Spatial Area Cursors - Introducing the Proxemic Cursor
A user-centred research project to make spatial touchless interactions faster, easier, and more comfortable.
Kieran Waugh
HCI Research Scientist | UX Research | PhD in HCI
University of Glasgow
About Me
Research scientist and UX researcher with a PhD in Human-Computer Interaction, working across research and practice on how people interact with emerging hardware and software. I own studies end-to-end from framing the question, recruitment and analysis, to the recommendations that follow. I use whichever mix of experiments, behavioural data, interviews, and field observation the question actually needs, so findings explain not just what people do but why. I enjoy seeking open-ended problems where the method has to be built before the question can be answered. My work spans academic and commercial research, and has shipped into released products and developer standards.
Interests
- Human-Computer Interaction
- User Research
- User Studies
- Interaction Design
- UX Design
- User Experience
- Interaction Techniques
- Extended Reality
- Augmented Reality
- Virtual Reality
- Human Centred AI
Experience
Research Associate
University of Glasgow | June 2026 - Present
As part of the UKRI Grasping Data project, I lead research on how children perceive personal data. Working with such a young and vulnerable group means the research runs under full ethics approval, with safeguarding-led consent and elicitation methods I adapt for each age range. I design and run structured play-testing sessions, capture multimodal behavioural data, to turn what children do into findings the team can act on. I also build the tangible prototypes the studies run on, using 3D printing and custom electronics. That lets us move from idea to testable objects
Research Assistant - Immersive Interaction
University of Glasgow | June 2025 - February 2026
I ran large-scale user studies in XR and VR, across Meta Quest and Apple Vision Pro. With three projects running at once, I standardised the methodology across both platforms so results stayed consistent and comparable, even while the research questions were still taking shape. I analysed frame-level behavioural telemetry and built Python pipelines that structured, tagged and synthesised complex multimodal datasets into clear findings.
Extended Reality Research Intern
Logitech | Summer 2024
Designed and led user studies for the MX-Ink mixed-reality stylus, informing key design decisions in collaboration with Meta that were shipped in publicly released software and OS. My research pinpointed discrepancies in how humans hold devices and how finger moment affects interaction within virtual environments.
Digital Skills Project Research Assistant (Part-time)
Digital Skills Education | June 2020 - Present
Collaborated with the Scottish government, Education Scotland, and national trade unions to pioneer new methods of teaching complex computer science. I helped design and launch innovative online learning modules for young people while separately developing and delivering hands-on cyber skills workshops to enhance the technical competency and digital confidence of older adults.
Assistant Technical Program Chair (Volunteer)
ACM CHI Conference 2025 | August 2022 - May 2024
Helped organise CHI' 24, conference of over 4000 attendees. My role consisted of creating the technical programme, managing aspects of the peer-review process, and directing a volunteer workforce of over 100 people.
Education
PhD - Human Computer Interaction
University of Glasgow | October 2021 - Febuary 2026
Thesis - Designing for Comfort and Efficiency in Mid-Air Spatial Interfaces
MSc By Research - Human Computer Interaction
The University of Edinburgh | Septemebr 2020 - September 2021
Thesis - Don't Touch Me! An Exploration of Interface Design for Touchless Systems
BSc - Computer Science
The University of Edinburgh | Septemebr 2016 - September 2020
Thesis - Exploring navigation for visually impaired pedestrians through physical landmarks
Featured Projects
Investigating High-Precision Input for XR Styluses (MX Ink)
A two-part investigation into the accuracy of 3D stylus selection (the Heisenberg Effect) and the design of new gestures (Double-Tap).
Featured Publications
Could the Stylus Be Mightier Than the Controller? An Investigation Into the Heisenberg Effect of Spatial Interaction for 3D Tracked Styluses
Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '26), 2026
Everything to Gain: Combining Area Cursors with increased Control-Display Gain for Fast and Accurate Touchless Input
In CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '25), 2025
Proxemic Cursor Interactions for Touchless Widget Control
In ACM Symposium on Spatial User Interaction (SUI '23), 2023
Push or Pinch? Exploring Slider Control Gestures for Touchless User Interfaces
In Nordic Human-Computer Interaction (NordiCHI '22), 2022
Get in Touch
I'm always open to discussing new research, projects, or potential jobs and collaborations. Feel free to reach out via email or connect with me on social media.
- website[at]kieranwaugh.com
- Glasgow, Scotland
- linkedin.com/in/kieranwaugh/