| Adding Tangential Forces in Lateral Exploration of Stiffness Maps | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 1-10 | |
| Karljohan Lundin Palmerius | |||
| We believe that the lateral exploration of surfaces with varying stiffness,
stiffness maps, using computer generated haptics is an underestimated and
important procedure with impact in many application areas. Feeling the change
of stiffness while sweeping the haptic probe over a surface can potentially
give an understanding of the spatial distribution of this stiffness, however
current algorithms lack tangential cues of stiffness changes. This introduces
energy sources and sinks that potentially affects the stability of the system,
apart from being physically incorrect and thus unrealistic. We discuss the
forces and effects involved in the exploration of stiffness maps and propose an
energy-based algorithm for tangential forces that augments the feedback from
the map, in particular during lateral exploration. The algorithm is based on
basic physical principles and has the potential to increase both realism and
stability. A user study was conducted to analyze the effect of this algorithm
on stiffness perception. Keywords: stiffness map; kinaesthetics; lateral forces; energy | |||
| Semantic Parameterization of Basic Surface Models Rendered with PHANToM Omni | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 11-21 | |
| Yugo Hayashi; Eric W. Cooper; Victor V. Kryssanov; Hitoshi Ogawa | |||
| This paper presents a study of subjective responses to haptic stimuli
displayed as surfaces on a haptic force feedback device and a computer monitor
and experienced through free kinesthetic exploration. The modified settings
were stiffness, static friction, and dynamic friction as defined in the PHANToM
Omni standard SDK. A sphere was used as the virtual shape for exploration.
Subjects spoke freely about their subjective responses while session moderators
recorded the comments as text. The responses were broken down and categorized
by morphological analysis of haptic sensation primitives: hardness, softness,
roughness, smoothness, and elasticity. Analysis of the resulting morphemes
showed that eliciting specific subjective outcomes in kinesthetically
experienced haptic space requires adjustment of multiple settings. Naïve
understandings of haptic materials surface settings in such devices are likely
to be insufficient. Open ended semantic studies such as the one described in
this paper can result in a better understanding of this perceptual space and
lead to better guidelines or supportive systems for haptic interface
developers. Keywords: subjective haptics; haptic materials settings; friction; stiffness | |||
| Analysis of the JND of Stiffness in Three Modes of Comparison | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 22-31 | |
| Umut Koçak; Karljohan Lundin Palmerius; Camilla Forsell; Anders Ynnerman; Matthew Cooper | |||
| Understanding and explaining perception of touch is a non-trivial task. Even
seemingly trivial differences in exploration may potentially have a significant
impact on perception and levels of discrimination. In this study, we explore
different aspects of contact related to stiffness perception and their effects
on the just noticeable difference (JND) of stiffness are surveyed. An
experiment has been performed on non-deformable, compliant objects in a virtual
environment with three different types of contact: Discontinuous pressure,
continuous pressure and continuous lateral motion. The result shows a
significantly better discrimination performance in the case of continuous
pressure (a special case of nonlinearity), which can be explained by the
concept of haptic memory. Moreover, it is found that the perception is worse
for the changes that occur along the lateral axis than the normal axis. Keywords: Perception; stiffness; exploratory procedures; JND | |||
| Models of and Experiments with Reaching Tasks in Haptic Virtual Environments | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 32-41 | |
| Mikhail Svinin; Igor Goncharenko | |||
| The paper presents an analysis of human reaching movements in manipulation
of flexible objects. To predict the trajectory of human hand we resort to two
models, the lowest polynomial order model for the hand movement and the minimum
hand jerk model. First, we derive analytical solutions for these models for the
dynamic environment represented by a multi-mass linear flexible object. Then,
we present experimental results obtained with the use of a haptic interface. It
is shown that the lowest polynomial order model does not fit with the
experimental data while the prediction by the minimum hand jerk criterion
matches the experimental patterns with reasonable accuracy. Keywords: Human movements; reaching task; dynamic environment; modeling; haptic
interface | |||
| Consonance Perception of Vibrotactile Chords: A Feasibility Study | | BIBA | Full-Text | 42-51 | |
| Yongjae Yoo; Inwook Hwang; Seungmoon Choi | |||
| This paper is concerned with the perception of complex vibrotactile stimuli in which a few sinusoidal vibrations with different frequencies are superimposed. We begin with an observation that such vibrotactile signals are analogous to musical chords where multiple notes are played simultaneously. A set of "vibrotactile chords" are designed based on the musical chords, and their degrees of consonance (harmony) that participants perceive are evaluated through a perception experiment. Experimental results indicate that the participants can robustly rate the degree of consonance of the vibrotactile chords and establish a well-defined relation of the degree of consonance to the base and chordal frequencies of a vibrotactile chord. These findings have direct implications to the design of complex vibrotactile signals that can be produced by current wideband actuators such as voice-coil, piezoelectric, and electroactive polymer actuators. | |||
| Vocal Manipulation Based on Pitch Transcription and Its Application to Interactive Entertainment for Karaoke | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 52-60 | |
| Kota Nakano; Masanori Morise; Takanobu Nishiura | |||
| A real-time vocal manipulation system is described for improving karaoke.
