Multisensory Interactions between Auditory and Haptic Object Recognition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kassuba, Tanja; Menz, Mareike M; R�der, Brigitte

2013-01-01

and haptic object features activate cortical regions that host unified conceptual object representations. The left fusiform gyrus (FG) and posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) showed increased activation during crossmodal matching of semantically congruent but not incongruent object stimuli. In the FG...

Effects of 3D virtual haptics force feedback on brand personality perception: the mediating role of physical presence in advergames.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Seung-A Annie

2010-06-01

This study gauged the effects of force feedback in the Novint Falcon haptics system on the sensory and cognitive dimensions of a virtual test-driving experience. First, in order to explore the effects of tactile stimuli with force feedback on users' sensory experience, feelings of physical presence (the extent to which virtual physical objects are experienced as actual physical objects) were measured after participants used the haptics interface. Second, to evaluate the effects of force feedback on the cognitive dimension of consumers' virtual experience, this study investigated brand personality perception. The experiment utilized the Novint Falcon haptics controller to induce immersive virtual test-driving through tactile stimuli. The author designed a two-group (haptics stimuli with force feedback versus no force feedback) comparison experiment (N = 238) by manipulating the level of force feedback. Users in the force feedback condition were exposed to tactile stimuli involving various force feedback effects (e.g., terrain effects, acceleration, and lateral forces) while test-driving a rally car. In contrast, users in the control condition test-drove the rally car using the Novint Falcon but were not given any force feedback. Results of ANOVAs indicated that (a) users exposed to force feedback felt stronger physical presence than those in the no force feedback condition, and (b) users exposed to haptics stimuli with force feedback perceived the brand personality of the car to be more rugged than those in the control condition. Managerial implications of the study for product trial in the business world are discussed.

Precise Haptic Device Co-Location for Visuo-Haptic Augmented Reality.

Science.gov (United States)

Eck, Ulrich; Pankratz, Frieder; Sandor, Christian; Klinker, Gudrun; Laga, Hamid

2015-12-01

Visuo-haptic augmented reality systems enable users to see and touch digital information that is embedded in the real world. PHANToM haptic devices are often employed to provide haptic feedback. Precise co-location of computer-generated graphics and the haptic stylus is necessary to provide a realistic user experience. Previous work has focused on calibration procedures that compensate the non-linear position error caused by inaccuracies in the joint angle sensors. In this article we present a more complete procedure that additionally compensates for errors in the gimbal sensors and improves position calibration. The proposed procedure further includes software-based temporal alignment of sensor data and a method for the estimation of a reference for position calibration, resulting in increased robustness against haptic device initialization and external tracker noise. We designed our procedure to require minimal user input to maximize usability. We conducted an extensive evaluation with two different PHANToMs, two different optical trackers, and a mechanical tracker. Compared to state-of-the-art calibration procedures, our approach significantly improves the co-location of the haptic stylus. This results in higher fidelity visual and haptic augmentations, which are crucial for fine-motor tasks in areas such as medical training simulators, assembly planning tools, or rapid prototyping applications.

Haptic teleoperation systems signal processing perspective

CERN Document Server

Lee, Jae-young

2015-01-01

This book examines the signal processing perspective in haptic teleoperation systems. This text covers the topics of prediction, estimation, architecture, data compression, and error correction that can be applied to haptic teleoperation systems. The authors begin with an overview of haptic teleoperation systems, then look at a Bayesian approach to haptic teleoperation systems. They move onto a discussion of haptic data compression, haptic data digitization and forward error correction.   ·         Presents haptic data prediction/estimation methods that compensate for unreliable networks   ·         Discusses haptic data compression that reduces haptic data size over limited network bandwidth and haptic data error correction that compensate for packet loss problem   ·         Provides signal processing techniques used with existing control architectures.

Vibrotactile perception assessment for a haptic interface on an antigravity suit.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Sang Min; Lee, Kwangil; Kim, Daeho; Ji, Yong Gu

2017-01-01

Haptic technology is used in various fields to transmit information to the user with or without visual and auditory cues. This study aimed to provide preliminary data for use in developing a haptic interface for an antigravity (anti-G) suit. With the structural characteristics of the anti-G suit in mind, we determined five areas on the body (lower back, outer thighs, inner thighs, outer calves, and inner calves) on which to install ten bar-type eccentric rotating mass (ERM) motors as vibration actuators. To determine the design factors of the haptic anti-G suit, we conducted three experiments to find the absolute threshold, moderate intensity, and subjective assessments of vibrotactile stimuli. Twenty-six fighter pilots participated in the experiments, which were conducted in a fixed-based flight simulator. From the results of our study, we recommend 1) absolute thresholds of ∼11.98-15.84 Hz and 102.01-104.06 dB, 2) moderate intensities of 74.36 Hz and 126.98 dB for the lower back and 58.65 Hz and 122.37 dB for either side of the thighs and calves, and 3) subjective assessments of vibrotactile stimuli (displeasure, easy to perceive, and level of comfort). The results of this study will be useful for the design of a haptic anti-G suit. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mobile Haptic Technology Development through Artistic Exploration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cuartielles, David; Göransson, Andreas; Olsson, Tony

2012-01-01

This paper investigates how artistic explorations can be useful for the development of mobile haptic technology. It presents an alternative framework of design for wearable haptics that contributes to the building of haptic communities outside specialized research contexts. The paper also present...

Active skin as new haptic interface

Science.gov (United States)

Vuong, Nguyen Huu Lam; Kwon, Hyeok Yong; Chuc, Nguyen Huu; Kim, Duksang; An, Kuangjun; Phuc, Vuong Hong; Moon, Hyungpil; Koo, Jachoon; Lee, Youngkwan; Nam, Jae-Do; Choi, Hyouk Ryeol

2010-04-01

In this paper, we present a new haptic interface, called "active skin", which is configured with a tactile sensor and a tactile stimulator in single haptic cell, and multiple haptic cells are embedded in a dielectric elastomer. The active skin generates a wide variety of haptic feel in response to the touch by synchronizing the sensor and the stimulator. In this paper, the design of the haptic cell is derived via iterative analysis and design procedures. A fabrication method dedicated to the proposed device is investigated and a controller to drive multiple haptic cells is developed. In addition, several experiments are performed to evaluate the performance of the active skin.

Review of Designs for Haptic Data Visualization.

Science.gov (United States)

Paneels, Sabrina; Roberts, Jonathan C

2010-01-01

There are many different uses for haptics, such as training medical practitioners, teleoperation, or navigation of virtual environments. This review focuses on haptic methods that display data. The hypothesis is that haptic devices can be used to present information, and consequently, the user gains quantitative, qualitative, or holistic knowledge about the presented data. Not only is this useful for users who are blind or partially sighted (who can feel line graphs, for instance), but also the haptic modality can be used alongside other modalities, to increase the amount of variables being presented, or to duplicate some variables to reinforce the presentation. Over the last 20 years, a significant amount of research has been done in haptic data presentation; e.g., researchers have developed force feedback line graphs, bar charts, and other forms of haptic representations. However, previous research is published in different conferences and journals, with different application emphases. This paper gathers and collates these various designs to provide a comprehensive review of designs for haptic data visualization. The designs are classified by their representation: Charts, Maps, Signs, Networks, Diagrams, Images, and Tables. This review provides a comprehensive reference for researchers and learners, and highlights areas for further research.

Human haptic perception is interrupted by explorative stops of milliseconds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin eGrunwald

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The explorative scanning movements of the hands have been compared to those of the eyes. The visual process is known to be composed of alternating phases of saccadic eye movements and fixation pauses. Descriptive results suggest that during the haptic exploration of objects short movement pauses occur as well. The goal of the present study was to detect these explorative stops (ES during one-handed and two-handed haptic explorations of various objects and patterns, and to measure their duration. Additionally, the associations between the following variables were analyzed: a between mean exploration time and duration of ES, b between certain stimulus features and ES frequency, and c the duration of ES during the course of exploration. Methods: Five different experiments were used. The first two experiments were classical recognition tasks of unknown haptic stimuli (A and of common objects (B. In experiment C space-position information of angle legs had to be perceived and reproduced. For experiments D and E the PHANToM haptic device was used for the exploration of virtual (D and real (E sunken reliefs. Results: In each experiment we observed explorative stops of different average durations. For experiment A: 329.50 ms, experiment B: 67.47 ms, experiment C: 189.92 ms, experiment D: 186.17 ms and experiment E: 140.02 ms. Significant correlations were observed between exploration time and the duration of the ES. Also, ES occurred more frequently, but not exclusively, at defined stimulus features like corners, curves and the endpoints of lines. However, explorative stops do not occur every time a stimulus feature is explored. Conclusions: We assume that ES are a general aspect of human haptic exploration processes. We have tried to interpret the occurrence and duration of ES with respect to the Hypotheses-Rebuild-Model and the Limited Capacity Control System theory.

Binding in haptics: integration of "what" and "where" information in working memory for active touch.

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Franco Delogu

Full Text Available Information about the identity and the location of perceptual objects can be automatically integrated in perception and working memory (WM. Contrasting results in visual and auditory WM studies indicate that the characteristics of feature-to-location binding can vary according to the sensory modality of the input. The present study provides first evidence of binding between "what" and "where" information in WM for haptic stimuli. In an old-new recognition task, blindfolded participants were presented in their peripersonal space with sequences of three haptic stimuli varying in texture and location. They were then required to judge if a single probe stimulus was previously included in the sequence. Recall was measured both in a condition in which both texture and location were relevant for the task (Experiment 1 and in two conditions where only one feature had to be recalled (Experiment 2. Results showed that when both features were task-relevant, even if the association of location and texture was neither necessary nor required to perform the task, participants exhibited a recall advantage in conditions in which the location and the texture of the target probe was kept unaltered between encoding and recall. By contrast, when only one feature was task-relevant, the concurrent feature did not influence the recall of the target feature. We conclude that attention to feature binding is not necessary for the emergence of feature integration in haptic WM. For binding to take place, however, it is necessary to encode and maintain in memory both the identity and the location of items.

Happiness takes you right: the effect of emotional stimuli on line bisection.

Science.gov (United States)

Cattaneo, Zaira; Lega, Carlotta; Boehringer, Jana; Gallucci, Marcello; Girelli, Luisa; Carbon, Claus-Christian

2014-01-01

Emotion recognition is mediated by a complex network of cortical and subcortical areas, with the two hemispheres likely being differently involved in processing positive and negative emotions. As results on valence-dependent hemispheric specialisation are quite inconsistent, we carried out three experiments with emotional stimuli with a task being sensitive to measure specific hemispheric processing. Participants were required to bisect visual lines that were delimited by emotional face flankers, or to haptically bisect rods while concurrently listening to emotional vocal expressions. We found that prolonged (but not transient) exposition to concurrent happy stimuli significantly shifted the bisection bias to the right compared to both sad and neutral stimuli, indexing a greater involvement of the left hemisphere in processing of positively connoted stimuli. No differences between sad and neutral stimuli were observed across the experiments. In sum, our data provide consistent evidence in favour of a greater involvement of the left hemisphere in processing positive emotions and suggest that (prolonged) exposure to stimuli expressing happiness significantly affects allocation of (spatial) attentional resources, regardless of the sensory (visual/auditory) modality in which the emotion is perceived and space is explored (visual/haptic).

Force control tasks with pure haptic feedback promote short-term focused attention.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Dangxiao; Zhang, Yuru; Yang, Xiaoxiao; Yang, Gaofeng; Yang, Yi

2014-01-01

Focused attention has great impact on our quality of life. Our learning, social skills and even happiness are closely intertwined with our capacity for focused attention. Attention promotion is replete with examples of training-induced increases in attention capability, most of which rely on visual and auditory stimulation. Pure haptic stimulation to increase attention capability is rarely found. We show that accurate force control tasks with pure haptic feedback enhance short-term focused attention. Participants were trained by a force control task in which information from visual and auditory channels was blocked, and only haptic feedback was provided. The trainees were asked to exert a target force within a pre-defined force tolerance for a specific duration. The tolerance was adaptively modified to different levels of difficulty to elicit full participant engagement. Three attention tests showed significant changes in different aspects of focused attention in participants who had been trained as compared with those who had not, thereby illustrating the role of haptic-based sensory-motor tasks in the promotion of short-term focused attention. The findings highlight the potential value of haptic stimuli in brain plasticity and serve as a new tool to extend existing computer games for cognitive enhancement.

Pantomime-grasping: Advance knowledge of haptic feedback availability supports an absolute visuo-haptic calibration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shirin eDavarpanah Jazi

2016-05-01

Full Text Available An emerging issue in movement neurosciences is whether haptic feedback influences the nature of the information supporting a simulated grasping response (i.e., pantomime-grasping. In particular, recent work by our group contrasted pantomime-grasping responses performed with (i.e., PH+ trials and without (i.e., PH- trials terminal haptic feedback in separate blocks of trials. Results showed that PH- trials were mediated via relative visual information. In contrast, PH+ trials showed evidence of an absolute visuo-haptic calibration – a finding attributed to an error signal derived from a comparison between expected and actual haptic feedback (i.e., an internal forward model. The present study examined whether advanced knowledge of haptic feedback availability influences the aforementioned calibration process. To that end, PH- and PH+ trials were completed in separate blocks (i.e., the feedback schedule used in our group’s previous study and a block wherein PH- and PH+ trials were randomly interleaved on a trial-by-trial basis (i.e., random feedback schedule. In other words, the random feedback schedule precluded participants from predicting whether haptic feedback would be available at the movement goal location. We computed just-noticeable-difference (JND values to determine whether responses adhered to, or violated, the relative psychophysical principles of Weber’s law. Results for the blocked feedback schedule replicated our group’s previous work, whereas in the random feedback schedule PH- and PH+ trials were supported via relative visual information. Accordingly, we propose that a priori knowledge of haptic feedback is necessary to support an absolute visuo-haptic calibration. Moreover, our results demonstrate that the presence and expectancy of haptic feedback is an important consideration in contrasting the behavioral and neural properties of natural and stimulated (i.e., pantomime-grasping grasping.

Clinical and optical intraocular performance of rotationally asymmetric multifocal IOL plate-haptic design versus C-loop haptic design.

Science.gov (United States)

Alió, Jorge L; Plaza-Puche, Ana B; Javaloy, Jaime; Ayala, María José; Vega-Estrada, Alfredo

2013-04-01

To compare the visual and intraocular optical quality outcomes with different designs of the refractive rotationally asymmetric multifocal intraocular lens (MFIOL) (Lentis Mplus; Oculentis GmbH, Berlin, Germany) with or without capsular tension ring (CTR) implantation. One hundred thirty-five consecutive eyes of 78 patients with cataract (ages 36 to 82 years) were divided into three groups: 43 eyes implanted with the C-Loop haptic design without CTR (C-Loop haptic only group); 47 eyes implanted with the C-Loop haptic design with CTR (C-Loop haptic with CTR group); and 45 eyes implanted with the plate-haptic design (plate-haptic group). Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, defocus curve, and ocular and intraocular optical quality were evaluated at 3 months postoperatively. Significant differences in the postoperative sphere were found (P = .01), with a more myopic postoperative refraction for the C-Loop haptic only group. No significant differences were detected in photopic and scotopic contrast sensitivity among groups (P ⩾ .05). Significantly better visual acuities were present in the C-Loop haptic with CTR group for the defocus levels of -2.0, -1.5, -1.0, and -0.50 D (P ⩽.03). Statistically significant differences among groups were found in total intraocular root mean square (RMS), high-order intraocular RMS, and intraocular coma-like RMS aberrations (P ⩽.04), with lower values from the plate-haptic group. The plate-haptic design and the C-Loop haptic design with CTR implantation both allow good visual rehabilitation. However, better refractive predictability and intraocular optical quality was obtained with the plate-haptic design without CTR implantation. The plate-haptic design seems to be a better design to support rotational asymmetric MFIOL optics. Copyright 2013, SLACK Incorporated.

Audio effects on haptics perception during drilling simulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yair Valbuena

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Virtual reality has provided immersion and interactions through computer generated environments attempting to reproduce real life experiences through sensorial stimuli. Realism can be achieved through multimodal interactions which can enhance the user’s presence within the computer generated world. The most notorious advances in virtual reality can be seen in computer graphics visuals, where photorealism is the norm thriving to overcome the uncanny valley. Other advances have followed related to sound, haptics, and in a lesser manner smell and taste feedback. Currently, virtual reality systems (multimodal immersion and interactions through visual-haptic-sound are being massively used in entertainment (e.g., cinema, video games, art, and in non-entertainment scenarios (e.g., social inclusion, educational, training, therapy, and tourism. Moreover, the cost reduction of virtual reality technologies has resulted in the availability at a consumer-level of various haptic, headsets, and motion tracking devices. Current consumer-level devices offer low-fidelity experiences due to the properties of the sensors, displays, and other electro-mechanical devices, that may not be suitable for high-precision or realistic experiences requiring dexterity. However, research has been conducted on how toovercome or compensate the lack of high fidelity to provide an engaging user experience using storytelling, multimodal interactions and gaming elements. Our work focuses on analyzing the possible effects of auditory perception on haptic feedback within a drilling scenario. Drilling involves multimodal interactions and it is a task with multiple applications in medicine, crafting, and construction. We compare two drilling scenarios were two groups of participants had to drill through wood while listening to contextual and non-contextual audios. We gathered their perception using a survey after the task completion. From the results, we believe that sound does

Structural impact detection with vibro-haptic interfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Hwee-Kwon; Park, Gyuhae; Todd, Michael D.

