173 research outputs found
Haptics: Science, Technology, Applications
This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Human Haptic Sensing and Touch Enabled Computer Applications, EuroHaptics 2020, held in Leiden, The Netherlands, in September 2020. The 60 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 111 submissions. The were organized in topical sections on haptic science, haptic technology, and haptic applications. This year's focus is on accessibility
Haptics: Science, Technology, Applications
This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Human Haptic Sensing and Touch Enabled Computer Applications, EuroHaptics 2022, held in Hamburg, Germany, in May 2022. The 36 regular papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 129 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: haptic science; haptic technology; and haptic applications
Haptics: Science, Technology, Applications
This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Human Haptic Sensing and Touch Enabled Computer Applications, EuroHaptics 2020, held in Leiden, The Netherlands, in September 2020. The 60 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 111 submissions. The were organized in topical sections on haptic science, haptic technology, and haptic applications. This year's focus is on accessibility
A continuum robotic platform for endoscopic non-contact laser surgery: design, control, and preclinical evaluation
The application of laser technologies in surgical interventions has been accepted in the clinical
domain due to their atraumatic properties. In addition to manual application of fibre-guided
lasers with tissue contact, non-contact transoral laser microsurgery (TLM) of laryngeal tumours
has been prevailed in ENT surgery. However, TLM requires many years of surgical training
for tumour resection in order to preserve the function of adjacent organs and thus preserve the
patient’s quality of life. The positioning of the microscopic laser applicator outside the patient
can also impede a direct line-of-sight to the target area due to anatomical variability and limit
the working space. Further clinical challenges include positioning the laser focus on the tissue
surface, imaging, planning and performing laser ablation, and motion of the target area during
surgery. This dissertation aims to address the limitations of TLM through robotic approaches and
intraoperative assistance. Although a trend towards minimally invasive surgery is apparent, no
highly integrated platform for endoscopic delivery of focused laser radiation is available to date.
Likewise, there are no known devices that incorporate scene information from endoscopic imaging
into ablation planning and execution. For focusing of the laser beam close to the target tissue, this
work first presents miniaturised focusing optics that can be integrated into endoscopic systems.
Experimental trials characterise the optical properties and the ablation performance. A robotic
platform is realised for manipulation of the focusing optics. This is based on a variable-length
continuum manipulator. The latter enables movements of the endoscopic end effector in five
degrees of freedom with a mechatronic actuation unit. The kinematic modelling and control of the
robot are integrated into a modular framework that is evaluated experimentally. The manipulation
of focused laser radiation also requires precise adjustment of the focal position on the tissue. For
this purpose, visual, haptic and visual-haptic assistance functions are presented. These support
the operator during teleoperation to set an optimal working distance. Advantages of visual-haptic
assistance are demonstrated in a user study. The system performance and usability of the overall
robotic system are assessed in an additional user study. Analogous to a clinical scenario, the
subjects follow predefined target patterns with a laser spot. The mean positioning accuracy of the
spot is 0.5 mm. Finally, methods of image-guided robot control are introduced to automate laser
ablation. Experiments confirm a positive effect of proposed automation concepts on non-contact
laser surgery.Die Anwendung von Lasertechnologien in chirurgischen Interventionen hat sich aufgrund der atraumatischen Eigenschaften in der Klinik etabliert. Neben manueller Applikation von fasergeführten
Lasern mit Gewebekontakt hat sich die kontaktfreie transorale Lasermikrochirurgie (TLM) von
Tumoren des Larynx in der HNO-Chirurgie durchgesetzt. Die TLM erfordert zur Tumorresektion
