  Despite the technological advancements in Virtual Reality (VR), users are
constantly combating feelings of nausea and disorientation, the so called
cybersickness. Triggered by a sensory conflict between the visual and
vestibular systems, cybersickness symptoms cause discomfort and hinder the
immersive VR experience. Here we investigated cybersickness in 360-degree VR.
In 360-degrees VR experiences, movement in the real world is not reflected in
the virtual world, and therefore self-motion information is not corroborated by
matching visual and vestibular cues, which may potentially induce
cybersickness. We have evaluated whether an Artificial Intelligence (AI)
software designed to supplement the VR experience with artificial
6-degree-of-freedom motion may reduce sensory conflict, and therefore
cybersickness. Explicit (questionnaires) and implicit (physiological responses)
measurements were used to measure cybersickness symptoms during and after VR
exposure. Our results confirmed a reduction in feelings of nausea during the AI
supplemented 6-degree-of-freedom motion VR. Through improving the congruency
between visual and vestibular cues, users can experience more engaging,
immersive and safe virtual reality, which is critical for the application of VR
in educational, medical, cultural and entertainment settings.