2016-07-01

This paper presents a new sensing paradigm for structural impact detection using vibro-haptic interfaces. The goal of this study is to allow humans to ‘feel’ structural responses (impact, shape changes, and damage) and eventually determine health conditions of a structure. The target applications for this study are aerospace structures, in particular, airplane wings. Both hardware and software components are developed to realize the vibro-haptic-based impact detection system. First, L-shape piezoelectric sensor arrays are deployed to measure the acoustic emission data generated by impacts on a wing. Unique haptic signals are then generated by processing the measured acoustic emission data. These haptic signals are wirelessly transmitted to human arms, and with vibro-haptic interface, human pilots could identify impact location, intensity and possibility of subsequent damage initiation. With the haptic interface, the experimental results demonstrate that human could correctly identify such events, while reducing false indications on structural conditions by capitalizing on human’s classification capability. Several important aspects of this study, including development of haptic interfaces, design of optimal human training strategies, and extension of the haptic capability into structural impact detection are summarized in this paper.

A Haptic Feedback Scheme to Accurately Position a Virtual Wrist Prosthesis Using a Three-Node Tactor Array.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew Erwin

Full Text Available In this paper, a novel haptic feedback scheme, used for accurately positioning a 1DOF virtual wrist prosthesis through sensory substitution, is presented. The scheme employs a three-node tactor array and discretely and selectively modulates the stimulation frequency of each tactor to relay 11 discrete haptic stimuli to the user. Able-bodied participants were able to move the virtual wrist prosthesis via a surface electromyography based controller. The participants evaluated the feedback scheme without visual or audio feedback and relied solely on the haptic feedback alone to correctly position the hand. The scheme was evaluated through both normal (perpendicular and shear (lateral stimulations applied on the forearm. Normal stimulations were applied through a prototype device previously developed by the authors while shear stimulations were generated using an ubiquitous coin motor vibrotactor. Trials with no feedback served as a baseline to compare results within the study and to the literature. The results indicated that using normal and shear stimulations resulted in accurately positioning the virtual wrist, but were not significantly different. Using haptic feedback was substantially better than no feedback. The results found in this study are significant since the feedback scheme allows for using relatively few tactors to relay rich haptic information to the user and can be learned easily despite a relatively short amount of training. Additionally, the results are important for the haptic community since they contradict the common conception in the literature that normal stimulation is inferior to shear. From an ergonomic perspective normal stimulation has the potential to benefit upper limb amputees since it can operate at lower frequencies than shear-based vibrotactors while also generating less noise. Through further tuning of the novel haptic feedback scheme and normal stimulation device, a compact and comfortable sensory substitution

Video Game Device Haptic Interface for Robotic Arc Welding

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Corrie I. Nichol; Milos Manic

2009-05-01

Recent advances in technology for video games have made a broad array of haptic feedback devices available at low cost. This paper presents a bi-manual haptic system to enable an operator to weld remotely using the a commercially available haptic feedback video game device for the user interface. The system showed good performance in initial tests, demonstrating the utility of low cost input devices for remote haptic operations.

UPPER LIMB FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT USING HAPTIC INTERFACE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleš Bardorfer

2004-12-01

Full Text Available A new method for the assessment of the upper limb (UL functional state, using a haptic interface is presented. A haptic interface is used as a measuring device, capable of providing objective, repeatable and quantitative data of the UL motion. A patient is presented with a virtual environment, both graphically via a computer screen and haptically via the Phantom Premium 1.5 haptic interface. The setup allows the patient to explore and feel the virtual environment with three of his/her senses; sight, hearing, and most important, touch. Specially designed virtual environments are used to assess the patient’s UL movement capabilities. The tests range from tracking tasks – to assess the accuracy of movement – tracking tasks with added disturbances in a form of random forces – to assess the patient’s control abilities, a labyrinth test – to assess both speed and accuracy, to the last test for measuring the maximal force capacity of the UL.A new method for the assessment of the upper limb (UL functional state, using a haptic interface is presented. A haptic interface is used as a measuring device, capable of providing objective, repeatable and quantitative data of the UL motion. A patient is presented with a virtual environment, both graphically via a computer screen and haptically via the Phantom Premium 1.5 haptic interface. The setup allows the patient to explore and feel the virtual environment with three of his/her senses; sight, hearing, and most important, touch. Specially designed virtual environments are used to assess the patient’s UL movement capabilities. The tests range from tracking tasks–to assess the accuracy of movement-tracking tasks with added disturbances in a form of random forces-to assess the patient’s control abilities, a labyrinth test-to assess both speed and accuracy, to the last test for measuring the maximal force capacity of the UL.A comprehensive study, using the developed measurement setup within the

Absence of modulatory action on haptic height perception with musical pitch

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michele eGeronazzo

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Although acoustic frequency is not a spatial property of physical objects, in common language, pitch, i.e., the psychological correlated of frequency, is often labeled spatially (i.e., high in pitch or low in pitch. Pitch-height is known to modulate (and interact with the response of participants when they are asked to judge spatial properties of non-auditory stimuli (e.g., visual in a variety of behavioral tasks. In the current study we investigated whether the modulatory action of pitch-height extended to the haptic estimation of height of a virtual step.We implemented a HW/SW setup which is able to render virtual 3D objects (stair-steps haptically through a PHANTOM device, and to provide real-time continuous auditory feedback depending on the user interaction with the object. The haptic exploration was associated with a sinusoidal tone whose pitch varied as a function of the interaction point’s height within (i a narrower and (ii a wider pitch range, or (iii a random pitch variation acting as a control audio condition. Explorations were also performed with no sound (haptic only. Participants were instructed to explore the virtual step freely, and to communicate height estimation by opening their thumb and index finger to mimic the step riser height, or verbally by reporting the height in centimeters of the step riser. We analyzed the role of musical expertise by dividing participants into non musicians and musicians. Results showed no effects of musical pitch on high-realistic haptic feedback. Overall there is no difference between the two groups in the proposed multimodal conditions. Additionally, we observed a different haptic response distribution between musicians and non musicians when estimations of the auditory conditions are matched with estimations in the no sound condition.

Wide-Area Haptic Guidance: Taking the User by the Hand

OpenAIRE

Pérez Arias, Antonia; Hanebeck, Uwe D.

2010-01-01

In this paper, we present a novel use of haptic information in extended range telepresence, the wide-area haptic guidance. It consists of force and position signals applied to the user's hand in order to improve safety, accuracy, and speed in some telepresent tasks. Wide-area haptic guidance assists the user in reaching a desired position in a remote environment of arbitrary size without degrading the feeling of presence. Several methods for haptic guidance are analyzed. With active haptic gu...

Haptic perception

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kappers, A.M.L.; Bergmann Tiest, W.M.

2013-01-01

Fueled by novel applications, interest in haptic perception is growing. This paper provides an overview of the state of the art of a number of important aspects of haptic perception. By means of touch we can not only perceive quite different material properties, such as roughness, compliance,

Pervasive haptics science, design, and application

CERN Document Server

Saga, Satoshi; Konyo, Masashi

2016-01-01

This book examines the state of the art in diverse areas of haptics (touch)-related research, including the psychophysics and neurophysiology of haptics, development of haptics displays and sensors, and applications to a wide variety of fields such as industry, education, therapy, medicine, and welfare for the visually impaired. It also discusses the potential of future haptics interaction, such as haptics for emotional control and remote haptics communication. The book offers a valuable resource not only for haptics and human interface researchers, but also for developers and designers at manufacturing corporations and in the entertainment industries.

A magnetorheological haptic cue accelerator for manual transmission vehicles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Young-Min; Noh, Kyung-Wook; Choi, Seung-Bok; Lee, Yang-Sub

2010-01-01

This paper proposes a new haptic cue function for manual transmission vehicles to achieve optimal gear shifting. This function is implemented on the accelerator pedal by utilizing a magnetorheological (MR) brake mechanism. By combining the haptic cue function with the accelerator pedal, the proposed haptic cue device can transmit the optimal moment of gear shifting for manual transmission to a driver without requiring the driver's visual attention. As a first step to achieve this goal, a MR fluid-based haptic device is devised to enable rotary motion of the accelerator pedal. Taking into account spatial limitations, the design parameters are optimally determined using finite element analysis to maximize the relative control torque. The proposed haptic cue device is then manufactured and its field-dependent torque and time response are experimentally evaluated. Then the manufactured MR haptic cue device is integrated with the accelerator pedal. A simple virtual vehicle emulating the operation of the engine of a passenger vehicle is constructed and put into communication with the haptic cue device. A feed-forward torque control algorithm for the haptic cue is formulated and control performances are experimentally evaluated and presented in the time domain

Enhancing audiovisual experience with haptic feedback: a survey on HAV.

Science.gov (United States)

Danieau, F; Lecuyer, A; Guillotel, P; Fleureau, J; Mollet, N; Christie, M

2013-01-01

Haptic technology has been widely employed in applications ranging from teleoperation and medical simulation to art and design, including entertainment, flight simulation, and virtual reality. Today there is a growing interest among researchers in integrating haptic feedback into audiovisual systems. A new medium emerges from this effort: haptic-audiovisual (HAV) content. This paper presents the techniques, formalisms, and key results pertinent to this medium. We first review the three main stages of the HAV workflow: the production, distribution, and rendering of haptic effects. We then highlight the pressing necessity for evaluation techniques in this context and discuss the key challenges in the field. By building on existing technologies and tackling the specific challenges of the enhancement of audiovisual experience with haptics, we believe the field presents exciting research perspectives whose financial and societal stakes are significant.

Haptics for Virtual Reality and Teleoperation

CERN Document Server

Mihelj, Matjaž

2012-01-01

This book covers all topics relevant for the design of haptic interfaces and teleoperation systems. The book provides the basic knowledge required for understanding more complex approaches and more importantly it introduces all issues that must be considered for designing efficient and safe haptic interfaces. Topics covered in this book provide insight into all relevant components of a haptic system. The reader is guided from understanding the virtual reality concept to the final goal of being able to design haptic interfaces for specific tasks such as nanomanipulation.  The introduction chapter positions the haptic interfaces within the virtual reality context. In order to design haptic interfaces that will comply with human capabilities at least basic understanding of human sensors-motor system is required. An overview of this topic is provided in the chapter related to human haptics. The book does not try to introduce the state-of-the-art haptic interface solutions because these tend to change quickly. On...

Evaluation of flexible endoscope steering using haptic guidance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Reilink, Rob; Stramigioli, Stefano; Kappers, Astrid M L; Misra, Sarthak

Background: Steering the tip of a flexible endoscope relies on the physician's dexterity and experience. For complex flexible endoscopes, conventional controls may be inadequate. Methods: A steering method based on a multi-degree-of-freedom haptic device is presented. Haptic cues are generated based

Evaluation of flexible endoscope steering using haptic guidance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Reilink, Rob; Stramigioli, Stefano; Kappers, Astrid M.L.; Misra, Sarthak

2011-01-01

Background - Steering the tip of a flexible endoscope relies on the physician’s dexterity and experience. For complex flexible endoscopes, conventional controls may be inadequate. Methods - A steering method based on a multi-degree-of-freedom haptic device is presented. Haptic cues are generated

What you can't feel won't hurt you: Evaluating haptic hardware using a haptic contrast sensitivity function.

Science.gov (United States)

Salisbury, C M; Gillespie, R B; Tan, H Z; Barbagli, F; Salisbury, J K

2011-01-01

In this paper, we extend the concept of the contrast sensitivity function - used to evaluate video projectors - to the evaluation of haptic devices. We propose using human observers to determine if vibrations rendered using a given haptic device are accompanied by artifacts detectable to humans. This determination produces a performance measure that carries particular relevance to applications involving texture rendering. For cases in which a device produces detectable artifacts, we have developed a protocol that localizes deficiencies in device design and/or hardware implementation. In this paper, we present results from human vibration detection experiments carried out using three commercial haptic devices and one high performance voice coil motor. We found that all three commercial devices produced perceptible artifacts when rendering vibrations near human detection thresholds. Our protocol allowed us to pinpoint the deficiencies, however, and we were able to show that minor modifications to the haptic hardware were sufficient to make these devices well suited for rendering vibrations, and by extension, the vibratory components of textures. We generalize our findings to provide quantitative design guidelines that ensure the ability of haptic devices to proficiently render the vibratory components of textures.

Design and Control of a Haptic Enabled Robotic Manipulator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Yaqoob

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Robotic surgery offers various advantages over conventional surgery that includes less bleeding, less trauma, and more precise tissue cutting. However, even surgeons who use the best commercially available surgical robotic systems complain about the absence of haptic feedback in such systems. In this paper, we present the findings of our project to overcome this shortcoming of surgical robotic systems, in which a haptic-enabled robotic system based on master and slave topology is designed and developed. To detect real-time intrusion at the slave end, haptic feedback is implemented along with a programmable system on chip, functioning as an embedded system for processing information. In order to obtain real-time haptic feedback, force and motion sensors are mounted on each joint of the master and slave units. At the master end, results are displayed through a graphical user interface, along with the physical feeling of intrusion at the slave part. Apart from the obvious applications of the current system in robotic surgery, it could also be used in designing more intuitive video games with further precise haptic feedback mechanisms. Moreover, the results presented in our work should pave the way for further scientific investigation, to provide even better haptic mechanisms.

Teaching Classical Mechanics Concepts Using Visuo-Haptic Simulators

Science.gov (United States)

Neri, Luis; Noguez, Julieta; Robledo-Rella, Victor; Escobar-Castillejos, David; Gonzalez-Nucamendi, Andres

2018-01-01

In this work, the design and implementation of several physics scenarios using haptic devices are presented and discussed. Four visuo-haptic applications were developed for an undergraduate engineering physics course. Experiments with experimental and control groups were designed and implemented. Activities and exercises related to classical…

Pseudo-Haptic Feedback in Teleoperation.

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Neupert, Carsten; Matich, Sebastian; Scherping, Nick; Kupnik, Mario; Werthschutzky, Roland; Hatzfeld, Christian

2016-01-01

In this paper, we develop possible realizations of pseudo-haptic feedback in teleoperation systems based on existing works for pseudo-haptic feedback in virtual reality and the intended applications. We derive four potential factors affecting the performance of haptic feedback (calculation operator, maximum displacement, offset force, and scaling factor), which are analyzed in three compliance identification experiments. First, we analyze the principle usability of pseudo-haptic feedback by comparing information transfer measures for teleoperation and direct interaction. Pseudo-haptic interaction yields well above-chance performance, while direct interaction performs almost perfectly. In order to optimize pseudo-haptic feedback, in the second study we perform a full-factorial experimental design with 36 subjects performing 6,480 trials with 36 different treatments. Information transfer ranges from 0.68 bit to 1.72 bit in a task with a theoretical maximum of 2.6 bit, with a predominant effect of the calculation operator and a minor effect of the maximum displacement. In a third study, short- and long-term learning effects are analyzed. Learning effects regarding the performance of pseudo-haptic feedback cannot be observed for single-day experiments. Tests over 10 days show a maximum increase in information transfer of 0.8 bit. The results show the feasibility of pseudo-haptic feedback for teleoperation and can be used as design basis for task-specific systems.

Engineering haptic devices a beginner's guide

CERN Document Server

Hatzfeld, Christian

2014-01-01

In this greatly reworked second edition of Engineering Haptic Devices the psychophysic content has been thoroughly revised and updated. Chapters on haptic interaction, system structures and design methodology were rewritten from scratch to include further basic principles and recent findings. New chapters on the evaluation of haptic systems and the design of three exemplary haptic systems from science and industry have been added. This book was written for students and engineers that are faced with the development of a task-specific haptic system. It is a reference book for the basics of hap

1st International AsiaHaptics conference

CERN Document Server

Ando, Hideyuki; Kyung, Ki-Uk

2015-01-01

This book is aimed not only at haptics and human interface researchers, but also at developers and designers from manufacturing corporations and the entertainment industry who are working to change our lives. This publication comprises the proceedings of the first International AsiaHaptics conference, held in Tsukuba, Japan, in 2014. The book describes the state of the art of the diverse haptics- (touch-) related research, including scientific research into haptics perception and illusion, development of haptics devices, and applications for a wide variety of fields such as education, medicine, telecommunication, navigation, and entertainment.