jedoch ein langjähriges chirurgisches Training, um die Funktion der angrenzenden Organe zu
sichern und damit die Lebensqualität der Patienten zu erhalten. Die Positionierung des mikroskopis chen Laserapplikators außerhalb des Patienten kann zudem die direkte Sicht auf das Zielgebiet
durch anatomische Variabilität erschweren und den Arbeitsraum einschränken. Weitere klinische
Herausforderungen betreffen die Positionierung des Laserfokus auf der Gewebeoberfläche, die
Bildgebung, die Planung und Ausführung der Laserablation sowie intraoperative Bewegungen
des Zielgebietes. Die vorliegende Dissertation zielt darauf ab, die Limitierungen der TLM durch
robotische Ansätze und intraoperative Assistenz zu adressieren. Obwohl ein Trend zur minimal
invasiven Chirurgie besteht, sind bislang keine hochintegrierten Plattformen für die endoskopische
Applikation fokussierter Laserstrahlung verfügbar. Ebenfalls sind keine Systeme bekannt, die
Szeneninformationen aus der endoskopischen Bildgebung in die Ablationsplanung und -ausführung
einbeziehen. Für eine situsnahe Fokussierung des Laserstrahls wird in dieser Arbeit zunächst
eine miniaturisierte Fokussieroptik zur Integration in endoskopische Systeme vorgestellt. Experimentelle Versuche charakterisieren die optischen Eigenschaften und das Ablationsverhalten. Zur
Manipulation der Fokussieroptik wird eine robotische Plattform realisiert. Diese basiert auf einem
längenveränderlichen Kontinuumsmanipulator. Letzterer ermöglicht in Kombination mit einer
mechatronischen Aktuierungseinheit Bewegungen des Endoskopkopfes in fünf Freiheitsgraden.
Die kinematische Modellierung und Regelung des Systems werden in ein modulares Framework
eingebunden und evaluiert. Die Manipulation fokussierter Laserstrahlung erfordert zudem eine
präzise Anpassung der Fokuslage auf das Gewebe. Dafür werden visuelle, haptische und visuell haptische Assistenzfunktionen eingeführt. Diese unterstützen den Anwender bei Teleoperation
zur Einstellung eines optimalen Arbeitsabstandes. In einer Anwenderstudie werden Vorteile der
visuell-haptischen Assistenz nachgewiesen. Die Systemperformanz und Gebrauchstauglichkeit
des robotischen Gesamtsystems werden in einer weiteren Anwenderstudie untersucht. Analog zu
einem klinischen Einsatz verfolgen die Probanden mit einem Laserspot vorgegebene Sollpfade. Die
mittlere Positioniergenauigkeit des Spots beträgt dabei 0,5 mm. Zur Automatisierung der Ablation
werden abschließend Methoden der bildgestützten Regelung vorgestellt. Experimente bestätigen
einen positiven Effekt der Automationskonzepte für die kontaktfreie Laserchirurgie
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Touching is believing: creating illusions and feeling of embodiment with mid-air haptic technology
Over the last two decades, the sense of touch has received new attention from the scientific community.Several haptic devices have been developed to address the complexity of the sense of touch, the latest addition being mid-air (contactless) haptic technology. An interesting series of previous research has suggested an easier way to tackle the complexity of designing convincing tactile sensations by exploiting tactile illusions. Tactile illusions rely on perceptual shortcuts based on the psychophysics of the tactile receptors.
Currently, studies exploring the perceptual space of mid-air haptics and its applicability in the tactile illusions field are still limited in number. This thesis aims to contribute to the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) by investigating the perceptual design space of ultrasonic mid-air haptics technology.
Specifically, in a first set of three studies, we investigate the absolute thresholds (minimal amount of a property of astimulus that a user can detect) for control points (CP) at different frequencies on the hand and arm (Study 1). Then we investigate the optimal sampling rate needed to drive the device in an optimal fashion and its relationship with shape size (Study 2). Next, we apply a new technique to increase users’ performance in a shape discrimination task (Study 3).
In Study 4, we start the exploration of a tactile illusion of movement using contact touch and later, we apply a similar procedure to investigate the feasibility of creating a tactile illusion of movement between the two non-interconnected hands by using mid-air touch (Study 5).
Finally, in Study 6, we explore our sense of touch in VR, while providing an illusion of rain drops through mid-air haptics, to recreate a virtual hand illusion (VHI) to explore the boundaries of our sense of embodiment.
