morten Fjeld, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden and University of Bergen, Norway
Professor Raimund Dachselt, TU Dresden, Germany
Professor Ira Assent(chair), Department of Computer Science, Aarhus University, Denmark
Main supervisor: Professor Hans Gellersen, Department of Computer Science, Aarhus University, Denmark
Co-supervisor: Associate Professor Ken Pfeuffer, Department of Computer Science, Aarhus University, Denmark
Language: The PhD dissertation will be defended in English

The defence is public.
The PhD thesis is available for reading at the Graduate School of Natural Sciences/GSNS, Ny Munkegade 120, building 1521, 8000 Aarhus C