Presentation of Aural Stimuli to Newborns and Premature Infants: An Audiological Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Cassidy

1999-01-01

The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to examine extant research in the field of music with premature and full term infants in order to identify protocols being used in the presentation of musical stimuli to neonates and (b) to use knowledge gleaned from audiology as a basis for suggesting a standardized protocol for use of musical stimuli with infants. Articles considered appropriate for inclusion in the analysis met the following criteria: (a) presented data for the effects of music on a dependent measure, (b) had subjects who were identified as either premature or term newborns receiving treatment after birth and prior to discharge from the hospital, and (c) used music for some or all of the aural stimuli. Articles (N = 20) were categorized by demographic information, types of aural stimuli, independent variables, dependent measures, and protocol used to present the musical stimuli. Of primary importance to this study was the protocol used in each study to present musical stimuli. Data regarding total duration of stimuli per day, longest duration of stimuli per day, method of stimuli presentation, placement of speakers, decibel level of stimuli, and where;he decibel level was measured reveal that there is no standard protocol being followed with regard to the presentation of aural stimuli. Recommendations include future research on (a) determining a minimum gestational age where music therapy may be appropriate, (b) determining the frequency spectrum perceived by a premature infant, (c) determining the decibel levels reaching the ear drum and assessing appropriate levels for minimum stimulation with maximum results, and (d) carefully considering the method of stimulus presentation as it will have an impact on the decibel level reaching the ear drum of these infants.

FGB: A Graphical and Haptic User Interface for Creating Graphical, Haptic User Interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

ANDERSON, THOMAS G.; BRECKENRIDGE, ARTHURINE; DAVIDSON, GEORGE S.

1999-01-01

The emerging field of haptics represents a fundamental change in human-computer interaction (HCI), and presents solutions to problems that are difficult or impossible to solve with a two-dimensional, mouse-based interface. To take advantage of the potential of haptics, however, innovative interaction techniques and programming environments are needed. This paper describes FGB (FLIGHT GHUI Builder), a programming tool that can be used to create an application specific graphical and haptic user interface (GHUI). FGB is itself a graphical and haptic user interface with which a programmer can intuitively create and manipulate components of a GHUI in real time in a graphical environment through the use of a haptic device. The programmer can create a GHUI without writing any programming code. After a user interface is created, FGB writes the appropriate programming code to a file, using the FLIGHT API, to recreate what the programmer created in the FGB interface. FGB saves programming time and increases productivity, because a programmer can see the end result as it is created, and FGB does much of the programming itself. Interestingly, as FGB was created, it was used to help build itself. The further FGB was in its development, the more easily and quickly it could be used to create additional functionality and improve its own design. As a finished product, FGB can be used to recreate itself in much less time than it originally required, and with much less programming. This paper describes FGB's GHUI components, the techniques used in the interface, how the output code is created, where programming additions and modifications should be placed, and how it can be compared to and integrated with existing API's such as MFC and Visual C++, OpenGL, and GHOST

Perceiving haptic feedback in virtual reality simulators.

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Våpenstad, Cecilie; Hofstad, Erlend Fagertun; Langø, Thomas; Mårvik, Ronald; Chmarra, Magdalena Karolina

2013-07-01

To improve patient safety, training of psychomotor laparoscopic skills is often done on virtual reality (VR) simulators outside the operating room. Haptic sensations have been found to influence psychomotor performance in laparoscopy. The emulation of haptic feedback is thus an important aspect of VR simulation. Some VR simulators try to simulate these sensations with handles equipped with haptic feedback. We conducted a survey on how laparoscopic surgeons perceive handles with and without haptic feedback. Surgeons with different levels of experience in laparoscopy were asked to test two handles: Xitact IHP with haptic feedback and Xitact ITP without haptic feedback (Mentice AB, Gothenburg, Sweden), connected to the LapSim (Surgical Science AB, Sweden) VR simulator. They performed two tasks on the simulator before answering 12 questions regarding the two handles. The surgeons were not informed about the differences in the handles. A total of 85 % of the 20 surgeons who participated in the survey claimed that it is important that handles with haptic feedback feel realistic. Ninety percent of the surgeons preferred the handles without haptic feedback. The friction in the handles with haptic feedback was perceived to be as in reality (5 %) or too high (95 %). Regarding the handles without haptic feedback, the friction was perceived as in reality (45 %), too low (50 %), or too high (5 %). A total of 85 % of the surgeons thought that the handle with haptic feedback attempts to simulate the resistance offered by tissue to deformation. Ten percent thought that the handle succeeds in doing so. The surveyed surgeons believe that haptic feedback is an important feature on VR simulators; however, they preferred the handles without haptic feedback because they perceived the handles with haptic feedback to add additional friction, making them unrealistic and not mechanically transparent.

Effect on High versus Low Fidelity Haptic Feedback in a Virtual Reality Baseball Simulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ryge, Andreas Nicolaj; Thomsen, Lui Albæk; Berthelsen, Theis

2017-01-01

In this paper we present a within-subjects study (n=26) comparing participants' experience of three kinds of haptic feedback (no haptic feedback, low fidelity haptic feedback and high fidelity haptic feedback) simulating the impact between a virtual baseball bat and ball. We noticed some minor ef...

Memory for curvature of objects: haptic touch vs. vision.

Science.gov (United States)

Ittyerah, Miriam; Marks, Lawrence E

2007-11-01

The present study examined the role of vision and haptics in memory for stimulus objects that vary along the dimension of curvature. Experiment 1 measured haptic-haptic (T-T) and haptic-visual (T-V) discrimination of curvature in a short-term memory paradigm, using 30-second retention intervals containing five different interpolated tasks. Results showed poorest performance when the interpolated tasks required spatial processing or movement, thereby suggesting that haptic information about shape is encoded in a spatial-motor representation. Experiment 2 compared visual-visual (V-V) and visual-haptic (V-T) short-term memory, again using 30-second delay intervals. The results of the ANOVA failed to show a significant effect of intervening activity. Intra-modal visual performance and cross-modal performance were similar. Comparing the four modality conditions (inter-modal V-T, T-V; intra-modal V-V, T-T, by combining the data of Experiments 1 and 2), in a global analysis, showed a reliable interaction between intervening activity and experiment (modality). Although there appears to be a general tendency for spatial and movement activities to exert the most deleterious effects overall, the patterns are not identical when the initial stimulus is encoded haptically (Experiment 1) and visually (Experiment 2).

Efficient Cross-Modal Transfer of Shape Information in Visual and Haptic Object Categorization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nina Gaissert

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Categorization has traditionally been studied in the visual domain with only a few studies focusing on the abilities of the haptic system in object categorization. During the first years of development, however, touch and vision are closely coupled in the exploratory procedures used by the infant to gather information about objects. Here, we investigate how well shape information can be transferred between those two modalities in a categorization task. Our stimuli consisted of amoeba-like objects that were parametrically morphed in well-defined steps. Participants explored the objects in a categorization task either visually or haptically. Interestingly, both modalities led to similar categorization behavior suggesting that similar shape processing might occur in vision and haptics. Next, participants received training on specific categories in one of the two modalities. As would be expected, training increased performance in the trained modality; however, we also found significant transfer of training to the other, untrained modality after only relatively few training trials. Taken together, our results demonstrate that complex shape information can be transferred efficiently across the two modalities, which speaks in favor of multisensory, higher-level representations of shape.

The haptic and the visual flash-lag effect and the role of flash characteristics.

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Knut Drewing

Full Text Available When a short flash occurs in spatial alignment with a moving object, the moving object is seen ahead the stationary one. Similar to this visual "flash-lag effect" (FLE it has been recently observed for the haptic sense that participants judge a moving hand to be ahead a stationary hand when judged at the moment of a short vibration ("haptic flash" that is applied when the two hands are spatially aligned. We further investigated the haptic FLE. First, we compared participants' performance in two isosensory visual or haptic conditions, in which moving object and flash were presented only in a single modality (visual: sphere and short color change, haptic: hand and vibration, and two bisensory conditions, in which the moving object was presented in both modalities (hand aligned with visible sphere, but the flash was presented only visually or only haptically. The experiment aimed to disentangle contributions of the flash's and the objects' modalities to the FLEs in haptics versus vision. We observed a FLE when the flash was visually displayed, both when the moving object was visual and visuo-haptic. Because the position of a visual flash, but not of an analogue haptic flash, is misjudged relative to a same visuo-haptic moving object, the difference between visual and haptic conditions can be fully attributed to characteristics of the flash. The second experiment confirmed that a haptic FLE can be observed depending on flash characteristics: the FLE increases with decreasing intensity of the flash (slightly modulated by flash duration, which had been previously observed for vision. These findings underline the high relevance of flash characteristics in different senses, and thus fit well with the temporal-sampling framework, where the flash triggers a high-level, supra-modal process of position judgement, the time point of which further depends on the processing time of the flash.

Visual and Haptic Mental Rotation

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Satoshi Shioiri

2011-10-01

Full Text Available It is well known that visual information can be retained in several types of memory systems. Haptic information can also be retained in a memory because we can repeat a hand movement. There may be a common memory system for vision and action. On the one hand, it may be convenient to have a common system for acting with visual information. On the other hand, different modalities may have their own memory and use retained information without transforming specific to the modality. We compared memory properties of visual and haptic information. There is a phenomenon known as mental rotation, which is possibly unique to visual representation. The mental rotation is a phenomenon where reaction time increases with the angle of visual target (eg,, a letter to identify. The phenomenon is explained by the difference in time to rotate the representation of the target in the visual sytem. In this study, we compared the effect of stimulus angle on visual and haptic shape identification (two-line shapes were used. We found that a typical effect of mental rotation for the visual stimulus. However, no such effect was found for the haptic stimulus. This difference cannot be explained by the modality differences in response because similar difference was found even when haptical response was used for visual representation and visual response was used for haptic representation. These results indicate that there are independent systems for visual and haptic representations.

Haptic interface of the KAIST-Ewha colonoscopy simulator II.

Science.gov (United States)

Woo, Hyun Soo; Kim, Woo Seok; Ahn, Woojin; Lee, Doo Yong; Yi, Sun Young

2008-11-01

This paper presents an improved haptic interface for the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Ewha Colonoscopy Simulator II. The haptic interface enables the distal portion of the colonoscope to be freely bent while guaranteeing sufficient workspace and reflective forces for colonoscopy simulation. Its force-torque sensor measures the profiles of the user. Manipulation of the colonoscope tip is monitored by four deflection sensors and triggers computations to render accurate graphic images corresponding to the rotation of the angle knob. Tack sensors are attached to the valve-actuation buttons of the colonoscope to simulate air injection or suction as well as the corresponding deformation of the colon. A survey study for face validation was conducted, and the result shows that the developed haptic interface provides realistic haptic feedback for colonoscopy simulations.

KinoHaptics: An Automated, Wearable, Haptic Assisted, Physio-therapeutic System for Post-surgery Rehabilitation and Self-care.

Science.gov (United States)

Rajanna, Vijay; Vo, Patrick; Barth, Jerry; Mjelde, Matthew; Grey, Trevor; Oduola, Cassandra; Hammond, Tracy

2016-03-01

A carefully planned, structured, and supervised physiotherapy program, following a surgery, is crucial for the successful diagnosis of physical injuries. Nearly 50 % of the surgeries fail due to unsupervised, and erroneous physiotherapy. The demand for a physiotherapist for an extended period is expensive to afford, and sometimes inaccessible. Researchers have tried to leverage the advancements in wearable sensors and motion tracking by building affordable, automated, physio-therapeutic systems that direct a physiotherapy session by providing audio-visual feedback on patient's performance. There are many aspects of automated physiotherapy program which are yet to be addressed by the existing systems: a wide classification of patients' physiological conditions to be diagnosed, multiple demographics of the patients (blind, deaf, etc.), and the need to pursue patients to adopt the system for an extended period for self-care. In our research, we have tried to address these aspects by building a health behavior change support system called KinoHaptics, for post-surgery rehabilitation. KinoHaptics is an automated, wearable, haptic assisted, physio-therapeutic system that can be used by a wide variety of demographics and for various physiological conditions of the patients. The system provides rich and accurate vibro-haptic feedback that can be felt by the user, irrespective of the physiological limitations. KinoHaptics is built to ensure that no injuries are induced during the rehabilitation period. The persuasive nature of the system allows for personal goal-setting, progress tracking, and most importantly life-style compatibility. The system was evaluated under laboratory conditions, involving 14 users. Results show that KinoHaptics is highly convenient to use, and the vibro-haptic feedback is intuitive, accurate, and has shown to prevent accidental injuries. Also, results show that KinoHaptics is persuasive in nature as it supports behavior change and habit building

Visual-Haptic Integration: Cue Weights are Varied Appropriately, to Account for Changes in Haptic Reliability Introduced by Using a Tool

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chie Takahashi

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Tools such as pliers systematically change the relationship between an object's size and the hand opening required to grasp it. Previous work suggests the brain takes this into account, integrating visual and haptic size information that refers to the same object, independent of the similarity of the ‘raw’ visual and haptic signals (Takahashi et al., VSS 2009. Variations in tool geometry also affect the reliability (precision of haptic size estimates, however, because they alter the change in hand opening caused by a given change in object size. Here, we examine whether the brain appropriately adjusts the weights given to visual and haptic size signals when tool geometry changes. We first estimated each cue's reliability by measuring size-discrimination thresholds in vision-alone and haptics-alone conditions. We varied haptic reliability using tools with different object-size:hand-opening ratios (1:1, 0.7:1, and 1.4:1. We then measured the weights given to vision and haptics with each tool, using a cue-conflict paradigm. The weight given to haptics varied with tool type in a manner that was well predicted by the single-cue reliabilities (MLE model; Ernst and Banks, 2002. This suggests that the process of visual-haptic integration appropriately accounts for variations in haptic reliability introduced by different tool geometries.

HSP v2: Haptic Signal Processing with Extensions for Physical Modeling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Overholt, Daniel; Kontogeorgakopoulos, Alexandros; Berdahl, Edgar

2010-01-01

The Haptic Signal Processing (HSP) platform aims to enable musicians to easily design and perform with digital haptic musical instruments [1]. In this paper, we present some new objects introduced in version v2 for modeling of musical dynamical systems such as resonators and vibrating strings. To....... To our knowledge, this is the first time that these diverse physical modeling elements have all been made available for a modular, real-time haptics platform....

Improved haptic interface for colonoscopy simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Woo, Hyun Soo; Kim, Woo Seok; Ahn, Woojin; Lee, Doo Yong; Yi, Sun Young

2007-01-01

This paper presents an improved haptic interface of the KAIST-Ewha colonoscopy simulator II. The haptic interface enables the distal portion of the colonoscope to be freely bent while guaranteeing enough workspace and reflective forces for colonoscopy simulation. Its force-torque sensor measures profiles of the user. Manipulation of the colonoscope tip is monitored by four deflection sensors, and triggers computation to render accurate graphic images corresponding to the angle knob rotation. Tack switches are attached on the valve-actuation buttons of the colonoscope to simulate air-injection or suction, and the corresponding deformation of the colon.

A magnetorheological fluid-based multifunctional haptic device for vehicular instrument controls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Young-Min; Kim, Chan-Jung; Choi, Seung-Bok

2009-01-01

This paper presents control performances of a magnetorheological (MR) fluid-based multifunctional haptic device which is applicable to vehicular instrument controls. By combining in-vehicle functions into a single device, the proposed haptic device can transmit various reflection forces for each comfort function to a driver without requiring the driver's visual attention. As a multifunctional haptic device, a MR knob is proposed in this work and then devised to be capable of both rotary and push motions with a single knob. Under consideration of the spatial limitations of vehicle dashboards, design parameters are optimally determined by finite element analysis, and the objective function is to maximize a relative control torque. The proposed haptic device is then manufactured, and in-vehicle comfort functions are constructed in a virtual environment which makes the functions to communicate with the haptic device. Subsequently, a feed-forward controller using torque/force maps is formulated for the force tracking control. Control performances such as reflection force of the haptic device are experimentally evaluated via the torque/force map-based feed-forward controller

Haptic spatial matching in near peripersonal space.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaas, Amanda L; Mier, Hanneke I van

2006-04-01

Research has shown that haptic spatial matching at intermanual distances over 60 cm is prone to large systematic errors. The error pattern has been explained by the use of reference frames intermediate between egocentric and allocentric coding. This study investigated haptic performance in near peripersonal space, i.e. at intermanual distances of 60 cm and less. Twelve blindfolded participants (six males and six females) were presented with two turn bars at equal distances from the midsagittal plane, 30 or 60 cm apart. Different orientations (vertical/horizontal or oblique) of the left bar had to be matched by adjusting the right bar to either a mirror symmetric (/ \\) or parallel (/ /) position. The mirror symmetry task can in principle be performed accurately in both an egocentric and an allocentric reference frame, whereas the parallel task requires an allocentric representation. Results showed that parallel matching induced large systematic errors which increased with distance. Overall error was significantly smaller in the mirror task. The task difference also held for the vertical orientation at 60 cm distance, even though this orientation required the same response in both tasks, showing a marked effect of task instruction. In addition, men outperformed women on the parallel task. Finally, contrary to our expectations, systematic errors were found in the mirror task, predominantly at 30 cm distance. Based on these findings, we suggest that haptic performance in near peripersonal space might be dominated by different mechanisms than those which come into play at distances over 60 cm. Moreover, our results indicate that both inter-individual differences and task demands affect task performance in haptic spatial matching. Therefore, we conclude that the study of haptic spatial matching in near peripersonal space might reveal important additional constraints for the specification of adequate models of haptic spatial performance.

