Musical Haptics

Haptic Musical Instruments; Haptic Psychophysics; Interface Design and Evaluation; User Experience; Musical Performanc

Musical Haptics

Haptic Musical Instruments; Haptic Psychophysics; Interface Design and Evaluation; User Experience; Musical Performanc

Somatic ABC's: A Theoretical Framework for Designing, Developing and Evaluating the Building Blocks of Touch-Based Information Delivery

abstract: Situations of sensory overload are steadily becoming more frequent as the ubiquity of technology approaches reality--particularly with the advent of socio-communicative smartphone applications, and pervasive, high speed wireless networks. Although the ease of accessing information has improved our communication effectiveness and efficiency, our visual and auditory modalities--those modalities that today's computerized devices and displays largely engage--have become overloaded, creating possibilities for distractions, delays and high cognitive load; which in turn can lead to a loss of situational awareness, increasing chances for life threatening situations such as texting while driving. Surprisingly, alternative modalities for information delivery have seen little exploration. Touch, in particular, is a promising candidate given that it is our largest sensory organ with impressive spatial and temporal acuity. Although some approaches have been proposed for touch-based information delivery, they are not without limitations including high learning curves, limited applicability and/or limited expression. This is largely due to the lack of a versatile, comprehensive design theory--specifically, a theory that addresses the design of touch-based building blocks for expandable, efficient, rich and robust touch languages that are easy to learn and use. Moreover, beyond design, there is a lack of implementation and evaluation theories for such languages. To overcome these limitations, a unified, theoretical framework, inspired by natural, spoken language, is proposed called Somatic ABC's for Articulating (designing), Building (developing) and Confirming (evaluating) touch-based languages. To evaluate the usefulness of Somatic ABC's, its design, implementation and evaluation theories were applied to create communication languages for two very unique application areas: audio described movies and motor learning. These applications were chosen as they presented opportunities for complementing communication by offloading information, typically conveyed visually and/or aurally, to the skin. For both studies, it was found that Somatic ABC's aided the design, development and evaluation of rich somatic languages with distinct and natural communication units.Dissertation/ThesisPh.D. Computer Science 201

Cooperative Interactive Distributed Guidance on Mobile Devices

Mobiles device are quickly becoming an indispensable part of our society. Equipped with numerous communication capabilities, they are increasingly being examined as potential tools for civilian and military usage to aide in distributed remote collaboration for dynamic decision making and physical task completion. With an ever growing mobile workforce, the need for remote assistance in aiding field workers who are confronted with situations outside their expertise certainly increases. Enhanced capabilities in using mobile devices could significantly improve numerous components of a task\u27s completion (i.e. accuracy, timing, etc.). This dissertation considers the design of mobile implementation of technology and communication capabilities to support interactive collaboration between distributed team members. Specifically, this body of research seeks to explore and understand how various multimodal remote assistances affect both the human user\u27s performance and the mobile device\u27s effectiveness when used during cooperative tasks. Additionally, power effects are additionally studied to assess the energy demands on a mobile device supporting multimodal communication. In a series of applied experiments and demonstrations, the effectiveness of a mobile device facilitating multimodal collaboration is analyzed through both empirical data collection and subjective exploration. The utility of the mobile interactive system and its configurations are examined to assess the impact on distributed task performance and collaborative dialogue between pairs. The dissertation formulates and defends an argument that multimodal communication capabilities should be incorporated into mobile communication channels to provide collaborating partners salient perspectives with a goal of reaching a mutual understanding of task procedures. The body of research discusses the findings of this investigation and highlight these findings they may influence future mobile research seeking to enhance interactive distributed guidance