Karaoke is an interactive entertainment system where users sing along with
recorded music, and it is used all over the world. However, although the users
should sing with accurate pitch, it is difficult for the tone-deaf people to
sing with accurate pitch. In this paper, a real-time vocal manipulation system
is proposed to help tone-deaf people. The system consists of vocoder-based
voice synthesis method that can synthesize the voiced sound with fundamental
frequency (pitch) and spectral envelope (timbre). Vocal manipulation is
achieved based on pitch transcription by replacing the pitch of a tone-deaf
person with that of a professional singer. Subjective evaluation is carried out
to verify the effectiveness of the proposed system. The results suggested that
the proposed system can manipulate vocal sounds in real time. Keywords: Vocal manipulation; Vocoder; Interactive entertainment; Karaoke | |||
| Calm Down -- Exploiting Sensorimotor Entrainment in Breathing Regulation Application | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 61-70 | |
| Antti Pirhonen; Kai Tuuri | |||
| Various phenomena in human life are related to different kinds of rhythms.
Not only are our bodily functions based on rhythms, but also much of the
interaction with our environment is related to them. In this study, we explore
breathing regulation and how it could be supported with an interactive
application. The application is based on the concept of entrainment, in which
two interacting entities adjust to a common rhythm. The focus is in the design
of interaction elements which support entrainment process. A user study of a
prototype application is also reported in the paper. The results indicate that
the approach is promising and has potential in opening new perspectives to
human-computer interaction. Keywords: breathing regulation; entrainment; multimodal interaction | |||
| Equal Intensity Contours for Whole-Body Vibrations Compared with Vibrations Cross-Modally Matched to Isophones | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 71-80 | |
| Sebastian Merchel; M. Ercan Altinsoy; Maik Stamm | |||
| In this study, two experiments were conducted to determine the curves of
equal intensity perception for sinusoidal vertical whole-body vibrations (WBV)
of seated subjects over the frequency range from 10 Hz to 250 Hz. Vibrations
were presented to subjects using a flat hard seat. In total, 10 participants
were asked to match the intensity of different vibrations, using a method of
adjustment. The obtained contours were compared with the threshold of vibration
and to vibrations cross-modally matched to tones from isophones.
The shapes of the equal intensity contours in the present study show reasonable agreement with the contours from other studies despite the use of different methodologies and experimental questions. The contours show a characteristic similar to the perception threshold. No dependency of vibration magnitude on the shape of the contours was found in the applied dynamic range. However, large inter-individual variations were observed. The results imply that vibration curves that are cross-modally matched to isophones show similar characteristics. Keywords: Equal Intensity Contour; Whole-Body Vibration; Isophone; Audio-Tactile
Perception; Cross-Modality Matching | |||
| Spinlock: A Single-Cue Haptic and Audio PIN Input Technique for Authentication | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 81-90 | |
| Andrea Bianchi; Ian Oakley; Dong Soo Kwon | |||
| Authentication in public spaces is inherently exposed to observation attacks
in which passwords are stolen by the simple act of watching the data input
process. Addressing this issue are systems that secure authentication input via
PINs or passwords that rely on sets of relatively unobservable tactile or audio
cues. However, although secure, such systems typically invoke high levels of
cognitive load in their users which is instantiated in lengthy authentication
times and high error rates and most likely due to significant cognitive demands
in terms of processing, mapping or recalling non visual information. To address
this issue this paper introduces Spinlock, a novel authentication technique
based on repeated presentation, recognition and enumeration of a single, simple
invisible cue (audio or haptic), rather than a set of structured stimuli. This
approach maintains the security but avoids the complexity of previous systems.
A prototype illustrating this concept is described as well as a study comparing
modalities and gauging overall levels of performance, usability and security.
