Presence as a function of update rate within virtual environments

The effect of varying the update rate of a computer-generated simulation (5, 10, 15, 20, 25 Hz) on the sense of presence within virtual environments was investigated. Thirteen subjects were asked to navigate throughout a virtual environment and perform a search related task. The results indicated that presence within the virtual environment was significantly less using an update rate of 5 and 10 Hz when compared to update rates of 20 and 25 Hz. Furthermore, the reported level of presence using a 15 Hz update rate was similar to the reported level of presence using update rates of 20 and 25 Hz. The implications of the results are discussed.