Bilateral intraocular lens subluxation secondary to haptic angulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreno-Montañés, Javier; Fernández-Hortelano, Ana; Caire, Josemaría

2008-04-01

An 82-year-old man had uneventful phacoemulsification with bilateral implantation of a hydrophilic acrylic, single-piece intraocular lens (IOL) (ACR6D SE, Laboratoires Cornéal). Five years later, simultaneous and bilateral IOL subluxations occurred. In both eyes, the subluxation was situated on the side of one haptic that had moved forward (temporal area in the right eye and superior area in the left eye). In the right eye, the haptic-capsular bag was entrapped by the pupil and produced endothelial damage. A transscleral suture was placed over and under the subluxated haptic through the anterior and posterior capsules to capture the haptic. The haptic was then sutured to the sclera. No postoperative complications developed. We hypothesize that 10-degree angulated and broad haptic junctions can lead to zonular damage and IOL subluxation.

A Fabric-Based Approach for Wearable Haptics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matteo Bianchi

2016-07-01

Full Text Available In recent years, wearable haptic systems (WHS have gained increasing attention as a novel and exciting paradigm for human–robot interaction (HRI. These systems can be worn by users, carried around, and integrated in their everyday lives, thus enabling a more natural manner to deliver tactile cues. At the same time, the design of these types of devices presents new issues: the challenge is the correct identification of design guidelines, with the two-fold goal of minimizing system encumbrance and increasing the effectiveness and naturalness of stimulus delivery. Fabrics can represent a viable solution to tackle these issues. They are specifically thought “to be worn”, and could be the key ingredient to develop wearable haptic interfaces conceived for a more natural HRI. In this paper, the author will review some examples of fabric-based WHS that can be applied to different body locations, and elicit different haptic perceptions for different application fields. Perspective and future developments of this approach will be discussed.

Haptic and Audio Interaction Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 5th International Workshop on Haptic and Audio Interaction Design, HAID 2010 held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in September 2010. The 21 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected for inclusion in the book. The papers are or...

Telerobotic Haptic Exploration in Art Galleries and Museums for Individuals with Visual Impairments.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Chung Hyuk; Ryu, Eun-Seok; Howard, Ayanna M

2015-01-01

This paper presents a haptic telepresence system that enables visually impaired users to explore locations with rich visual observation such as art galleries and museums by using a telepresence robot, a RGB-D sensor (color and depth camera), and a haptic interface. The recent improvement on RGB-D sensors has enabled real-time access to 3D spatial information in the form of point clouds. However, the real-time representation of this data in the form of tangible haptic experience has not been challenged enough, especially in the case of telepresence for individuals with visual impairments. Thus, the proposed system addresses the real-time haptic exploration of remote 3D information through video encoding and real-time 3D haptic rendering of the remote real-world environment. This paper investigates two scenarios in haptic telepresence, i.e., mobile navigation and object exploration in a remote environment. Participants with and without visual impairments participated in our experiments based on the two scenarios, and the system performance was validated. In conclusion, the proposed framework provides a new methodology of haptic telepresence for individuals with visual impairments by providing an enhanced interactive experience where they can remotely access public places (art galleries and museums) with the aid of haptic modality and robotic telepresence.

Role of multisensory stimuli in vigilance enhancement- a single trial event related potential study.

Science.gov (United States)

Abbasi, Nida Itrat; Bodala, Indu Prasad; Bezerianos, Anastasios; Yu Sun; Al-Nashash, Hasan; Thakor, Nitish V

2017-07-01

Development of interventions to prevent vigilance decrement has important applications in sensitive areas like transportation and defence. The objective of this work is to use multisensory (visual and haptic) stimuli for cognitive enhancement during mundane tasks. Two different epoch intervals representing sensory perception and motor response were analysed using minimum variance distortionless response (MVDR) based single trial ERP estimation to understand the performance dependency on both factors. Bereitschaftspotential (BP) latency L3 (r=0.6 in phase 1 (visual) and r=0.71 in phase 2 (visual and haptic)) was significantly correlated with reaction time as compared to that of sensory ERP latency L2 (r=0.1 in both phase 1 and phase 2). This implies that low performance in monotonous tasks is predominantly dependent on the prolonged neural interaction with the muscles to initiate movement. Further, negative relationship was found between the ERP latencies related to sensory perception and Bereitschaftspotential (BP) and occurrence of epochs when multisensory cues are provided. This means that vigilance decrement is reduced with the help of multisensory stimulus presentation in prolonged monotonous tasks.

Haptic rendering for simulation of fine manipulation

CERN Document Server

Wang, Dangxiao; Zhang, Yuru

2014-01-01

This book introduces the latest progress in six degrees of freedom (6-DoF) haptic rendering with the focus on a new approach for simulating force/torque feedback in performing tasks that require dexterous manipulation skills. One of the major challenges in 6-DoF haptic rendering is to resolve the conflict between high speed and high fidelity requirements, especially in simulating a tool interacting with both rigid and deformable objects in a narrow space and with fine features. The book presents a configuration-based optimization approach to tackle this challenge. Addressing a key issue in man

Faster simulated laparoscopic cholecystectomy with haptic feedback technology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yiasemidou M

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Marina Yiasemidou, Daniel Glassman, Peter Vasas, Sarit Badiani, Bijendra Patel Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Department of Upper GI Surgery, Barts and The Royal London Hospital, London, UK Background: Virtual reality simulators have been gradually introduced into surgical training. One of the enhanced features of the latest virtual simulators is haptic feedback. The usefulness of haptic feedback technology has been a matter of controversy in recent years. Previous studies have assessed the importance of haptic feedback in executing parts of a procedure or basic tasks, such as tissue grasping. The aim of this study was to assess the role of haptic feedback within a structured educational environment, based on the performance of junior surgical trainees after undergoing substantial simulation training. Methods: Novices, whose performance was assessed after several repetitions of a task, were recruited for this study. The performance of senior house officers at the last stage of a validated laparoscopic cholecystectomy curriculum was assessed. Nine senior house officers completed a validated laparoscopic cholecystectomy curriculum on a haptic simulator and nine on a nonhaptic simulator. Performance in terms of mean total time, mean total number of movements, and mean total path length at the last level of the validated curriculum (full procedure of laparoscopic cholecystectomy was compared between the two groups. Results: Haptic feedback significantly reduced the time required to complete the full procedure of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (mean total time for nonhaptic machine 608.83 seconds, mean total time for haptic machine 553.27 seconds; P = 0.019 while maintaining safety standards similar to those of the nonhaptic machine (mean total number of movements: nonhaptic machine 583.74, haptic machine 603.93, P = 0.145, mean total path length: for nonhaptic machine 1207.37 cm, for haptic machine 1262.36 cm, P = 0

Developing Visual Editors for High-Resolution Haptic Patterns

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cuartielles, David; Göransson, Andreas; Olsson, Tony

2012-01-01

In this article we give an overview of our iterative work in developing visual editors for creating high resolution haptic patterns to be used in wearable, haptic feedback devices. During the past four years we have found the need to address the question of how to represent, construct and edit high...... resolution haptic patterns so that they translate naturally to the user’s haptic experience. To solve this question we have developed and tested several visual editors...

Different haptic tools reduce trunk velocity in the frontal plane during walking, but haptic anchors have advantages over lightly touching a railing.

Science.gov (United States)

Hedayat, Isabel; Moraes, Renato; Lanovaz, Joel L; Oates, Alison R

2017-06-01

There are different ways to add haptic input during walking which may affect walking balance. This study compared the use of two different haptic tools (rigid railing and haptic anchors) and investigated whether any effects on walking were the result of the added sensory input and/or the posture generated when using those tools. Data from 28 young healthy adults were collected using the Mobility Lab inertial sensor system (APDM, Oregon, USA). Participants walked with and without both haptic tools and while pretending to use both haptic tools (placebo trials), with eyes opened and eyes closed. Using the tools or pretending to use both tools decreased normalized stride velocity (p  .999). These findings highlight a difference in the type of tool used to add haptic input and suggest that changes in balance control strategy resulting from using the railing are based on arm placement, where it is the posture combined with added sensory input that affects balance control strategies with the haptic anchors. These findings provide a strong framework for additional research to be conducted on the effects of haptic input on walking in populations known to have decreased walking balance.

Persistent Neuronal Firing in Primary Somatosensory Cortex in the Absence of Working Memory of Trial-Specific Features of the Sample Stimuli in a Haptic Working Memory Task

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Liping; Li, Xianchun; Hsiao, Steven S.; Bodner, Mark; Lenz, Fred; Zhou, Yong-Di

2012-01-01

Previous studies suggested that primary somatosensory (SI) neurons in well-trained monkeys participated in the haptic-haptic unimodal delayed matching-to-sample (DMS) task. In this study, 585 SI neurons were recorded in monkeys performing a task that was identical to that in the previous studies but without requiring discrimination and active…

Virtual Reality and Haptics for Product Assembly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Teresa Restivo

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Haptics can significantly enhance the user's sense of immersion and interactivity. An industrial application of virtual reality and haptics for product assembly is described in this paper, which provides a new and low-cost approach for product assembly design, assembly task planning and assembly operation training. A demonstration of the system with haptics device interaction was available at the session of exp.at'11.

Haptic Cues Used for Outdoor Wayfinding by Individuals with Visual Impairments

Science.gov (United States)

Koutsoklenis, Athanasios; Papadopoulos, Konstantinos

2014-01-01

Introduction: The study presented here examines which haptic cues individuals with visual impairments use more frequently and determines which of these cues are deemed by these individuals to be the most important for way-finding in urban environments. It also investigates the ways in which these haptic cues are used by individuals with visual…

Real-time dual-band haptic music player for mobile devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Hwang, Inwook; Lee, Hyeseon; Choi, Seungmoon

2013-01-01

We introduce a novel dual-band haptic music player for real-time simultaneous vibrotactile playback with music in mobile devices. Our haptic music player features a new miniature dual-mode actuator that can produce vibrations consisting of two principal frequencies and a real-time vibration generation algorithm that can extract vibration commands from a music file for dual-band playback (bass and treble). The algorithm uses a "haptic equalizer" and provides plausible sound-to-touch modality conversion based on human perceptual data. In addition, we present a user study carried out to evaluate the subjective performance (precision, harmony, fun, and preference) of the haptic music player, in comparison with the current practice of bass-band-only vibrotactile playback via a single-frequency voice-coil actuator. The evaluation results indicated that the new dual-band playback outperforms the bass-only rendering, also providing several insights for further improvements. The developed system and experimental findings have implications for improving the multimedia experience with mobile devices.

How stimuli presentation format affects visual attention and choice outcomes in choice experiments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Orquin, Jacob Lund; Mueller Loose, Simone

This study analyses visual attention and part-worth utilities in choice experiments across three different choice stimuli presentation formats. Visual attention and choice behaviour in discrete choice experiments are found to be strongly affected by stimuli presentation format. These results...

fMRI-Compatible Electromagnetic Haptic Interface.

Science.gov (United States)

Riener, R; Villgrattner, T; Kleiser, R; Nef, T; Kollias, S

2005-01-01

A new haptic interface device is suggested, which can be used for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies. The basic component of this 1 DOF haptic device are two coils that produce a Lorentz force induced by the large static magnetic field of the MR scanner. A MR-compatible optical angular encoder and a optical force sensor enable the implementation of different control architectures for haptic interactions. The challenge was to provide a large torque, and not to affect image quality by the currents applied in the device. The haptic device was tested in a 3T MR scanner. With a current of up to 1A and a distance of 1m to the focal point of the MR-scanner it was possible to generate torques of up to 4 Nm. Within these boundaries image quality was not affected.

Incorporating Haptic Feedback in Simulation for Learning Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Insook; Black, John B.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a haptic augmented simulation in learning physics. The results indicate that haptic augmented simulations, both the force and kinesthetic and the purely kinesthetic simulations, were more effective than the equivalent non-haptic simulation in providing perceptual experiences and…

Stable haptic feedback based on a Dynamic Vision Sensor for Microrobotics.

OpenAIRE

Bolopion , Aude; Ni , Zhenjiang; Agnus , Joël; Benosman , Ryad; Régnier , Stéphane

2012-01-01

International audience; This work presents a stable vision based haptic feedback for micromanipulation using both an asynchronous Address Event Representation (AER) silicon retina and a conventional frame-based camera. At this scale, most of the grippers used to manipulate objects lack of force sensing. High frequency vision detection thus provides a sound solution to get information about the position of the object and the tool to provide virtual haptic guides. Artificial retinas present hig...

Towards open-source, low-cost haptics for surgery simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Suwelack, Stefan; Sander, Christian; Schill, Julian; Serf, Manuel; Danz, Marcel; Asfour, Tamim; Burger, Wolfgang; Dillmann, Rüdiger; Speidel, Stefanie

2014-01-01

In minimally invasive surgery (MIS), virtual reality (VR) training systems have become a promising education tool. However, the adoption of these systems in research and clinical settings is still limited by the high costs of dedicated haptics hardware for MIS. In this paper, we present ongoing research towards an open-source, low-cost haptic interface for MIS simulation. We demonstrate the basic mechanical design of the device, the sensor setup as well as its software integration.

The role of long-term and short-term familiarity in visual and haptic face recognition.

Science.gov (United States)

Casey, Sarah J; Newell, Fiona N

2005-10-01

Recent studies have suggested that the familiarity of a face leads to more robust recognition, at least within the visual domain. The aim of our study was to investigate whether face familiarity resulted in a representation of faces that was easily shared across the sensory modalities. In Experiment 1, we tested whether haptic recognition of a highly familiar face (one's own face) was as efficient as visual recognition. Our observers were unable to recognise their own face models from tactile memory alone but were able to recognise their faces visually. However, haptic recognition improved when participants were primed by their own live face. In Experiment 2, we found that short-term familiarisation with a set of previously unfamiliar face stimuli improved crossmodal recognition relative to the recognition of unfamiliar faces. Our findings suggest that familiarisation provides a strong representation of faces but that the nature of the information encoded during learning is critical for efficient crossmodal recognition.

Development of a Virtual Guitar using Haptic Device

OpenAIRE

田村,真晴; 山下,英生

2009-01-01

In recent years, a haptic device that output power as one of the computer output devices has been developed. We can get the feeling that we really touch the material through a sensor of haptic device when we touch a material simulated in a computer. In this research, a virtual guitar in which the feeling playing guitar and the sound volume are changed by adjusting power to input with a haptic device was developed. With the haptic device we feel as if we play a genuine guitar. Moreover, it see...

Feeling objects in Virtual Environments: Presence and Pseudo-Haptics in a Bowling Game

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Daniliauskaite, Kristina; Magnusdottir, Agusta; Bjørkå, Henrik Birke

2007-01-01

, by relying on visual cues, taking therefore advantage of sensory substitution (no haptic feedback device is actually present). The interdependency between presence and a pseudo-haptic feedback is investigated by building avirtual bowling game. Results indicate that there is a significant correlation between...