Musical Haptics

This Open Access book offers an original interdisciplinary overview of the role of haptic feedback in musical interaction. Divided into two parts, part I examines the tactile aspects of music performance and perception, discussing how they affect user experience and performance in terms of usability, functionality and perceived quality of musical instruments. Part II presents engineering, computational, and design approaches and guidelines that have been applied to render and exploit haptic feedback in digital musical interfaces. Musical Haptics introduces an emerging field that brings together engineering, human-computer interaction, applied psychology, musical aesthetics, and music performance. The latter, defined as the complex system of sensory-motor interactions between musicians and their instruments, presents a well-defined framework in which to study basic psychophysical, perceptual, and biomechanical aspects of touch, all of which will inform the design of haptic musical interfaces. Tactile and proprioceptive cues enable embodied interaction and inform sophisticated control strategies that allow skilled musicians to achieve high performance and expressivity. The use of haptic feedback in digital musical interfaces is expected to enhance user experience and performance, improve accessibility for disabled persons, and provide an effective means for musical tuition and guidance

A new dynamic tactile display for reconfigurable braille: implementation and tests

Different tactile interfaces have been proposed to represent either text (braille) or, in a few cases, tactile large-area screens as replacements for visual displays. None of the implementations so far can be customized to match users' preferences, perceptual differences and skills. Optimal choices in these respects are still debated; we approach a solution by designing a flexible device allowing the user to choose key parameters of tactile transduction. We present here a new dynamic tactile display, a 8 × 8 matrix of plastic pins based on well-established and reliable piezoelectric technology to offer high resolution (pin gap 0.7mm) as well as tunable strength of the pins displacement, and refresh rate up to 50s(−1). It can reproduce arbitrary patterns, allowing it to serve the dual purpose of providing, depending on contingent user needs, tactile rendering of non-character information, and reconfigurable braille rendering. Given the relevance of the latter functionality for the expected average user, we considered testing braille encoding by volunteers a benchmark of primary importance. Tests were performed to assess the acceptance and usability with minimal training, and to check whether the offered flexibility was indeed perceived by the subject as an added value compared to conventional braille devices. Different mappings between braille dots and actual tactile pins were implemented to match user needs. Performances of eight experienced braille readers were defined as the fraction of correct identifications of rendered content. Different information contents were tested (median performance on random strings, words, sentences identification was about 75%, 85%, 98%, respectively, with a significant increase, p < 0.01), obtaining statistically significant improvements in performance during the tests (p < 0.05). Experimental results, together with qualitative ratings provided by the subjects, show a good acceptance and the effectiveness of the proposed solution

Multimodal interaction: developing an interaction concept for a touchscreen incorporating tactile feedback

The touchscreen, as an alternative user interface for applications that normally require mice and keyboards, has become more and more commonplace, showing up on mobile devices, on vending machines, on ATMs and in the control panels of machines in industry, where conventional input devices cannot provide intuitive, rapid and accurate user interaction with the content of the display. The exponential growth in processing power on the PC, together with advances in understanding human communication channels, has had a significant effect on the design of usable, human-factored interfaces on touchscreens, and on the number and complexity of applications available on touchscreens. Although computer-driven touchscreen interfaces provide programmable and dynamic displays, the absence of the expected tactile cues on the hard and static surfaces of conventional touchscreens is challenging interface design and touchscreen usability, in particular for distracting, low-visibility environments. Current technology allows the human tactile modality to be used in touchscreens. While the visual channel converts graphics and text unidirectionally from the computer to the end user, tactile communication features a bidirectional information flow to and from the user as the user perceives and acts on the environment and the system responds to changing contextual information. Tactile sensations such as detents and pulses provide users with cues that make selecting and controlling a more intuitive process. Tactile features can compensate for deficiencies in some of the human senses, especially in tasks which carry a heavy visual or auditory burden. In this study, an interaction concept for tactile touchscreens is developed with a view to employing the key characteristics of the human sense of touch effectively and efficiently, especially in distracting environments where vision is impaired and hearing is overloaded. As a first step toward improving the usability of touchscreens through the integration of tactile effects, different mechanical solutions for producing motion in tactile touchscreens are investigated, to provide a basis for selecting suitable vibration directions when designing tactile displays. Building on these results, design know-how regarding tactile feedback patterns is further developed to enable dynamic simulation of UI controls, in order to give users a sense of perceiving real controls on a highly natural touch interface. To study the value of adding tactile properties to touchscreens, haptically enhanced UI controls are then further investigated with the aim of mapping haptic signals to different usage scenarios to perform primary and secondary tasks with touchscreens. The findings of the study are intended for consideration and discussion as a guide to further development of tactile stimuli, haptically enhanced user interfaces and touchscreen applications

