Collaborative Strategies for the Search of 3-D Targets in Molecular Environments

Collaborative virtual environments introduce new working methods allowing for the association of several experts in the same problem-solving process. These new platforms have the potential to improve the processing of complex environments with large amounts of data and require different skills. This paper proposes the study of a synchronous and colocated approach for molecular design tasks. More precisely, this study focuses on the collaborative search of targets during the molecular deformation process. The aim of this paper is to highlight the different working strategies that emerge according to different tasks and humans factors. Based on these working strategies, we propose to investigate the contribution of collaborative configurations of work according to different efficiency criteria such as the completion time, verbal communication, and manipulation distance. Finally, this study will highlight some issues related to conflict of actions, concurrent access, awareness, and communication processes.