Operator dynamics for stability condition in haptic and teleoperation system: A survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hongbing; Zhang, Lei; Kawashima, Kenji

2018-04-01

Currently, haptic systems ignore the varying impedance of the human hand with its countless configurations and thus cannot recreate the complex haptic interactions. The literature does not reveal a comprehensive survey on the methods proposed and this study is an attempt to bridge this gap. The paper includes an extensive review of human arm impedance modeling and control deployed to address inherent stability and transparency issues in haptic interaction and teleoperation systems. Detailed classification and comparative study of various contributions in human arm modeling are presented and summarized in tables and diagrams. The main challenges in modeling human arm impedance for haptic robotic applications are identified. The possible future research directions are outlined based on the gaps identified in the survey. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Mechatronic design of haptic forceps for robotic surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Rizun, P; Gunn, D; Cox, B; Sutherland, G

2006-12-01

Haptic feedback increases operator performance and comfort during telerobotic manipulation. Feedback of grasping pressure is critical in many microsurgical tasks, yet no haptic interface for surgical tools is commercially available. Literature on the psychophysics of touch was reviewed to define the spectrum of human touch perception and the fidelity requirements of an ideal haptic interface. Mechanical design and control literature was reviewed to translate the psychophysical requirements to engineering specification. High-fidelity haptic forceps were then developed through an iterative process between engineering and surgery. The forceps are a modular device that integrate with a haptic hand controller to add force feedback for tool actuation in telerobotic or virtual surgery. Their overall length is 153 mm and their mass is 125 g. A contact-free voice coil actuator generates force feedback at frequencies up to 800 Hz. Maximum force output is 6 N (2N continuous) and the force resolution is 4 mN. The forceps employ a contact-free magnetic position sensor as well as micro-machined accelerometers to measure opening/closing acceleration. Position resolution is 0.6 microm with 1.3 microm RMS noise. The forceps can simulate stiffness greater than 20N/mm or impedances smaller than 15 g with no noticeable haptic artifacts or friction. As telerobotic surgery evolves, haptics will play an increasingly important role. Copyright 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

High Fidelity Haptic Rendering

CERN Document Server

Otaduy, Miguel A

2006-01-01

The human haptic system, among all senses, provides unique and bidirectional communication between humans and their physical environment. Yet, to date, most human-computer interactive systems have focused primarily on the graphical rendering of visual information and, to a lesser extent, on the display of auditory information. Extending the frontier of visual computing, haptic interfaces, or force feedback devices, have the potential to increase the quality of human-computer interaction by accommodating the sense of touch. They provide an attractive augmentation to visual display and enhance t

‘Haptic interventions as visual anthropology’

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kirstein Høgel, Arine

2017-01-01

This vignette arose in the course of a practice-led research project using “haptic interventions” to investigate contemporary consumption of cultural pasts and cultural difference. The vignette presents reworkings of unused and newly digitised archival material shot in the Persian Gulf in the 1950s...

A three-axis force sensor for dual finger haptic interfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Fontana, Marco; Marcheschi, Simone; Salsedo, Fabio; Bergamasco, Massimo

2012-10-10

In this work we present the design process, the characterization and testing of a novel three-axis mechanical force sensor. This sensor is optimized for use in closed-loop force control of haptic devices with three degrees of freedom. In particular the sensor has been conceived for integration with a dual finger haptic interface that aims at simulating forces that occur during grasping and surface exploration. The sensing spring structure has been purposely designed in order to match force and layout specifications for the application. In this paper the design of the sensor is presented, starting from an analytic model that describes the characteristic matrix of the sensor. A procedure for designing an optimal overload protection mechanism is proposed. In the last part of the paper the authors describe the experimental characterization and the integrated test on a haptic hand exoskeleton showing the improvements in the controller performances provided by the inclusion of the force sensor.

A Three-Axis Force Sensor for Dual Finger Haptic Interfaces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabio Salsedo

2012-10-01

Full Text Available In this work we present the design process, the characterization and testing of a novel three-axis mechanical force sensor. This sensor is optimized for use in closed-loop force control of haptic devices with three degrees of freedom. In particular the sensor has been conceived for integration with a dual finger haptic interface that aims at simulating forces that occur during grasping and surface exploration. The sensing spring structure has been purposely designed in order to match force and layout specifications for the application. In this paper the design of the sensor is presented, starting from an analytic model that describes the characteristic matrix of the sensor. A procedure for designing an optimal overload protection mechanism is proposed. In the last part of the paper the authors describe the experimental characterization and the integrated test on a haptic hand exoskeleton showing the improvements in the controller performances provided by the inclusion of the force sensor.

Power of theta waves in the EEG of human subjects increases during recall of haptic information.

Science.gov (United States)

Grunwald, M; Weiss, T; Krause, W; Beyer, L; Rost, R; Gutberlet, I; Gertz, H J

1999-02-05

Several studies have reported a functional relationship between spectral power within the theta-band of the EEG (theta-power) and memory load while processing visual or semantic information. We investigated theta power during the processing of different complex haptic stimuli using a delayed recall design. The haptic explorations consisted of palpating the structure of twelve sunken reliefs with closed eyes. Subjects had to reproduce each relief by drawing it 10 s after the end of the exploration. The relationship between mean theta power and mean exploration time was analysed using a regression model. A linear relationship was found between the exploration time and theta power over fronto-central regions (Fp1, Fp2, F3, F7, F8, Fz, C3) directly before the recall of the relief. This result is interpreted in favour of the hypothesis that fronto-central theta power of the EEG correlates with the load of working memory independent of stimulus modality.

Neodymium:YAG laser cutting of intraocular lens haptics in vitro and in vivo.

Science.gov (United States)

Feder, J M; Rosenberg, M A; Farber, M D

1989-09-01

Various complications following intraocular lens (IOL) surgery result in explantation of the lenses. Haptic fibrosis may necessitate cutting the IOL haptics prior to removal. In this study we used the neodymium: YAG (Nd:YAG) laser to cut polypropylene and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) haptics in vitro and in rabbit eyes. In vitro we were able to cut 100% of both haptic types successfully (28 PMMA and 30 polypropylene haptics). In rabbit eyes we were able to cut 50% of the PMMA haptics and 43% of the polypropylene haptics. Poly(methyl methacrylate) haptics were easier to cut in vitro and in vivo than polypropylene haptics, requiring fewer shots for transection. Complications of Nd:YAG laser use frequently interfered with haptic transections in rabbit eyes. Haptic transection may be more easily accomplished in human eyes.

Haptic Feedback for the GPU-based Surgical Simulator

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Thomas Sangild; Mosegaard, Jesper

2006-01-01

The GPU has proven to be a powerful processor to compute spring-mass based surgical simulations. It has not previously been shown however, how to effectively implement haptic interaction with a simulation running entirely on the GPU. This paper describes a method to calculate haptic feedback...... with limited performance cost. It allows easy balancing of the GPU workload between calculations of simulation, visualisation, and the haptic feedback....

Haptic perception accuracy depending on self-produced movement.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Chulwook; Kim, Seonjin

2014-01-01

This study measured whether self-produced movement influences haptic perception ability (experiment 1) as well as the factors associated with levels of influence (experiment 2) in racket sports. For experiment 1, the haptic perception accuracy levels of five male table tennis experts and five male novices were examined under two different conditions (no movement vs. movement). For experiment 2, the haptic afferent subsystems of five male table tennis experts and five male novices were investigated in only the self-produced movement-coupled condition. Inferential statistics (ANOVA, t-test) and custom-made devices (shock & vibration sensor, Qualisys Track Manager) of the data were used to determine the haptic perception accuracy (experiment 1, experiment 2) and its association with expertise. The results of this research show that expert-level players acquire higher accuracy with less variability (racket vibration and angle) than novice-level players, especially in their self-produced movement coupled performances. The important finding from this result is that, in terms of accuracy, the skill-associated differences were enlarged during self-produced movement. To explain the origin of this difference between experts and novices, the functional variability of haptic afferent subsystems can serve as a reference. These two factors (self-produced accuracy and the variability of haptic features) as investigated in this study would be useful criteria for educators in racket sports and suggest a broader hypothesis for further research into the effects of the haptic accuracy related to variability.

Representations of space based on haptic input

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zuidhoek, S.

2005-01-01

The present thesis focused on the representations of grasping space based on haptic input. We aimed at identifying their characteristics, and the underlying neurocognitive processes and mechanisms. To this end, we studied the systematic distortions in performance on several orientation perception

Development of haptic system for surgical robot

Science.gov (United States)

Gang, Han Gyeol; Park, Jiong Min; Choi, Seung-Bok; Sohn, Jung Woo

2017-04-01

In this paper, a new type of haptic system for surgical robot application is proposed and its performances are evaluated experimentally. The proposed haptic system consists of an effective master device and a precision slave robot. The master device has 3-DOF rotational motion as same as human wrist motion. It has lightweight structure with a gyro sensor and three small-sized MR brakes for position measurement and repulsive torque generation, respectively. The slave robot has 3-DOF rotational motion using servomotors, five bar linkage and a torque sensor is used to measure resistive torque. It has been experimentally demonstrated that the proposed haptic system has good performances on tracking control of desired position and repulsive torque. It can be concluded that the proposed haptic system can be effectively applied to the surgical robot system in real field.

Design of a New 4-DOF Haptic Master Featuring Magnetorheological Fluid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Byung-Keun Song

2014-08-01

Full Text Available This work presents a novel 4-degree-of-freedom (4-DOF haptic master using magnetorheological (MR fluid which is applicable to a robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS system. By using MR fluid, the proposed haptic device can easily generate bidirectional repulsive torque along the directions of the required motions. The proposed master consists of two actuators: an MR bidirectional clutch associated with a planetary gear system and an MR clutch with a bevel gear system. After demonstrating the configuration, the torque models of MR actuators are mathematically derived based on the field-dependent Bingham model. An optimal design that accounts for spatial-limitation and the desired torque constraint is then undertaken. An optimization procedure based on finite element analysis is proposed to determine optimal geometric dimensions. Based on the design procedure, MR haptic master with the optimal parameters has been manufactured. In order to demonstrate the practical feasibility of the proposed haptic master, the field-dependent generating repulsive force is measured. In addition, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID controller is empirically implemented to accomplish the desired torque trajectories. It has been shown that the proposed haptic master can track the desired torque trajectory without a significant error.

Visual-Haptic Integration: Cue Weights are Varied Appropriately, to Account for Changes in Haptic Reliability Introduced by Using a Tool

OpenAIRE

Chie Takahashi; Simon J Watt

2011-01-01

Tools such as pliers systematically change the relationship between an object's size and the hand opening required to grasp it. Previous work suggests the brain takes this into account, integrating visual and haptic size information that refers to the same object, independent of the similarity of the ‘raw’ visual and haptic signals (Takahashi et al., VSS 2009). Variations in tool geometry also affect the reliability (precision) of haptic size estimates, however, because they alter the change ...

Visuo-Haptic Mixed Reality with Unobstructed Tool-Hand Integration.

Science.gov (United States)

Cosco, Francesco; Garre, Carlos; Bruno, Fabio; Muzzupappa, Maurizio; Otaduy, Miguel A

2013-01-01

Visuo-haptic mixed reality consists of adding to a real scene the ability to see and touch virtual objects. It requires the use of see-through display technology for visually mixing real and virtual objects, and haptic devices for adding haptic interaction with the virtual objects. Unfortunately, the use of commodity haptic devices poses obstruction and misalignment issues that complicate the correct integration of a virtual tool and the user's real hand in the mixed reality scene. In this work, we propose a novel mixed reality paradigm where it is possible to touch and see virtual objects in combination with a real scene, using commodity haptic devices, and with a visually consistent integration of the user's hand and the virtual tool. We discuss the visual obstruction and misalignment issues introduced by commodity haptic devices, and then propose a solution that relies on four simple technical steps: color-based segmentation of the hand, tracking-based segmentation of the haptic device, background repainting using image-based models, and misalignment-free compositing of the user's hand. We have developed a successful proof-of-concept implementation, where a user can touch virtual objects and interact with them in the context of a real scene, and we have evaluated the impact on user performance of obstruction and misalignment correction.

A Three-Axis Force Sensor for Dual Finger Haptic Interfaces

OpenAIRE

Fontana, Marco; Marcheschi, Simone; Salsedo, Fabio; Bergamasco, Massimo

2012-01-01

In this work we present the design process, the characterization and testing of a novel three-axis mechanical force sensor. This sensor is optimized for use in closed-loop force control of haptic devices with three degrees of freedom. In particular the sensor has been conceived for integration with a dual finger haptic interface that aims at simulating forces that occur during grasping and surface exploration. The sensing spring structure has been purposely designed in order to match force an...

Torque Measurement of 3-DOF Haptic Master Operated by Controllable Electrorheological Fluid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oh Jong-Seok

2015-02-01

Full Text Available This work presents a torque measurement method of 3-degree-of-freedom (3-DOF haptic master featuring controllable electrorheological (ER fluid. In order to reflect the sense of an organ for a surgeon, the ER haptic master which can generate the repulsive torque of an organ is utilized as a remote controller for a surgery robot. Since accurate representation of organ feeling is essential for the success of the robot-assisted surgery, it is indispensable to develop a proper torque measurement method of 3-DOF ER haptic master. After describing the structural configuration of the haptic master, the torque models of ER spherical joint are mathematically derived based on the Bingham model of ER fluid. A new type of haptic device which has pitching, rolling, and yawing motions is then designed and manufactured using a spherical joint mechanism. Subsequently, the field-dependent parameters of the Bingham model are identified and generating repulsive torque according to applied electric field is measured. In addition, in order to verify the effectiveness of the proposed torque model, a comparative work between simulated and measured torques is undertaken.

Prevailing Trends in Haptic Feedback Simulation for Minimally Invasive Surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Pinzon, David; Byrns, Simon; Zheng, Bin

2016-08-01

Background The amount of direct hand-tool-tissue interaction and feedback in minimally invasive surgery varies from being attenuated in laparoscopy to being completely absent in robotic minimally invasive surgery. The role of haptic feedback during surgical skill acquisition and its emphasis in training have been a constant source of controversy. This review discusses the major developments in haptic simulation as they relate to surgical performance and the current research questions that remain unanswered. Search Strategy An in-depth review of the literature was performed using PubMed. Results A total of 198 abstracts were returned based on our search criteria. Three major areas of research were identified, including advancements in 1 of the 4 components of haptic systems, evaluating the effectiveness of haptic integration in simulators, and improvements to haptic feedback in robotic surgery. Conclusions Force feedback is the best method for tissue identification in minimally invasive surgery and haptic feedback provides the greatest benefit to surgical novices in the early stages of their training. New technology has improved our ability to capture, playback and enhance to utility of haptic cues in simulated surgery. Future research should focus on deciphering how haptic training in surgical education can increase performance, safety, and improve training efficiency. © The Author(s) 2016.

Simulation and training of lumbar punctures using haptic volume rendering and a 6DOF haptic device

Science.gov (United States)

Färber, Matthias; Heller, Julika; Handels, Heinz

2007-03-01

The lumbar puncture is performed by inserting a needle into the spinal chord of the patient to inject medicaments or to extract liquor. The training of this procedure is usually done on the patient guided by experienced supervisors. A virtual reality lumbar puncture simulator has been developed in order to minimize the training costs and the patient's risk. We use a haptic device with six degrees of freedom (6DOF) to feedback forces that resist needle insertion and rotation. An improved haptic volume rendering approach is used to calculate the forces. This approach makes use of label data of relevant structures like skin, bone, muscles or fat and original CT data that contributes information about image structures that can not be segmented. A real-time 3D visualization with optional stereo view shows the punctured region. 2D visualizations of orthogonal slices enable a detailed impression of the anatomical context. The input data consisting of CT and label data and surface models of relevant structures is defined in an XML file together with haptic rendering and visualization parameters. In a first evaluation the visible human male data has been used to generate a virtual training body. Several users with different medical experience tested the lumbar puncture trainer. The simulator gives a good haptic and visual impression of the needle insertion and the haptic volume rendering technique enables the feeling of unsegmented structures. Especially, the restriction of transversal needle movement together with rotation constraints enabled by the 6DOF device facilitate a realistic puncture simulation.

Experimental evaluation of magnified haptic feedback for robot-assisted needle insertion and palpation.