Interaction techniques with novel multimodal feedback for addressing gesture-sensing systems

Users need to be able to address in-air gesture systems, which means finding where to perform gestures and how to direct them towards the intended system. This is necessary for input to be sensed correctly and without unintentionally affecting other systems. This thesis investigates novel interaction techniques which allow users to address gesture systems properly, helping them find where and how to gesture. It also investigates audio, tactile and interactive light displays for multimodal gesture feedback; these can be used by gesture systems with limited output capabilities (like mobile phones and small household controls), allowing the interaction techniques to be used by a variety of device types. It investigates tactile and interactive light displays in greater detail, as these are not as well understood as audio displays. Experiments 1 and 2 explored tactile feedback for gesture systems, comparing an ultrasound haptic display to wearable tactile displays at different body locations and investigating feedback designs. These experiments found that tactile feedback improves the user experience of gesturing by reassuring users that their movements are being sensed. Experiment 3 investigated interactive light displays for gesture systems, finding this novel display type effective for giving feedback and presenting information. It also found that interactive light feedback is enhanced by audio and tactile feedback. These feedback modalities were then used alongside audio feedback in two interaction techniques for addressing gesture systems: sensor strength feedback and rhythmic gestures. Sensor strength feedback is multimodal feedback that tells users how well they can be sensed, encouraging them to find where to gesture through active exploration. Experiment 4 found that they can do this with 51mm accuracy, with combinations of audio and interactive light feedback leading to the best performance. Rhythmic gestures are continuously repeated gesture movements which can be used to direct input. Experiment 5 investigated the usability of this technique, finding that users can match rhythmic gestures well and with ease. Finally, these interaction techniques were combined, resulting in a new single interaction for addressing gesture systems. Using this interaction, users could direct their input with rhythmic gestures while using the sensor strength feedback to find a good location for addressing the system. Experiment 6 studied the effectiveness and usability of this technique, as well as the design space for combining the two types of feedback. It found that this interaction was successful, with users matching 99.9% of rhythmic gestures, with 80mm accuracy from target points. The findings show that gesture systems could successfully use this interaction technique to allow users to address them. Novel design recommendations for using rhythmic gestures and sensor strength feedback were created, informed by the experiment findings

