Remote simultaneous interpreting in mixed reality

Abstract

Remote simultaneous interpreting (RSI) is generally experienced by conference interpreters as more taxing than interpreting on-site (

; ; ). A possible solution to improve interpreters’ ergonomics and reduce the feeling of effort in RSI is the use of mixed reality (MR) headsets, as proposed by . To investigate this suggestion, an online conference with four visual elements (speaker video, slide show, attendees’ webcam feed and program) was simulated. Ten professional conference interpreters (“interpreters”) and thirteen persons with English as a foreign language (“listeners”) either simultaneously interpreted or listened to two talks, each played via the MR headset, the other one presented on a desktop-PC. In the MR condition, participants could adjust the size and position of the visual elements according to their preferences and perceived needs. The results indicate that the position of the visual elements align with the participants’ distribution of visual attention. The speaker and the slides received largest portion of visual attention and were most often positioned in the centre of the participants’ field of vision. On average, interpreters made more adjustments than listeners, with the aim to ensure good visual access to the visual elements. Listeners, in contrast, seemed to focus more on reducing irrelevant and potentially distracting visual input. The MR setting did not reduce participants’ videoconferencing fatigue but rather seemed to increase it. Possible explanations are the lack of familiarity with MR technology or visual fatigue caused by a vergence accommodation conflict.