Science.gov (United States)

Meli, Leonardo; Pacchierotti, Claudio; Prattichizzo, Domenico

2017-12-01

Haptic feedback has been proven to play a key role in enhancing the performance of teleoperated medical procedures. However, due to safety issues, commercially-available medical robots do not currently provide the clinician with haptic feedback. This work presents the experimental evaluation of a teleoperation system for robot-assisted medical procedures able to provide magnified haptic feedback to the clinician. Forces registered at the operating table are magnified and provided to the clinician through a 7-DoF haptic interface. The same interface is also used to control the motion of a 6-DoF slave robotic manipulator. The safety of the system is guaranteed by a time-domain passivity-based control algorithm. Two experiments were carried out on stiffness discrimination (during palpation and needle insertion) and one experiment on needle guidance. Our haptic-enabled teleoperation system improved the performance with respect to direct hand interaction of 80%, 306%, and 27% in stiffness discrimination through palpation, stiffness discrimination during needle insertion, and guidance, respectively. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Vision-Based Haptic Feedback for Remote Micromanipulation in-SEM Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Bolopion, Aude; Dahmen, Christian; Stolle, Christian; Haliyo, Sinan; Régnier, Stéphane; Fatikow, Sergej

2012-07-01

This article presents an intuitive environment for remote micromanipulation composed of both haptic feedback and virtual reconstruction of the scene. To enable nonexpert users to perform complex teleoperated micromanipulation tasks, it is of utmost importance to provide them with information about the 3-D relative positions of the objects and the tools. Haptic feedback is an intuitive way to transmit such information. Since position sensors are not available at this scale, visual feedback is used to derive information about the scene. In this work, three different techniques are implemented, evaluated, and compared to derive the object positions from scanning electron microscope images. The modified correlation matching with generated template algorithm is accurate and provides reliable detection of objects. To track the tool, a marker-based approach is chosen since fast detection is required for stable haptic feedback. Information derived from these algorithms is used to propose an intuitive remote manipulation system that enables users situated in geographically distant sites to benefit from specific equipments, such as SEMs. Stability of the haptic feedback is ensured by the minimization of the delays, the computational efficiency of vision algorithms, and the proper tuning of the haptic coupling. Virtual guides are proposed to avoid any involuntary collisions between the tool and the objects. This approach is validated by a teleoperation involving melamine microspheres with a diameter of less than 2 μ m between Paris, France and Oldenburg, Germany.

Audio-haptic interaction in simulated walking experiences

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Serafin, Stefania

2011-01-01

and interchangeable use of the haptic and auditory modality in floor interfaces, and for the synergy of perception and action in capturing and guiding human walking. We describe the technology developed in the context of this project, together with some experiments performed to evaluate the role of auditory......In this paper an overview of the work conducted on audio-haptic physically based simulation and evaluation of walking is provided. This work has been performed in the context of the Natural Interactive Walking (NIW) project, whose goal is to investigate possibilities for the integrated...... and haptic feedback in walking tasks....

Haptic sense and the politicization of contemporary image

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tarcisio Torres Silva

2017-08-01

Full Text Available In this paper, it is intended to propose a theoretical approach to the political effects of the sense of touch/haptic in order to understand to what extent the intensification of contemporary haptic experience contributes to create proximity and engagement among individuals overloaded by too much visual information offered by multiple media. At the end, it is mentioned the work of Brazilian artist Rodrigo Braga to exemplify the contemporary political use of haptic sense.

Performance evaluation of a robot-assisted catheter operating system with haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Yu; Guo, Shuxiang; Yin, Xuanchun; Zhang, Linshuai; Hirata, Hideyuki; Ishihara, Hidenori; Tamiya, Takashi

2018-06-20

In this paper, a novel robot-assisted catheter operating system (RCOS) has been proposed as a method to reduce physical stress and X-ray exposure time to physicians during endovascular procedures. The unique design of this system allows the physician to apply conventional bedside catheterization skills (advance, retreat and rotate) to an input catheter, which is placed at the master side to control another patient catheter placed at the slave side. For this purpose, a magnetorheological (MR) fluids-based master haptic interface has been developed to measure the axial and radial motions of an input catheter, as well as to provide the haptic feedback to the physician during the operation. In order to achieve a quick response of the haptic force in the master haptic interface, a hall sensor-based closed-loop control strategy is employed. In slave side, a catheter manipulator is presented to deliver the patient catheter, according to position commands received from the master haptic interface. The contact forces between the patient catheter and blood vessel system can be measured by designed force sensor unit of catheter manipulator. Four levels of haptic force are provided to make the operator aware of the resistance encountered by the patient catheter during the insertion procedure. The catheter manipulator was evaluated for precision positioning. The time lag from the sensed motion to replicated motion is tested. To verify the efficacy of the proposed haptic feedback method, the evaluation experiments in vitro are carried out. The results demonstrate that the proposed system has the ability to enable decreasing the contact forces between the catheter and vasculature.

HAPTIC LOCATION IN PSEUDOPHAKIC EYES AND NONINFECTIOUS POSTOPERATIVE INFLAMMATION- A PROSPECTIVE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vinod Kumar Baranwal

2017-01-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND Postoperative noninfectious inflammation after cataract surgery, which can be persistent, remains an undesirable consequence despite many advances in surgical techniques. This ocular inflammation after cataract surgery presents ophthalmologists with a treatment dilemma. The aim of the study was to evaluate and correlate the IOL haptic location and the presence of noninfectious postoperative inflammation in pseudophakic eyes using Ultrasound Biomicroscopy (UBM. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this prospective study, 80 eyes of 80 cataract patients underwent SICS with 6 mm optic non-foldable PCIOL implantation. Post surgery, an examination protocol was followed wherein the patients were assessed by slit-lamp examination on day 1, 2, 7, 14 and 30 for flare and cells. A UBM examination was performed on day 30 for locating the IOL haptic position. Finally, the postoperative inflammation was correlated with IOL haptic position. RESULTS The results showed that IOL haptic position outside the capsular bag significantly increased the amount and duration of postoperative inflammation. CONCLUSION Haptic position outside the bag increases the incidence and duration of postoperative inflammation significantly. In patients undergoing SICS, the aim should be a large continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis within the bag implantation of IOL. UBM examination on day 30 after surgery to know position of IOL haptics outside the bag will be helpful in decreasing apprehension of operating surgeon and suggesting prolonged need of steroids in cases having more than expected postoperative inflammation.

Multimodal Sensing Interface for Haptic Interaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlos Diaz

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates the integration of a multimodal sensing system for exploring limits of vibrato tactile haptic feedback when interacting with 3D representation of real objects. In this study, the spatial locations of the objects are mapped to the work volume of the user using a Kinect sensor. The position of the user’s hand is obtained using the marker-based visual processing. The depth information is used to build a vibrotactile map on a haptic glove enhanced with vibration motors. The users can perceive the location and dimension of remote objects by moving their hand inside a scanning region. A marker detection camera provides the location and orientation of the user’s hand (glove to map the corresponding tactile message. A preliminary study was conducted to explore how different users can perceive such haptic experiences. Factors such as total number of objects detected, object separation resolution, and dimension-based and shape-based discrimination were evaluated. The preliminary results showed that the localization and counting of objects can be attained with a high degree of success. The users were able to classify groups of objects of different dimensions based on the perceived haptic feedback.

Neurosurgery simulation using non-linear finite element modeling and haptic interaction

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Huai-Ping; Audette, Michel; Joldes, Grand R.; Enquobahrie, Andinet

2012-02-01

Real-time surgical simulation is becoming an important component of surgical training. To meet the realtime requirement, however, the accuracy of the biomechancial modeling of soft tissue is often compromised due to computing resource constraints. Furthermore, haptic integration presents an additional challenge with its requirement for a high update rate. As a result, most real-time surgical simulation systems employ a linear elasticity model, simplified numerical methods such as the boundary element method or spring-particle systems, and coarse volumetric meshes. However, these systems are not clinically realistic. We present here an ongoing work aimed at developing an efficient and physically realistic neurosurgery simulator using a non-linear finite element method (FEM) with haptic interaction. Real-time finite element analysis is achieved by utilizing the total Lagrangian explicit dynamic (TLED) formulation and GPU acceleration of per-node and per-element operations. We employ a virtual coupling method for separating deformable body simulation and collision detection from haptic rendering, which needs to be updated at a much higher rate than the visual simulation. The system provides accurate biomechancial modeling of soft tissue while retaining a real-time performance with haptic interaction. However, our experiments showed that the stability of the simulator depends heavily on the material property of the tissue and the speed of colliding objects. Hence, additional efforts including dynamic relaxation are required to improve the stability of the system.

Design of a 7-DOF haptic master using a magneto-rheological devices for robot surgery

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Seok-Rae; Choi, Seung-Bok; Hwang, Yong-Hoon; Cha, Seung-Woo

2017-04-01

This paper presents a 7 degrees-of-freedom (7-DOF) haptic master which is applicable to the robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS). By utilizing a controllable magneto-rheological (MR) fluid, the haptic master can provide force information to the surgeon during surgery. The proposed haptic master consists of three degrees motions of X, Y, Z and four degrees motions of the pitch, yaw, roll and grasping. All of them have force feedback capability. The proposed haptic master can generate the repulsive forces or torques by activating MR clutch and MR brake. Both MR clutch and MR brake are designed and manufactured with consideration of the size and output torque which is usable to the robotic surgery. A proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller is then designed and implemented to achieve torque/force tracking trajectories. It is verified that the proposed haptic master can track well the desired torque and force occurred in the surgical place by controlling the input current applied to MR clutch and brake.

Introduction to haptics for neurosurgeons.

Science.gov (United States)

L'Orsa, Rachael; Macnab, Chris J B; Tavakoli, Mahdi

2013-01-01

Robots are becoming increasingly relevant to neurosurgeons, extending a neurosurgeon's physical capabilities, improving navigation within the surgical landscape when combined with advanced imaging, and propelling the movement toward minimally invasive surgery. Most surgical robots, however, isolate surgeons from the full range of human senses during a procedure. This forces surgeons to rely on vision alone for guidance through the surgical corridor, which limits the capabilities of the system, requires significant operator training, and increases the surgeon's workload. Incorporating haptics into these systems, ie, enabling the surgeon to "feel" forces experienced by the tool tip of the robot, could render these limitations obsolete by making the robot feel more like an extension of the surgeon's own body. Although the use of haptics in neurosurgical robots is still mostly the domain of research, neurosurgeons who keep abreast of this emerging field will be more prepared to take advantage of it as it becomes more prevalent in operating theaters. Thus, this article serves as an introduction to the field of haptics for neurosurgeons. We not only outline the current and future benefits of haptics but also introduce concepts in the fields of robotic technology and computer control. This knowledge will allow readers to be better aware of limitations in the technology that can affect performance and surgical outcomes, and "knowing the right questions to ask" will be invaluable for surgeons who have purchasing power within their departments.

Topographic modelling of haptic properties of tissue products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosen, B-G; Fall, A; Farbrot, A; Bergström, P; Rosen, S

2014-01-01

The way a product or material feels when touched, haptics, has been shown to be a property that plays an important role when consumers determine the quality of products For tissue products in constant touch with the skin, ''softness'' becomes a primary quality parameter. In the present work, the relationship between topography and the feeling of the surface has been investigated for commercial tissues with varying degree of texture from the low textured crepe tissue to the highly textured embossed- and air-dried tissue products. A trained sensory panel at was used to grade perceived haptic ''roughness''. The technique used to characterize the topography was Digital light projection (DLP) technique, By the use of multivariate statistics, strong correlations between perceived roughness and topography were found with predictability of above 90 percent even though highly textured products were included. Characterization was made using areal ISO 25178-2 topography parameters in combination with non-contacting topography measurement. The best prediction ability was obtained when combining haptic properties with the topography parameters auto-correlation length (Sal), peak material volume (Vmp), core roughness depth (Sk) and the maximum height of the surface (Sz)

Haptic sensitivity in needle insertion: the effects of training and visual aid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dumas Cedric

2011-12-01

Full Text Available This paper describes an experiment conducted to measure haptic sensitivity and the effects of haptic training with and without visual aid. The protocol for haptic training consisted of a needle insertion task using dual-layer silicon samples. A visual aid was provided as a multimodal cue for the haptic perception task. Results showed that for a group of novices (subjects with no previous experience in needle insertion, training with a visual aid resulted in a longer time to task completion, and a greater applied force, during post-training tests. This suggests that haptic perception is easily overshadowed, and may be completely replaced, by visual feedback. Therefore, haptic skills must be trained differently from visuomotor skills.

Vision holds a greater share in visuo-haptic object recognition than touch

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kassuba, Tanja; Klinge, Corinna; Hölig, Cordula

2013-01-01

approach of multisensory integration would predict that haptics as the less efficient sense for object recognition gains more from integrating additional visual information than vice versa. To test for asymmetries between vision and touch in visuo-haptic interactions, we measured regional changes in brain...... processed the target object, being more pronounced for haptic than visual targets. This preferential response of visuo-haptic regions indicates a modality-specific asymmetry in crossmodal matching of visual and haptic object features, suggesting a functional primacy of vision over touch in visuo...

Detection of Membrane Puncture with Haptic Feedback using a Tip-Force Sensing Needle.

Science.gov (United States)

Elayaperumal, Santhi; Bae, Jung Hwa; Daniel, Bruce L; Cutkosky, Mark R

2014-09-01

This paper presents calibration and user test results of a 3-D tip-force sensing needle with haptic feedback. The needle is a modified MRI-compatible biopsy needle with embedded fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors for strain detection. After calibration, the needle is interrogated at 2 kHz, and dynamic forces are displayed remotely with a voice coil actuator. The needle is tested in a single-axis master/slave system, with the voice coil haptic display at the master, and the needle at the slave end. Tissue phantoms with embedded membranes were used to determine the ability of the tip-force sensors to provide real-time haptic feedback as compared to external sensors at the needle base during needle insertion via the master/slave system. Subjects were able to determine the position of the embedded membranes with significantly better accuracy using FBG tip feedback than with base feedback using a commercial force/torque sensor (p = 0.045) or with no added haptic feedback (p = 0.0024).

[Haptic tracking control for minimally invasive robotic surgery].

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Zhaohong; Song, Chengli; Wu, Wenwu

2012-06-01

Haptic feedback plays a significant role in minimally invasive robotic surgery (MIRS). A major deficiency of the current MIRS is the lack of haptic perception for the surgeon, including the commercially available robot da Vinci surgical system. In this paper, a dynamics model of a haptic robot is established based on Newton-Euler method. Because it took some period of time in exact dynamics solution, we used a digital PID arithmetic dependent on robot dynamics to ensure real-time bilateral control, and it could improve tracking precision and real-time control efficiency. To prove the proposed method, an experimental system in which two Novint Falcon haptic devices acting as master-slave system has been developed. Simulations and experiments showed proposed methods could give instrument force feedbacks to operator, and bilateral control strategy is an effective method to master-slave MIRS. The proposed methods could be used to tele-robotic system.

The effect of haptic guidance and visual feedback on learning a complex tennis task.

Science.gov (United States)

Marchal-Crespo, Laura; van Raai, Mark; Rauter, Georg; Wolf, Peter; Riener, Robert

2013-11-01

While haptic guidance can improve ongoing performance of a motor task, several studies have found that it ultimately impairs motor learning. However, some recent studies suggest that the haptic demonstration of optimal timing, rather than movement magnitude, enhances learning in subjects trained with haptic guidance. Timing of an action plays a crucial role in the proper accomplishment of many motor skills, such as hitting a moving object (discrete timing task) or learning a velocity profile (time-critical tracking task). The aim of the present study is to evaluate which feedback conditions-visual or haptic guidance-optimize learning of the discrete and continuous elements of a timing task. The experiment consisted in performing a fast tennis forehand stroke in a virtual environment. A tendon-based parallel robot connected to the end of a racket was used to apply haptic guidance during training. In two different experiments, we evaluated which feedback condition was more adequate for learning: (1) a time-dependent discrete task-learning to start a tennis stroke and (2) a tracking task-learning to follow a velocity profile. The effect that the task difficulty and subject's initial skill level have on the selection of the optimal training condition was further evaluated. Results showed that the training condition that maximizes learning of the discrete time-dependent motor task depends on the subjects' initial skill level. Haptic guidance was especially suitable for less-skilled subjects and in especially difficult discrete tasks, while visual feedback seems to benefit more skilled subjects. Additionally, haptic guidance seemed to promote learning in a time-critical tracking task, while visual feedback tended to deteriorate the performance independently of the task difficulty and subjects' initial skill level. Haptic guidance outperformed visual feedback, although additional studies are needed to further analyze the effect of other types of feedback visualization on

Haptic interfaces using dielectric electroactive polymers

Science.gov (United States)

Ozsecen, Muzaffer Y.; Sivak, Mark; Mavroidis, Constantinos

2010-04-01

Quality, amplitude and frequency of the interaction forces between a human and an actuator are essential traits for haptic applications. A variety of Electro-Active Polymer (EAP) based actuators can provide these characteristics simultaneously with quiet operation, low weight, high power density and fast response. This paper demonstrates a rolled Dielectric Elastomer Actuator (DEA) being used as a telepresence device in a heart beat measurement application. In the this testing, heart signals were acquired from a remote location using a wireless heart rate sensor, sent through a network and DEA was used to haptically reproduce the heart beats at the medical expert's location. A series of preliminary human subject tests were conducted that demonstrated that a) DE based haptic feeling can be used in heart beat measurement tests and b) through subjective testing the stiffness and actuator properties of the EAP can be tuned for a variety of applications.

The role of haptic feedback in laparoscopic simulation training.

