Designing logic and tools for automated spatial navigation mapping for user interfaces
Karttunen, Hannes (2025)
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025060621286
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025060621286
Tiivistelmä
The focus of this thesis was to explore and create mathematical solutions for calculating spatial navigation mapping for directional-input-driven interface navigation. The primary problem for the developed tool to solve was to improve efficiency compared to existing menial or otherwise difficult to manage methods. It was designed to empower designers for faster iterative work, while allowing for manual adjustments, which typically is not possible within many game engines and their existing automatization.
The theoretical side of this thesis explores the importance of well-mapped spatial interface navigation, as well as evaluating different means of navigating interfaces and interacting with games within the perspective of accessibility and usability. Pain points and grievances within interface development, as well as methods for optimizing game development workflows are also discussed.
The project associated with the thesis was executed as a game development tool programming-project, wherein automatization for mathematics and logic for calculating the most likely and logical pathing for spatial navigation within 2-dimensional interfaces was created. The logic was implemented as a tool plugin for the Godot game engine and made publicly available for download online on GitHub, linked within the appendices of this thesis, for developers using either of the two available primary programming languages of Godot, GDscript and C#.
No substantial user-testing for the final developed toolset prototype was able to take place. Despite this fact, the calculations and logic designed for it showed potential in being able to reduce guesswork and workload, increasing efficiency when compared against existing automatic and manual interface navigation management options within the Godot engine.
The theoretical side of this thesis explores the importance of well-mapped spatial interface navigation, as well as evaluating different means of navigating interfaces and interacting with games within the perspective of accessibility and usability. Pain points and grievances within interface development, as well as methods for optimizing game development workflows are also discussed.
The project associated with the thesis was executed as a game development tool programming-project, wherein automatization for mathematics and logic for calculating the most likely and logical pathing for spatial navigation within 2-dimensional interfaces was created. The logic was implemented as a tool plugin for the Godot game engine and made publicly available for download online on GitHub, linked within the appendices of this thesis, for developers using either of the two available primary programming languages of Godot, GDscript and C#.
No substantial user-testing for the final developed toolset prototype was able to take place. Despite this fact, the calculations and logic designed for it showed potential in being able to reduce guesswork and workload, increasing efficiency when compared against existing automatic and manual interface navigation management options within the Godot engine.