ACIIE – Asynchronous Collaboration in Immersive Environments

ACIIE is a research framework for enabling asynchronous collaboration in XR (VR, AR, MR) environments. Originally developed by Anjela Mayer as part of her PhD research, it leverages the built-in sensors of XR devices to capture users’ motion and voice. These recordings are then reconstructed through virtual characters, synchronizing voice and movement to replay explanations and actions during collaborative scenarios.

> ACIIE is the second iteration of the ACIE framework and is now maintained and extended collaboratively by the Immersive Creators for non-profit research purposes.

🧩 Purpose

ACIIE is designed for experimental XR applications involving collaborative learning, training, and asynchronous communication. It enables the creation of immersive scenarios where users can interact across time via avatar-based motion and voice playback.

It can also be used to create NPC character animations by recording natural user movement and speech with an XR device — requiring no traditional animation pipeline.

🔧 Technologies and Plugins

• Built with Unreal Engine – currently targeting version 5.5
• Uses the Runtime Audio Importer for microphone input, .wav file import/export, and audio playback
• Integrated with Metahuman 5.3+ for realistic full-body virtual characters
• Employs MetaXR Plugin v77 for localization, full-body motion tracking, and hand tracking

> ⚠️ Cross-platform support via OpenXR is in progress. Currently, the system is tested primarily with Meta XR devices (e.g., Quest series).

🧪 Use Cases

ACIIE has been applied in multiple XR research and training contexts:

• 🎥 PumpStationXR – Watch demo
• 🎥 XIRCON – Watch demo

🏅 Recognitions

• Selected for the ICM Early Ride Program 2024
• Winner of the DIVR Best Concept Award 2024
• 4th Place at the KIT Neuland Innovation Contest 2025

👩‍💻 Authorship

ACIIE was created by Anjela Mayer during her PhD research. It is now maintained and extended by the Immersive Creators collective for academic and non-profit research.

> Please cite this work appropriately if used in research. Git commit history reflects original authorship and contributions.

📄 Citation

If you use ACIIE in your work, please cite:

📜 License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 (GPLv3).
© 2025 Anjela Mayer. Maintained by Immersive Creators.

Dual licensing is available for non-GPL use cases.
Please contact the maintainers for closed-source or commercial licensing terms.

🧾 Third-Party Dependencies

This project includes third-party components under their respective licenses:

• Runtime Audio Importer
  Developed by Georgy Treshchev
  Source: gtreshchev/RuntimeAudioImporter
  License: MIT License
• For details on third-party components, see THIRD_PARTY_LICENSES.md.

📫 Contact

For collaboration or contributions, feel free to reach out: anjela.mayer@kit.edu