Science.gov (United States)

Panait, Lucian; Akkary, Ehab; Bell, Robert L; Roberts, Kurt E; Dudrick, Stanley J; Duffy, Andrew J

2009-10-01

Laparoscopic virtual reality simulators are becoming a ubiquitous tool in resident training and assessment. These devices provide the operator with various levels of realism, including haptic (or force) feedback. However, this feature adds significantly to the cost of the devices, and limited data exist assessing the value of haptics in skill acquisition and development. Utilizing the Laparoscopy VR (Immersion Medical, Gaithersburg, MD), we hypothesized that the incorporation of force feedback in the simulated operative environment would allow superior trainee performance compared with performance of the same basic skills tasks in a non-haptic model. Ten medical students with minimal laparoscopic experience and similar baseline skill levels as proven by performance of two fundamentals of laparoscopic surgery (FLS) tasks (peg transfer and cutting drills) voluntarily participated in the study. Each performed two tasks, analogous to the FLS drills, on the Laparoscopy VR at 3 levels of difficulty, based on the established settings of the manufacturer. After achieving familiarity with the device and tasks, the students completed the drills both with and without force feedback. Data on completion time, instrument path length, right and left hand errors, and grasping tension were analyzed. The scores in the haptic-enhanced simulation environment were compared with the scores in the non-haptic model and analyzed utilizing Student's t-test. The peg transfer drill showed no difference in performance between the haptic and non-haptic simulations for all metrics at all three levels of difficulty. For the more complex cutting exercise, the time to complete the tasks was significantly shorter when force feedback was provided, at all levels of difficulty (158+/-56 versus 187+/-51 s, 176+/-49 versus 222+/-68 s, and 275+/-76 versus 422+/-220 s, at levels 1, 2, and 3, respectively, Psimulation did not demonstrate an appreciable performance improvement among our trainees. These data

End-to-End Flow Control for Visual-Haptic Communication under Bandwidth Change

Science.gov (United States)

Yashiro, Daisuke; Tian, Dapeng; Yakoh, Takahiro

This paper proposes an end-to-end flow controller for visual-haptic communication. A visual-haptic communication system transmits non-real-time packets, which contain large-size visual data, and real-time packets, which contain small-size haptic data. When the transmission rate of visual data exceeds the communication bandwidth, the visual-haptic communication system becomes unstable owing to buffer overflow. To solve this problem, an end-to-end flow controller is proposed. This controller determines the optimal transmission rate of visual data on the basis of the traffic conditions, which are estimated by the packets for haptic communication. Experimental results confirm that in the proposed method, a short packet-sending interval and a short delay are achieved under bandwidth change, and thus, high-precision visual-haptic communication is realized.

Large displacement haptic stimulus actuator using piezoelectric pump for wearable devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Kodama, Taisuke; Izumi, Shintaro; Masaki, Kana; Kawaguchi, Hiroshi; Maenaka, Kazusuke; Yoshimoto, Masahiko

2015-08-01

Recently, given Japan's aging society background, wearable healthcare devices have increasingly attracted attention. Many devices have been developed, but most devices have only a sensing function. To expand the application area of wearable healthcare devices, an interactive communication function with the human body is required using an actuator. For example, a device must be useful for medication assistance, predictive alerts of a disease such as arrhythmia, and exercise. In this work, a haptic stimulus actuator using a piezoelectric pump is proposed to realize a large displacement in wearable devices. The proposed actuator drives tactile sensation of the human body. The measurement results obtained using a sensory examination demonstrate that the proposed actuator can generate sufficient stimuli even if adhered to the chest, which has fewer tactile receptors than either the fingertip or wrist.

Haptic Routes and digestive destinations in cooking series

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Waade, Anne Marit; Jørgensen, Ulla Angkjær

2010-01-01

and the media in which aesthetical, cultural and symbolic values are related to the way food is mediatised. The main argument is that cooking television series produce haptic images of place and food that include a specific sensuous and emotional relation between screen and viewer. The haptic imagery...

Semantic congruence in audio-haptic simulation of footsteps

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Turchet, Luca; Serafin, Stefania

2014-01-01

of semantic congruence for those audio–haptic pairs of materials which belonged to the same typology. Furthermore, better matching ability was found for the passive case compared to the interactive one, although this may be due to the limits of the technology used for the interactive haptic simulations....

Haptic-STM: a human-in-the-loop interface to a scanning tunneling microscope.

Science.gov (United States)

Perdigão, Luís M A; Saywell, Alex

2011-07-01

The operation of a haptic device interfaced with a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) is presented here. The user moves the STM tip in three dimensions by means of a stylus attached to the haptic instrument. The tunneling current measured by the STM is converted to a vertical force, applied to the stylus and felt by the user, with the user being incorporated into the feedback loop that controls the tip-surface distance. A haptic-STM interface of this nature allows the user to feel atomic features on the surface and facilitates the tactile manipulation of the adsorbate/substrate system. The operation of this device is demonstrated via the room temperature STM imaging of C(60) molecules adsorbed on an Au(111) surface in ultra-high vacuum.

Haptograph Representation of Real-World Haptic Information by Wideband Force Control

Science.gov (United States)

Katsura, Seiichiro; Irie, Kouhei; Ohishi, Kiyoshi

Artificial acquisition and reproduction of human sensations are basic technologies of communication engineering. For example, auditory information is obtained by a microphone, and a speaker reproduces it by artificial means. Furthermore, a video camera and a television make it possible to transmit visual sensation by broadcasting. On the contrary, since tactile or haptic information is subject to the Newton's “law of action and reaction” in the real world, a device which acquires, transmits, and reproduces the information has not been established. From the point of view, real-world haptics is the key technology for future haptic communication engineering. This paper proposes a novel acquisition method of haptic information named “haptograph”. The haptograph visualizes the haptic information like photograph. The proposed haptograph is applied to haptic recognition of the contact environment. A linear motor contacts to the surface of the environment and its reaction force is used to make a haptograph. A robust contact motion and sensor-less sensing of the reaction force are attained by using a disturbance observer. As a result, an encyclopedia of contact environment is attained. Since temporal and spatial analyses are conducted to represent haptic information as the haptograph, it is possible to be recognized and to be evaluated intuitively.

A study on haptic collaborative game in shared virtual environment

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Keke; Liu, Guanyang; Liu, Lingzhi

2013-03-01

A study on collaborative game in shared virtual environment with haptic feedback over computer networks is introduced in this paper. A collaborative task was used where the players located at remote sites and played the game together. The player can feel visual and haptic feedback in virtual environment compared to traditional networked multiplayer games. The experiment was desired in two conditions: visual feedback only and visual-haptic feedback. The goal of the experiment is to assess the impact of force feedback on collaborative task performance. Results indicate that haptic feedback is beneficial for performance enhancement for collaborative game in shared virtual environment. The outcomes of this research can have a powerful impact on the networked computer games.

OzBot and haptics: remote surveillance to physical presence

Science.gov (United States)

Mullins, James; Fielding, Mick; Nahavandi, Saeid

2009-05-01

This paper reports on robotic and haptic technologies and capabilities developed for the law enforcement and defence community within Australia by the Centre for Intelligent Systems Research (CISR). The OzBot series of small and medium surveillance robots have been designed in Australia and evaluated by law enforcement and defence personnel to determine suitability and ruggedness in a variety of environments. Using custom developed digital electronics and featuring expandable data busses including RS485, I2C, RS232, video and Ethernet, the robots can be directly connected to many off the shelf payloads such as gas sensors, x-ray sources and camera systems including thermal and night vision. Differentiating the OzBot platform from its peers is its ability to be integrated directly with haptic technology or the 'haptic bubble' developed by CISR. Haptic interfaces allow an operator to physically 'feel' remote environments through position-force control and experience realistic force feedback. By adding the capability to remotely grasp an object, feel its weight, texture and other physical properties in real-time from the remote ground control unit, an operator's situational awareness is greatly improved through Haptic augmentation in an environment where remote-system feedback is often limited.

Massage Therapy of the Back Using a Real-Time Haptic-Enhanced Telerehabilitation System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristina Ramírez-Fernández

2017-01-01

Full Text Available We present the usability evaluation of a haptic-enhanced telerehabilitation system for massage therapy of the back using the Vybe haptic gaming pad and the gesture sensor LEAP motion controller. The evaluated system includes features that allow for (i administering online therapy programs, (ii providing self-adjustable and safety treatment of back massages using a virtual environment, and (iii saving and replaying massage sessions according to a patient’s therapy program. The usability evaluation with 25 older adults and 10 specialists suggests that the haptic telerehabilitation system is perceived with high usability and pleasurable user experience, while providing personalized intensity of haptic therapy in a supervised, real-time, and secure way to treat the patient. Moreover, the specialists totally agree that the system design features, such as save and play, and delimiting therapy zones are the most important for back massage therapy, while the features of regulating feedback intensity and providing/receiving a massage remotely are also important. Finally, based on their comments, five design insights aiming at improving the current version of the system were generated.

Perceptual grouping affects haptic enumeration over the fingers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Overvliet, K.E.; Plaisier, M.A.

2016-01-01

Spatial arrangement is known to influence enumeration times in vision. In haptic enumeration, it has been shown that dividing the total number of items over the two hands can speed up enumeration. Here we investigated how spatial arrangement of items and non-items presented to the individual fingers

Investigating Students' Ideas About Buoyancy and the Influence of Haptic Feedback

Science.gov (United States)

Minogue, James; Borland, David

2016-04-01

While haptics (simulated touch) represents a potential breakthrough technology for science teaching and learning, there is relatively little research into its differential impact in the context of teaching and learning. This paper describes the testing of a haptically enhanced simulation (HES) for learning about buoyancy. Despite a lifetime of everyday experiences, a scientifically sound explanation of buoyancy remains difficult to construct for many. It requires the integration of domain-specific knowledge regarding density, fluid, force, gravity, mass, weight, and buoyancy. Prior studies suggest that novices often focus on only one dimension of the sinking and floating phenomenon. Our HES was designed to promote the integration of the subconcepts of density and buoyant forces and stresses the relationship between the object itself and the surrounding fluid. The study employed a randomized pretest-posttest control group research design and a suite of measures including an open-ended prompt and objective content questions to provide insights into the influence of haptic feedback on undergraduate students' thinking about buoyancy. A convenience sample (n = 40) was drawn from a university's population of undergraduate elementary education majors. Two groups were formed from haptic feedback (n = 22) and no haptic feedback (n = 18). Through content analysis, discernible differences were seen in the posttest explanations sinking and floating across treatment groups. Learners that experienced the haptic feedback made more frequent use of "haptically grounded" terms (e.g., mass, gravity, buoyant force, pushing), leading us to begin to build a local theory of language-mediated haptic cognition.

The processing of infrequently-presented low-intensity stimuli during natural sleep: An event-related potential study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandra Muller-Gass

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Event-related potentials (ERPs provide an exquisite means to measure the extent of processing of external stimuli during the sleep period. This study examines ERPs elicited by stimuli with physical characteristics akin to environmental noise encountered during sleep. Brief duration 40, 60 or 80 dB sound pressure level (SPL tones were presented either rapidly (on average every two seconds or slowly (on average every 10 seconds. The rates of presentation and intensity of the stimuli were similar to those observed in environmental studies of noise. ERPs were recorded from nine young adults during sleep and wakefulness. During wakefulness, the amplitude of an early negative ERP, N1, systematically increased as intensity level increased. A later positivity, the P3a, was apparent following the loudest 80 dB stimulus regardless of the rate of stimulus presentation; it was also apparent following the 60 dB stimulus, when stimuli were presented slowly. The appearance of the N1-P3a deflections suggests that operations of the central executive controlling ongoing cognitive activity was interrupted, forcing subjects to become aware of the obtrusive task-irrelevant stimuli. The auditory stimuli elicited very different ERP patterns during sleep. During non-rapid eye movement (NREM sleep, the ERP was characterized by an enhanced (relative to wakefulness early positivity, P2, followed by a very prominent negativity, the N350. Both deflections systematically varied in amplitude with stimulus intensity level; in addition, N350 was much larger when stimuli were presented at slow rates. The N350, a sleep-specific ERP, is thought to reflect the inhibition of processing of potentially sleep-disrupting stimulus input. During rapid eye movement (REM sleep, a small amplitude N1 was apparent in the ERP, but only for the loudest, 80 dB stimulus. A small (nonsignificant P3a-like deflection was also visible following the 80 dB stimulus, but only when stimuli were presented

The contributions of vision and haptics to reaching and grasping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kayla Dawn Stone

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This review aims to provide a comprehensive outlook on the sensory (visual and haptic contributions to reaching and grasping. The focus is on studies in developing children, normal and neuropsychological populations, and in sensory-deprived individuals. Studies have suggested a right-hand/left-hemisphere specialization for visually-guided grasping and a left-hand/right-hemisphere specialization for haptically-guided object recognition. This poses the interesting possibility that when vision is not available and grasping relies heavily on the haptic system, there is an advantage to use the left hand. We review the evidence for this possibility and dissect the unique contributions of the visual and haptic systems to grasping. We ultimately discuss how the integration of these two sensory modalities shape hand preference.

Self-Control of Haptic Assistance for Motor Learning: Influences of Frequency and Opinion of Utility

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Camille K.; Tseung, Victrine; Carnahan, Heather

2017-01-01

Studies of self-controlled practice have shown benefits when learners controlled feedback schedule, use of assistive devices and task difficulty, with benefits attributed to information processing and motivational advantages of self-control. Although haptic assistance serves as feedback, aids task performance and modifies task difficulty, researchers have yet to explore whether self-control over haptic assistance could be beneficial for learning. We explored whether self-control of haptic assistance would be beneficial for learning a tracing task. Self-controlled participants selected practice blocks on which they would receive haptic assistance, while participants in a yoked group received haptic assistance on blocks determined by a matched self-controlled participant. We inferred learning from performance on retention tests without haptic assistance. From qualitative analysis of open-ended questions related to rationales for/experiences of the haptic assistance that was chosen/provided, themes emerged regarding participants’ views of the utility of haptic assistance for performance and learning. Results showed that learning was directly impacted by the frequency of haptic assistance for self-controlled participants only and view of haptic assistance. Furthermore, self-controlled participants’ views were significantly associated with their requested haptic assistance frequency. We discuss these findings as further support for the beneficial role of self-controlled practice for motor learning. PMID:29255438

Short-term memory for tactile and temporal stimuli in a shared-attention recall task.

Science.gov (United States)

Bowers, R L; Mollenhauer, M S; Luxford, J

1990-06-01

The present study examined short-term memory for tactile and temporal stimuli. Subjects were required to touch three-dimensional sample objects of different shapes and textures, presented for three durations: short, medium, or long. After the sample duration elapsed, a retention interval (5 sec.-20 sec.) occurred followed by a recall test for one of the sample dimensions of shape, texture, or time, across trials. Analysis showed that accuracy for shape and texture was high throughout testing (95-99%), but memory for perceived duration was relatively poor (60%). Further analysis indicated that poor recall on the time dimension was isolated to the medium and long samples; accuracy for short durations was consistently high (90%). In addition, a reliable response bias emerged; subjects recalled durations shorter than the actual duration presented. The results were discussed in terms of two lines of research, one indicating that haptic short-term memory is strong relative to other memory systems, and the other suggesting that the choose-short bias occurs across species.

Cognitive and tactile factors affecting human haptic performance in later life.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tobias Kalisch

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Vision and haptics are the key modalities by which humans perceive objects and interact with their environment in a target-oriented manner. Both modalities share higher-order neural resources and the mechanisms required for object exploration. Compared to vision, the understanding of haptic information processing is still rudimentary. Although it is known that haptic performance, similar to many other skills, decreases in old age, the underlying mechanisms are not clear. It is yet to be determined to what extent this decrease is related to the age-related loss of tactile acuity or cognitive capacity. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We investigated the haptic performance of 81 older adults by means of a cross-modal object recognition test. Additionally, we assessed the subjects' tactile acuity with an apparatus-based two-point discrimination paradigm, and their cognitive performance by means of the non-verbal Raven-Standard-Progressive matrices test. As expected, there was a significant age-related decline in performance on all 3 tests. With the exception of tactile acuity, this decline was found to be more distinct in female subjects. Correlation analyses revealed a strong relationship between haptic and cognitive performance for all subjects. Tactile performance, on the contrary, was only significantly correlated with male subjects' haptic performance. CONCLUSIONS: Haptic object recognition is a demanding task in old age, especially when it comes to the exploration of complex, unfamiliar objects. Our data support a disproportionately higher impact of cognition on haptic performance as compared to the impact of tactile acuity. Our findings are in agreement with studies reporting an increase in co-variation between individual sensory performance and general cognitive functioning in old age.

