CLEARBOARD - A NOVEL SHARED DRAWING MEDIUM THAT SUPPORTS GAZE AWARENESS IN REMOTE COLLABORATION

The goal of visual telecommunication has been to create a sense of ''being there'' or ''telepresence.'' This paper introduces a novel shared drawing medium called ClearBoard that goes beyond ''being there'' by providing virtual shared workspace. It realizes (1) a seamless integration of shared drawing space and partner's image, and (2) eye contact to support real-time and remote collaboration by two users. We devised the key metaphor: ''talking through and drawing on a transparent glass window'' to design ClearBoard. A prototype, ClearBoard-1 is implemented based on the ''Drafter-Mirror'' architecture. This paper first reviews previous work on shared drawing support to clarify our design goals. We then examine three metaphors that fulfill these goals. The design requirements and the two possible system architectures of ClearBoard are described. Finally, some findings gained through the experimental use of the prototype, including the feature of ''gaze awareness,'' are discussed.