Remote tactile feedback on interactive surfaces

Direct touch input on interactive surfaces has become a predominating standard for the manipulation of digital information in our everyday lives. However, compared to our rich interchange with the physical world, the interaction with touch-based systems is limited in terms of flexibility of input and expressiveness of output. Particularly, the lack of tactile feedback greatly reduces the general usability of a touch-based system and hinders from a productive entanglement of the virtual information with the physical world. This thesis proposes remote tactile feedback as a novel method to provide programmed tactile stimuli supporting direct touch interactions. The overall principle is to spatially decouple the location of touch input (e.g. fingertip or hand) and the location of the tactile sensation on the user's body (e.g. forearm or back). Remote tactile feedback is an alternative concept which avoids particular challenges of existing approaches. Moreover, the principle provides inherent characteristics which can accommodate for the requirements of current and future touch interfaces. To define the design space, the thesis provides a structured overview of current forms of touch surfaces and identifies trends towards non-planar and non-rigid forms with more versatile input mechanisms. Furthermore, a classification highlights limitations of the current methods to generate tactile feedback on touch-based systems. The proposed notion of tactile sensory relocation is a form of sensory substitution. Underlying neurological and psychological principles corroborate the approach. Thus, characteristics of the human sense of touch and principles from sensory substitution help to create a technical and conceptual framework for remote tactile feedback. Three consecutive user studies measure and compare the effects of both direct and remote tactile feedback on the performance and the subjective ratings of the user. Furthermore, the experiments investigate different body locations for the application of tactile stimuli. The results show high subjective preferences for tactile feedback, regardless of its type of application. Additionally, the data reveals no significant differences between the effects of direct and remote stimuli. The results back the feasibility of the approach and provide parameters for the design of stimuli and the effective use of the concept. The main part of the thesis describes the systematical exploration and analysis of the inherent characteristics of remote tactile feedback. Four specific features of the principle are identified: (1) the simplification of the integration of cutaneous stimuli, (2) the transmission of proactive, reactive and detached feedback, (3) the increased expressiveness of tactile sensations and (4) the provision of tactile feedback during multi-touch. In each class, several prototypical remote tactile interfaces are used in evaluations to analyze the concept. For example, the PhantomStation utilizes psychophysical phenomena to reduce the number of single tactile actuators. An evaluation with the prototype compares standard actuator technologies with each other in order to enable simple and scalable implementations. The ThermalTouch prototype creates remote thermal stimuli to reproduce material characteristics on standard touchscreens. The results show a stable rate of virtual object discrimination based on remotely applied temperature profiles. The AutmotiveRTF system is implemented in a vehicle and supports the driver's input on the in-vehicle-infotainment system. A field study with the system focuses on evaluating the effects of proactive and reactive feedback on the user's performance. The main contributions of the dissertation are: First, the thesis introduces the principle of remote tactile feedback and defines a design space for this approach as an alternative method to provide non-visual cues on interactive surfaces. Second, the thesis describes technical examples to rapidly prototype remote tactile feedback systems. Third, these prototypes are deployed in several evaluations which highlight the beneficial subjective and objective effects of the approach. Finally, the thesis presents features and inherent characteristics of remote tactile feedback as a means to support the interaction on today's touchscreens and future interactive surfaces.Die Interaktion mit berührungsempfindlichen Oberflächen ist heute ein Standard für die Manipulation von digitaler Information. Jedoch weist die Bedienung dieser interaktiven Bildschirme starke Einschränkungen hinsichtlich der Flexibilität bei der Eingabe und der Ausdruckskraft