| Collaborative virtual environments (CVE) allow geographically distant users to collaborate and work in a virtual environment by giving them the illusion of being all physically present in the same place. Many CVEs have been developed, allowing for collaborations in various areas, such as military simulations or virtual surgery.; This masters' main objective is to precisely define the nature and purpose of a CVE, as well as the methods and techniques that are used to fulfill that purpose, in order to then elaborate on a new development method for a CVE.; We first study the concept of a CVE and what it entails for its development. We then propose a new method for conceiving such an environment, after reaching the conclusion that the current methods are not satisfactory to build an environment that truly fulfills the purpose of a CVE.; Our method assumes that a CVE must be seen as an application management system, as this is the only way that such an environment can fulfill its purpose. To that end, we propose a 3-layer separation: networking, management and applications. We then concentrate on the network layer and demonstrate the need to have a dynamic network topology, as we will show that no single topology can solve all communication problems related to CVEs, but that for each type of problem there exists at least one optimal topology. A developmental prototype allows us to demonstrate in a practical way the gains that can be had by using such a method. |
