1,794 research outputs found
Haptics for the development of fundamental rhythm skills, including multi-limb coordination
This chapter considers the use of haptics for learning fundamental rhythm skills, including skills that depend on multi-limb coordination. Different sensory modalities have different strengths and weaknesses for the development of skills related to rhythm. For example, vision has low temporal resolution and performs poorly for tracking rhythms in real-time, whereas hearing is highly accurate. However, in the case of multi-limbed rhythms, neither hearing nor sight are particularly well suited to communicating exactly which limb does what and when, or how the limbs coordinate. By contrast, haptics can work especially well in this area, by applying haptic signals independently to each limb. We review relevant theories, including embodied interaction and biological entrainment. We present a range of applications of the Haptic Bracelets, which are computer-controlled wireless vibrotactile devices, one attached to each wrist and ankle. Haptic pulses are used to guide users in playing rhythmic patterns that require multi-limb coordination. One immediate aim of the system is to support the development of practical rhythm skills and multi-limb coordination. A longer-term goal is to aid the development of a wider range of fundamental rhythm skills including recognising, identifying, memorising, retaining, analysing, reproducing, coordinating, modifying and creating rhythms – particularly multi-stream (i.e. polyphonic) rhythmic sequences. Empirical results are presented. We reflect on related work, and discuss design issues for using haptics to support rhythm skills. Skills of this kind are essential not just to drummers and percussionists but also to keyboards players, and more generally to all musicians who need a firm grasp of rhythm
Expressive haptics for enhanced usability of mobile interfaces in situations of impairments
Designing for situational awareness could lead to better solutions for
disabled people, likewise, exploring the needs of disabled people could lead to
innovations that can address situational impairments. This in turn can create
non-stigmatising assistive technology for disabled people from which eventually
everyone could benefit. In this paper, we investigate the potential for
advanced haptics to compliment the graphical user interface of mobile devices,
thereby enhancing user experiences of all people in some situations (e.g.
sunlight interfering with interaction) and visually impaired people. We explore
technical solutions to this problem space and demonstrate our justification for
a focus on the creation of kinaesthetic force feedback. We propose initial
design concepts and studies, with a view to co-create delightful and expressive
haptic interactions with potential users motivated by scenarios of situational
and permanent impairments.Comment: Presented at the CHI'19 Workshop: Addressing the Challenges of
Situationally-Induced Impairments and Disabilities in Mobile Interaction,
2019 (arXiv:1904.05382
Tactile-STAR: A Novel Tactile STimulator And Recorder System for Evaluating and Improving Tactile Perception
Many neurological diseases impair the motor and somatosensory systems. While several different technologies are used in clinical practice to assess and improve motor functions, somatosensation is evaluated subjectively with qualitative clinical scales. Treatment of somatosensory deficits has received limited attention. To bridge the gap between the assessment and training of motor vs. somatosensory abilities, we designed, developed, and tested a novel, low-cost, two-component (bimanual) mechatronic system targeting tactile somatosensation: the Tactile-STAR—a tactile stimulator and recorder. The stimulator is an actuated pantograph structure driven by two servomotors, with an end-effector covered by a rubber material that can apply two different types of skin stimulation: brush and stretch. The stimulator has a modular design, and can be used to test the tactile perception in different parts of the body such as the hand, arm, leg, big toe, etc. The recorder is a passive pantograph that can measure hand motion using two potentiometers. The recorder can serve multiple purposes: participants can move its handle to match the direction and amplitude of the tactile stimulator, or they can use it as a master manipulator to control the tactile stimulator as a slave. Our ultimate goal is to assess and affect tactile acuity and somatosensory deficits. To demonstrate the feasibility of our novel system, we tested the Tactile-STAR with 16 healthy individuals and with three stroke survivors using the skin-brush stimulation. We verified that the system enables the mapping of tactile perception on the hand in both populations. We also tested the extent to which 30 min of training in healthy individuals led to an improvement of tactile perception. The results provide a first demonstration of the ability of this new system to characterize tactile perception in healthy individuals, as well as a quantification of the magnitude and pattern of tactile impairment in a small cohort of stroke survivors. The finding that short-term training with Tactile-STARcan improve the acuity of tactile perception in healthy individuals suggests that Tactile-STAR may have utility as a therapeutic intervention for somatosensory deficits
Personalising Vibrotactile Displays through Perceptual Sensitivity Adjustment
Haptic displays are commonly limited to transmitting a discrete
set of tactile motives. In this paper, we explore the
transmission of real-valued information through vibrotactile
displays. We simulate spatial continuity with three perceptual
models commonly used to create phantom sensations: the linear,
logarithmic and power model. We show that these generic
models lead to limited decoding precision, and propose a
method for model personalization adjusting to idiosyncratic
and spatial variations in perceptual sensitivity. We evaluate
this approach using two haptic display layouts: circular, worn
around the wrist and the upper arm, and straight, worn along
the forearm. Results of a user study measuring continuous
value decoding precision show that users were able to decode
continuous values with relatively high accuracy (4.4% mean
error), circular layouts performed particularly well, and personalisation
through sensitivity adjustment increased decoding
precision
Wearable haptic systems for the fingertip and the hand: taxonomy, review and perspectives
In the last decade, we have witnessed a drastic change in the form factor of audio and vision technologies, from heavy and grounded machines to lightweight devices that naturally fit our bodies. However, only recently, haptic systems have started to be designed with wearability in mind. The wearability of haptic systems enables novel forms of communication, cooperation, and integration between humans and machines. Wearable haptic interfaces are capable of communicating with the human wearers during their interaction with the environment they share, in a natural and yet private way. This paper presents a taxonomy and review of wearable haptic systems for the fingertip and the hand, focusing on those systems directly addressing wearability challenges. The paper also discusses the main technological and design challenges for the development of wearable haptic interfaces, and it reports on the future perspectives of the field. Finally, the paper includes two tables summarizing the characteristics and features of the most representative wearable haptic systems for the fingertip and the hand
Docking Haptics: Extending the Reach of Haptics by Dynamic Combinations of Grounded and Worn Devices
Grounded haptic devices can provide a variety of forces but have limited
working volumes. Wearable haptic devices operate over a large volume but are
relatively restricted in the types of stimuli they can generate. We propose the
concept of docking haptics, in which different types of haptic devices are
dynamically docked at run time. This creates a hybrid system, where the
potential feedback depends on the user's location. We show a prototype docking
haptic workspace, combining a grounded six degree-of-freedom force feedback arm
with a hand exoskeleton. We are able to create the sensation of weight on the
hand when it is within reach of the grounded device, but away from the grounded
device, hand-referenced force feedback is still available. A user study
demonstrates that users can successfully discriminate weight when using docking
haptics, but not with the exoskeleton alone. Such hybrid systems would be able
to change configuration further, for example docking two grounded devices to a
hand in order to deliver twice the force, or extend the working volume. We
suggest that the docking haptics concept can thus extend the practical utility
of haptics in user interfaces
- …