der Ausgabe auf, wenn man sie mit den vielfältigen Möglichkeiten des Umgangs mit Objekten in unserer Alltagswelt vergleicht. Besonders die nicht vorhandenen Tastsinnesrückmeldungen vermindern stark die Benutzbarkeit solcher Systeme und verhindern eine effektive Verknüpfung von virtueller Information und physischer Welt. Die vorliegende Dissertation beschreibt den Ansatz der 'distalen taktilen Rückmeldungen' als neuartige Möglichkeit zur Vermittlung programmierter Tastsinnesreize an Benutzer interaktiver Oberflächen. Das Grundprinzip dabei ist die räumliche Trennung zwischen der Eingabe durch Berührung (z.B. mit der Fingerspitze) und dem daraus resultierenden taktilen Reiz am Körper der Benutzer (z.B. am Rücken). Dabei vermeidet das Konzept der distalen taktilen Rückmeldungen einzelne technische und konzeptionelle Nachteile existierender Ansätze. Zusätzlich bringt es Interaktionsmöglichkeiten mit sich, die den Eigenheiten der Interaktion mit aktuellen und auch zukünftigen berührungsempfindlichen Oberflächen Rechnung tragen. Zu Beginn zeigt ein Überblick zu relevanten Arbeiten den aktuellen Forschungstrend hin zu nicht-flachen und verformbaren berührungsempfindlichen Oberflächen sowie zu vielfältigeren Eingabemethoden. Eine Klassifizierung ordnet existierende technische Verfahren zur Erzeugung von künstlichen Tastsinnesreizen und stellt jeweils konzeptuelle und technische Herausforderungen dar. Der in dieser Arbeit vorgeschlagene Ansatz der Verlagerung von Tastsinnesreizen ist eine Form der sensorischen Substitution, zugrunde liegende neurologische und psychologische Prinzipien untermauern das Vorgehen. Die Wirkprinzipien des menschlichen Tastsinnes und die Systeme zur sensorischen Substitution liefern daher konzeptionelle und technische Richtlinien zur Umsetzung der distalen taktilen Rückmeldungen. Drei aufeinander aufbauende Benutzerstudien vergleichen die Auswirkungen von direkten und distalen taktilen Rückmeldungen auf die Leistung und das Verhalten von Benutzern sowie deren subjektive Bewertung der Interaktion. Außerdem werden in den Experimenten die Effekte von Tastsinnesreizen an verschiedenen Körperstellen untersucht. Die Ergebnisse zeigen starke Präferenzen für Tastsinnesrückmeldungen, unabhängig von deren Applikationsort. Die Daten ergeben weiterhin keine signifikanten Unterschiede bei den quantitativen Effekten von direktem und distalen Rückmeldungen. Diese Ergebnisse befürworten die Realisierbarkeit des Ansatzes und zeigen Richtlinien für weitere praktische Umsetzungen auf. Der Hauptteil der Dissertation beschreibt die systematische Untersuchung und Analyse der inhärenten Möglichkeiten, die sich aus der Vermittlung distaler taktiler Rückmeldungen ergeben. Vier verschiedene Charakteristika werden identifiziert: (1) die vereinfachte Integration von Tastsinnesreizen, (2) die Vermittlung von proaktiven, reaktiven und entkoppelten Rückmeldungen, (3) die erhöhte Bandbreite der taktilen Signale und (4) die Darstellung von individuellen Tastsinnesreizen für verschiedene Kontaktpunkte mit der berührungsempfindlichen Oberfläche. Jedes dieser Prinzipien wird durch prototypische Systeme umgesetzt und in Benutzerstudien analysiert. Beispielsweise nutzt das System PhantomStation psychophysikalische Illusionen, um die Anzahl der einzelnen Reizgeber zu reduzieren. In einer Evaluierung des Prototypen werden mehrere Aktuatortechnologien verglichen, um einfache und skalierbare Ansätze zu identifizieren. Der ThermalTouch-Prototyp wird dazu genutzt, distale thermale Reize zu vermitteln, um so Materialeigenschaften auf Berührungsbildschirmen darstellen zu können. Eine Benutzerstudie zeigt, dass sich auf Basis dieser Temperaturverläufe virtuelle Objekte unterscheiden lassen. Das AutomotiveRTF-System wird schließlich in ein Kraftfahrzeug integriert, um den Fahrer bei der Eingabe auf dem Informations- und Unterhaltungssystem zu unterstützen. Eine Feldstudie untersucht die Auswirkungen der proaktiven und reaktiven Rückmeldungen auf die Benutzerleistung. Die vorliegende Dissertation leistet mehrere Beiträge zur Mensch-Maschine-Interaktion: Das Prinzip der distalen taktilen Rückmeldungen wird eingeführt als Alternative zur Erzeugung nicht-visueller Rückmeldungen auf interaktiven Oberflächen. Es werden technische Verfahrensweisen zur prototypischen Implementierung solcher Systeme vorgeschlagen. Diese technischen Prototypen werden in einer Vielzahl verschiedener Benutzerstudien eingesetzt, welche die quantitativen und qualitativen Vorteile des Ansatzes aufzeigen. Schließlich wird gezeigt, wie sich das Prinzip zur Unterstützung heutiger und zukünftiger Interaktionsformen mit berührungsempfindlichen Bildschirmen nutzen lässt