The results show that authentication with Spinlock is faster and less error
prone than previous non-visual systems, while maintaining a similar security
level. Limitations and future work are discussed. Keywords: Authentication; haptic and audio PIN; mobile | |||
| Vibrotactile Recognition by Western and Indian Population Groups of Traditional Musical Scales Played with the Harmonium | | BIBA | Full-Text | 91-100 | |
| Marco Romagnoli; Federico Fontana; Ratna Sarkar | |||
| An experiment was carried out to evaluate the vibrotactile recognition of musical scales produced by an harmonium. The stimuli consisted of four scales played by an Indian performer living in Europe: two western, and two oriental. After listening to the scales without touching the harmonium during a training session, subjects had to put their hands on the instrument and wear headphones emitting a masking noise. Under such conditions they evaluated the same scales, played by the same performer. The experiment was made in Italy and then repeated in India, involving native population groups. Results reveal ability of both groups to recognize the ethnic origin of the scales, limitedly to musicians and with no significant differences between groups. The surprisingly high performance level may suggest possible support during the task of auditory cues capable to bypass the masking noise through bone conduction, and/or perceptual bias due to temporal nuances introduced by the performer. More intriguing appears the hypothesis on possibilities for the musicians to draw from a well-developed tactile memory for tones or harmonic series, result of the training on their acoustic musical instrument. Further experiments would be needed to clarify the importance of touch in the recognition of musical scales, especially for multimodal interface designs in which such temporal patterns may bring significant vibrotactile information to users. | |||
| Influence of the Auditory Localization Direction on the Haptic Estimation of Virtual Length | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 101-109 | |
| Maik Stamm; M. Ercan Altinsoy; Sebastian Merchel | |||
| Haptic feedback can be utilized for solving a variety of different tasks in
the virtual world. The identification of virtual shapes and objects is a
particularly important task. Stamm et al. strived to detect the basic
principles of shape and object identification in virtual worlds while
conducting haptic identification experiments with numerous virtual models in a
previous study. During the exploration and recognition process subjects
experienced various difficulties that directly refer to the basic principles.
One of those difficulties is subjects' insufficient spatial orientation in the
virtual scene. A promising approach refers to the utilization of auditory
localization cues. However, it is important to investigate possible interaction
effects of such a multimodal reproduction. This work investigates if the haptic
recognition of geometrical characteristics could be influenced by
simultaneously reproduced localization cues. Specifically, it is investigated
if the auditory localization direction influences the haptic length estimation
of virtual objects. Keywords: haptic virtual objects; length estimation; force-feedback; auditory
localization direction; stereophony | |||
| Auditory Brain-Computer/Machine-Interface Paradigms Design | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 110-119 | |
| Tomasz M. Rutkowski | |||
| The paper discusses novel and interesting, from users' point of view, design
of auditory brain-computer/machine interfaces (BCI/ BMI) utilizing human
auditory responses. Two concepts of auditory stimuli BCI/BMI are presented. The
first paradigm is based on steady-state tonal or musical stimuli yielding
satisfactory EEG response classification for several seconds long stimuli. The
second discussed paradigm is based on spatial sound localization and the brain
evoked responses estimation, requiring shorter than a second stimuli
presentation. In conclusion the preliminary results are discussed and
suggestions for further applications are drawn. Keywords: brain-computer-interface; brain-machine-interface; auditory neuroscience | |||
| Noncontact Haptic Interface Using Ultrasound | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 120-127 | |
| Hiroyuki Shinoda | |||
| The current haptic technologies in 1-to-1 teleoperations, mobile
communications, and computer games have already moved into a phase of practical
use. One of the next attractive challenges is haptic assistance to unspecified
people in public spaces. The potential demands for haptic assistance include
alarming and guiding people, delivering knowledge and experiences, collecting
people's intentions, and offering entertainment in public spaces. We need a
technological leap from the conventional mechanical methods to enable ordinary
people to enjoy public haptic assistance without special devices held in their
hands. In this keynote speech, a non-contact tactile display using airborne
ultrasound is introduced as a solution. Radiant pressure by convergent
ultrasound beams produces tactile sensations on bare skin. It is even possible
to apply haptic stimulations to people moving around in an open space.
Combining the tactile display with 3D images realizes programmable 3D
interfaces with tactile responses. The basic principle, characteristics, and
limitations are explained. Also, the future of noncontact haptics, including
remote haptic sensing and haptic sharing, will be discussed. Keywords: Haptic interface; remote haptic display; ultrasound tactile display; haptic
sharing | |||
| Smell-Based Memory Recollection and Communication Support | | BIBAK | Full-Text | 128-134 | |
| Yusuke Kita; Yoshio Nakatani | |||
| Many victims of The Great Best Japan Earthquake lost many precious mementos.
Such losses can result in more time being required to recover emotionally and
mentally. This paper proposes an effective reminder management system using
smell. The system focuses support for recollecting fond memories. Preliminary
experiments using a device that produces smell showed that it was effective to
help recall fond memories by smell. This system encourages us to remember fond
memories by inducing specific smells, recording smells in a system, and
allowing communication between people who have similar experiences. Keywords: fond memories; recollection; communication; olfactory modality | |||