Therefore, the contribution of this work is threefold: a) we contribute by adding new knowledge on the psychophysical space for mid-air haptics, b) we test the potential to create realistic tactile sensations by exploiting tactile illusions with mid-air haptic technology, and c) we demonstrate how tactile illusions mediated by mid-air haptics can convey a sense of embodiment in VR environments
Multi-Finger Haptic Devices Integrating Miniature Short-Stroke Actuators
The omnipresence of electronic devices in our everyday life goes together with a trend that makes us always more immersed during their utilization. By immersion, we mean that during the development of a new product, it is more and more required to stimulate several senses of the user so as to make the product more attractive. The sense of touch does not escape the rule and is more and more considered. Definitely democratized by its integration in smart phones with touchscreens, the haptic feedback allows enhancing the human-machine interactions in many ways. For instance by improving the comfort of use of a button through the modification of its force feedback. It can also offer an interactive experience during the manipulation of digital information and even improve the communication, particularly through the internet and for blind people, with the introduction of non-verbal signals. For these reasons, the present thesis focuses on the conception of multi-finger haptic devices, a new kind of peripherals integrating multiple actuators and capable of providing a fully programmable force feedback to the user's fingers. A global methodology is presented, outlining the different constituents necessary for their conception: actuator, sensor, control, communication and software user interface. Then, generic tools corresponding to the two first elements are presented. An accurate modeling of miniature electromagnetic short-stroke actuators is made possible thanks to the combination of 3D finite element modeling (FEM) and design of experiments (DOE). The non-usual behavior of magnetic flux lines in miniature actuators with relatively large airgaps imposes to avoid simplified analytical models and to use the reliable results of finite elements. The long computation times required by 3D FEM are balanced by the use of selective DOE making the modeling methodology easily adaptable, rapid and accurate. The parametrical model of the force provided by the modeling methodology is then integrated in a full parametrical setup allowing for the optimization of the actuator force using a conventional algorithm. The advantage of the parametrical optimization is that complementary non-linear constraints such as weight and temperature can be added, making the model multi-physic. Then, several original position measurement techniques using existing sensors are developed including a low-cost custom single-photointerrupter sensor allowing for direction discrimination for fast-prototyping and a hybrid sensing method using tiny Hall sensors and taking advantage of the leaks of the main actuator magnet. Two innovative self-sensing methods are then presented, allowing for the measurement of the mover position of linear short-stroke actuators. The first solution estimates the position of the coil by measuring the acceleration through the back emf. However in this case, a constant acceleration is required, which strongly restrains the application scope. The second solution allows for a real-time measurement of the position thanks to a passive oscillating RLC circuit influenced by the variation of the coil impedance. All the solutions presented are low-cost, compact and require few computation resources. Finally, in order to illustrate the methodology proposed along the thesis, several prototypes are fabricated, giving an overview of the possibilities offered by multi-finger haptic devices. A haptic numeric pad is notably used in an experiment made in collaboration with the University Service of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in Lausanne with the aim of improving the impaired emotional processing of psychotic adolescents. Moreover, the successful identification of several touch sensations on the same haptic pad lays the first stones of a new tactile language
Investigating the spatial characteristics of the crossmodal interaction between nociception and vision using gaze direction
The present study investigated the influence of nociceptive stimuli on visual stimuli processing according to the relative spatial congruence between the two stimuli of different sensory modalities. Participants performed temporal order judgments on pairs of visual stimuli, one presented near the hand on which nociceptive stimuli were occasionally applied, the other one either to its left or to its right. The visual hemifield in which the stimulated hand and the near visual stimulus appeared was manipulated by changing gaze direction. The stimulated hemibody and the stimulated visual hemifield were therefore either congruent or incongruent, in terms of anatomical locations. Despite the changes in anatomical congruence, judgments were always biased in favor of the visual stimuli presented near the stimulated hand. This indicates that nociceptive-visual interaction may rely on a realignment of the respective initial anatomical representations of the somatic and retinotopic spaces toward an integrated, multimodal representation of external space
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