Frictional Compliant Haptic Contact and Deformation of Soft Objects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naci Zafer

2016-05-01

Full Text Available This paper is concerned with compliant haptic contact and deformation of soft objects. A human soft fingertip model is considered to act as the haptic interface and is brought into contact with and deforms a discrete surface. A nonlinear constitutive law is developed in predicting normal forces and, for the haptic display of surface texture, motions along the surface are also resisted at various rates by accounting for dynamic Lund-Grenoble (LuGre frictional forces. For the soft fingertip to apply forces over an area larger than a point, normal and frictional forces are distributed around the soft fingertip contact location on the deforming surface. The distribution is realized based on a kernel smoothing function and by a nonlinear spring-damper net around the contact point. Experiments conducted demonstrate the accuracy and effectiveness of our approach in real-time haptic rendering of a kidney surface. The resistive (interaction forces are applied at the user fingertip bone edge. A 3-DoF parallel robotic manipulator equipped with a constraint based controller is used for the implementation. By rendering forces both in lateral and normal directions, the designed haptic interface system allows the user to realistically feel both the geometrical and mechanical (nonlinear properties of the deforming kidney.

A Study of an Assistance SystemUsing a Haptic Interface

OpenAIRE

浅川, 貴史

2011-01-01

We make a proposal for a music baton system for visual handicapped persons. This system is constituted by an acceleration sensor. a radio module. and a haptic interface device. The acceleration sensor is built in the music baton grip and the data are transmitted by the radio module. A performer has a receiver with the haptic interface device. The receiver's CPU picks up rhythm from the data and vibrates the haptic interface device. This paper is described about an experiment of comparing the ...

Expanding the Scope of Instant Messaging with Bidirectional Haptic Communication

OpenAIRE

Kim, Youngjae; Hahn, Minsoo

2010-01-01

This work was conducted on the combination of two fields, i.e., haptic and social messaging. Haptic is one of the most attention-drawing fields and the biggest buzzwords among nextgeneration users. Haptic is being applied to conventional devices such as the cellular phone and even the door lock. Diverse forms of media such as blogs, social network services, and instant messengers are used to send and receive messages. That is mainly why we focus on the messaging experience, the most frequent ...

The Use of Haptic and Tactile Information in the Car to Improve Driving Safety: A Review of Current Technologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yoren Gaffary

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper surveys the haptic technologies deployed in cars and their uses to enhance drivers’ safety during manual driving. These technologies enable to deliver haptic (tactile or kinesthetic feedback at various areas of the car, such as the steering wheel, the seat, or the pedal. The paper explores two main uses of the haptic modality to fulfill the safety objective: to provide driving assistance and warning. Driving assistance concerns the transmission of information usually conveyed with other modalities for controlling the car’s functions, maneuvering support, and guidance. Warning concerns the prevention of accidents using emergency warnings, increasing the awareness of surroundings, and preventing collisions, lane departures, and speeding. This paper discusses how haptic feedback has been introduced so far for these purposes and provides perspectives regarding the present and future of haptic cars meant to increase driver’s safety.

"Counting" Serially Presented Stimuli by Human and Nonhuman Primates and Pigeons

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, William A.

2010-01-01

Much of Stewart Hulse's career was spent analyzing how animals can extract patterned information from sequences of stimuli. Yet an additional form of information contained in a sequence may be the number of times different elements occurred. Experiments that required numerical discrimination between different stimulus items presented in sequence…

Haptic Data Processing for Teleoperation Systems: Prediction, Compression and Error Correction

OpenAIRE

Lee, Jae-young

2013-01-01

This thesis explores haptic data processing methods for teleoperation systems, including prediction, compression, and error correction. In the proposed haptic data prediction method, unreliable network conditions, such as time-varying delay and packet loss, are detected by a transport layer protocol. Given the information from the transport layer, a Bayesian approach is introduced to predict position and force data in haptic teleoperation systems. Stability of the proposed method within stoch...

Evaluation of Pseudo-Haptic Interactions with Soft Objects in Virtual Environments.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Min Li

Full Text Available This paper proposes a pseudo-haptic feedback method conveying simulated soft surface stiffness information through a visual interface. The method exploits a combination of two feedback techniques, namely visual feedback of soft surface deformation and control of the indenter avatar speed, to convey stiffness information of a simulated surface of a soft object in virtual environments. The proposed method was effective in distinguishing different sizes of virtual hard nodules integrated into the simulated soft bodies. To further improve the interactive experience, the approach was extended creating a multi-point pseudo-haptic feedback system. A comparison with regards to (a nodule detection sensitivity and (b elapsed time as performance indicators in hard nodule detection experiments to a tablet computer incorporating vibration feedback was conducted. The multi-point pseudo-haptic interaction is shown to be more time-efficient than the single-point pseudo-haptic interaction. It is noted that multi-point pseudo-haptic feedback performs similarly well when compared to a vibration-based feedback method based on both performance measures elapsed time and nodule detection sensitivity. This proves that the proposed method can be used to convey detailed haptic information for virtual environmental tasks, even subtle ones, using either a computer mouse or a pressure sensitive device as an input device. This pseudo-haptic feedback method provides an opportunity for low-cost simulation of objects with soft surfaces and hard inclusions, as, for example, occurring in ever more realistic video games with increasing emphasis on interaction with the physical environment and minimally invasive surgery in the form of soft tissue organs with embedded cancer nodules. Hence, the method can be used in many low-budget applications where haptic sensation is required, such as surgeon training or video games, either using desktop computers or portable devices, showing

Haptics in periodontics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Savita Abdulpur Mallikarjun

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Throughout history, education has evolved, and new teaching/learning methods have been developed. These methods have helped us come a long way in understanding the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases of the oral cavity. However, there is still no one good way to render a student/clinician the tactile sense for detecting calculus/caries or placing the incisions or detecting the smoothness of a restoration or any treatment procedures before entering the clinics. In the education field, to improve the tactile sensation, the sense of touch and force-feedback can offer great improvements to the existing learning methods, thus enhancing the quality of education procedures. The concept of Haptics, which is extensively in use and indispensable in other fields like aviation, telecommunication etc., is now making its way into dentistry. Against this background, the following write-up intends to provide a glimpse of the coming wave of Haptics - A virtual reality system in dental education and discusses the strengths and weak points of this system.

Design of a 4-DOF MR haptic master for application to robot surgery: virtual environment work

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Jong-Seok; Choi, Seung-Hyun; Choi, Seung-Bok

2014-09-01

This paper presents the design and control performance of a novel type of 4-degrees-of-freedom (4-DOF) haptic master in cyberspace for a robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS) application. By using a controllable magnetorheological (MR) fluid, the proposed haptic master can have a feedback function for a surgical robot. Due to the difficulty in utilizing real human organs in the experiment, the cyberspace that features the virtual object is constructed to evaluate the performance of the haptic master. In order to realize the cyberspace, a volumetric deformable object is represented by a shape-retaining chain-linked (S-chain) model, which is a fast volumetric model and is suitable for real-time applications. In the haptic architecture for an RMIS application, the desired torque and position induced from the virtual object of the cyberspace and the haptic master of real space are transferred to each other. In order to validate the superiority of the proposed master and volumetric model, a tracking control experiment is implemented with a nonhomogenous volumetric cubic object to demonstrate that the proposed model can be utilized in real-time haptic rendering architecture. A proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller is then designed and empirically implemented to accomplish the desired torque trajectories. It has been verified from the experiment that tracking the control performance for torque trajectories from a virtual slave can be successfully achieved.

Design of a 4-DOF MR haptic master for application to robot surgery: virtual environment work

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, Jong-Seok; Choi, Seung-Hyun; Choi, Seung-Bok

2014-01-01

This paper presents the design and control performance of a novel type of 4-degrees-of-freedom (4-DOF) haptic master in cyberspace for a robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS) application. By using a controllable magnetorheological (MR) fluid, the proposed haptic master can have a feedback function for a surgical robot. Due to the difficulty in utilizing real human organs in the experiment, the cyberspace that features the virtual object is constructed to evaluate the performance of the haptic master. In order to realize the cyberspace, a volumetric deformable object is represented by a shape-retaining chain-linked (S-chain) model, which is a fast volumetric model and is suitable for real-time applications. In the haptic architecture for an RMIS application, the desired torque and position induced from the virtual object of the cyberspace and the haptic master of real space are transferred to each other. In order to validate the superiority of the proposed master and volumetric model, a tracking control experiment is implemented with a nonhomogenous volumetric cubic object to demonstrate that the proposed model can be utilized in real-time haptic rendering architecture. A proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller is then designed and empirically implemented to accomplish the desired torque trajectories. It has been verified from the experiment that tracking the control performance for torque trajectories from a virtual slave can be successfully achieved. (paper)

Superior haptic-to-visual shape matching in autism spectrum disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakano, Tamami; Kato, Nobumasa; Kitazawa, Shigeru

2012-04-01

A weak central coherence theory in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) proposes that a cognitive bias toward local processing in ASD derives from a weakness in integrating local elements into a coherent whole. Using this theory, we hypothesized that shape perception through active touch, which requires sequential integration of sensorimotor traces of exploratory finger movements into a shape representation, would be impaired in ASD. Contrary to our expectation, adults with ASD showed superior performance in a haptic-to-visual delayed shape-matching task compared to adults without ASD. Accuracy in discriminating haptic lengths or haptic orientations, which lies within the somatosensory modality, did not differ between adults with ASD and adults without ASD. Moreover, this superior ability in inter-modal haptic-to-visual shape matching was not explained by the score in a unimodal visuospatial rotation task. These results suggest that individuals with ASD are not impaired in integrating sensorimotor traces into a global visual shape and that their multimodal shape representations and haptic-to-visual information transfer are more accurate than those of individuals without ASD. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Vehicle Haptic Steering by Wire System Based on High Gain GPI Observers

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A. Rodriguez-Angeles

2014-01-01

Full Text Available A vehicle steering by wire (SBW haptic system based on high gain generalized proportional integral (GPI observers is introduced. The observers are considered for the estimation of dynamic perturbations that are present at the tire and steering wheel. To ensure efficient tracking between the commanded steering wheel angle and the tire orientation angle, the estimated perturbations are on line canceled. As to provide a haptic interface with the driver, the estimated dynamic effects at the steering rack are fed back to the steering wheel, yielding a master-slave haptic system with bilateral communication. For implementation purposes few sensors and minimum knowledge of the dynamic model are required, which is a major advantage compared to other approaches. Only position tracking errors are fed back, while all other signals are estimated by the high gain GPI observers. The scheme is robust to uncertainty on the input gain and cancels dynamic perturbation effects such as friction and aligning forces on the tire. Experimental results are presented on a prototype platform.

Control of 4-DOF MR haptic master for medical application

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Jong-Seok; Choi, Seung-Hyun; Choi, Seung-Bok

2014-03-01

In this work, magnetorheological (MR) based haptic master for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS) is proposed and analyzed. Using a controllable MR fluid, the masters can generate a reflection force with the 4-DOF motion. The proposed master consists of two actuators: MR clutch featuring gimbal mechanism for 2-DOF rotational motion (X and Y axes) and MR clutch attached at gripper of gimbal structures for 1-DOF rotational motion (Z axis) and 1-DOF translational motion. After analyzing the dynamic motion by integrating mechanical and physical properties of the actuators, torque model of the proposed haptic master is derived. For realization of master-slave system, an encoder which can measure position information is integrated with the MR haptic master. In the RMIS system, the measured position is converted as a command signal and sent to the slave robot. In this work, slave and organ of patient are modeled in virtual space. In order to embody a human organ into virtual space, a volumetric deformable object is mathematically formulated by a shape retaining chain linked (S-chain) model. Accordingly, the haptic architecture is established by incorporating the virtual slave with the master device in which the reflection force and desired position originated from the object of the virtual slave and operator of the master, respectively, are transferred to each other. In order to achieve the desired force trajectories, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller is designed and implemented. It has been demonstrated that the effective tracking control performance for the desired motion of reflection force is well presented in time domain.

Haptic Glove Technology: Skill Development through Video Game Play

Science.gov (United States)

Bargerhuff, Mary Ellen; Cowan, Heidi; Oliveira, Francisco; Quek, Francis; Fang, Bing

2010-01-01

This article introduces a recently developed haptic glove system and describes how the participants used a video game that was purposely designed to train them in skills that are needed for the efficient use of the haptic glove. Assessed skills included speed, efficiency, embodied skill, and engagement. The findings and implications for future…

Design of a New MR Compatible Haptic Interface with Six Actuated Degrees of Freedom

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ergin, Mehmet Alper; Kühne, Markus; Thielscher, Axel

2014-01-01

Functional magnetic resonance imaging is an often adopted tool to study human motor control mechanisms. Highly controlled experiments as required by this form of analysis can be realized with haptic interfaces. Their design is challenging because of strong safety and MR compatibility requirements....... Existing MR-compatible haptic interfaces are restricted to maximum three actuated degrees of freedom. We propose an MR-compatible haptic interface with six actuated degrees of freedom to be able to study human brain mechanisms of natural pick-and-place movements including arm transport. In this work, we...... present its mechanical design, kinematic and dynamic model, as well as report on its model-based characterization. A novel hybrid control scheme for the employed ultrasonic motors is introduced. Preliminary MR compatibility tests based on one complete actuator-sensor module are performed. No measurable...

A Surgical Robot Teleoperation Framework for Providing Haptic Feedback Incorporating Virtual Envrioment-Based Guidance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adnan Munawar

2016-08-01

Full Text Available In robot-assisted tele-operated laparoscopic surgeries, the patient side manipulators are controlled via the master manipulators that are controlled by the surgeon. The current generation of robots approved for laparoscopic surgery lack haptic feedback. In theory, haptic feedback would enhance the surgical procedures by enabling better coordination between the hand movements that are improved by the tactile sense of the operating environment. This research presents an overall control framework for a haptic feedback on existing robot platforms, and demonstrated on the daVinci Research Kit (dVRK system. The paper discusses the implementation of a flexible framework that incorporates a stiffness control with gravity compensation for the surgeons manipulator and a sensing and collision detection algorithm for calculating the interaction between the patients manipulators and the surgical area.

The Hedonic Haptics Player: A Wearable Device to Experience Vibrotactile Compositions

OpenAIRE

Boer, Laurens; Vallgårda, Anna; Cahill, Ben

2017-01-01

The Hedonic Haptics player is a portable wearable device that plays back vibrotactile compositions. It consists of three domes each of which houses a vibration motor providing vibrotactile sensations to the wearer. The domes are connected to a control unit the size of a small Walkman. The Hedonic Haptics player can store up to ten different compositions made up of haptic signals varying in amplitude, waveform and length. We use these different compositions to explore the aesthetic potential o...

Haptic perception of wetness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bergmann Tiest, W.M.; Kosters, N.D.; Kappers, Astrid M.L.; Daanen, H.A.M.

2012-01-01

In daily life, people interact with textiles of different degrees of wetness, but little is known about the mechanics of wetness perception. This paper describes an experiment with six conditions regarding haptic discrimination of the wetness of fabrics. Three materials were used: cotton wool,

Enhanced operator perception through 3D vision and haptic feedback

Science.gov (United States)

Edmondson, Richard; Light, Kenneth; Bodenhamer, Andrew; Bosscher, Paul; Wilkinson, Loren

2012-06-01

Polaris Sensor Technologies (PST) has developed a stereo vision upgrade kit for TALON® robot systems comprised of a replacement gripper camera and a replacement mast zoom camera on the robot, and a replacement display in the Operator Control Unit (OCU). Harris Corporation has developed a haptic manipulation upgrade for TALON® robot systems comprised of a replacement arm and gripper and an OCU that provides haptic (force) feedback. PST and Harris have recently collaborated to integrate the 3D vision system with the haptic manipulation system. In multiple studies done at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri it has been shown that 3D vision and haptics provide more intuitive perception of complicated scenery and improved robot arm control, allowing for improved mission performance and the potential for reduced time on target. This paper discusses the potential benefits of these enhancements to robotic systems used for the domestic homeland security mission.

Haptic feedback in OP:Sense - augmented reality in telemanipulated robotic surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Beyl, T; Nicolai, P; Mönnich, H; Raczkowksy, J; Wörn, H

2012-01-01

In current research, haptic feedback in robot assisted interventions plays an important role. However most approaches to haptic feedback only regard the mapping of the current forces at the surgical instrument to the haptic input devices, whereas surgeons demand a combination of medical imaging and telemanipulated robotic setups. In this paper we describe how this feature is integrated in our robotic research platform OP:Sense. The proposed method allows the automatic transfer of segmented imaging data to the haptic renderer and therefore allows enriching the haptic feedback with virtual fixtures based on imaging data. Anatomical structures are extracted from pre-operative generated medical images or virtual walls are defined by the surgeon inside the imaging data. Combining real forces with virtual fixtures can guide the surgeon to the regions of interest as well as helps to prevent the risk of damage to critical structures inside the patient. We believe that the combination of medical imaging and telemanipulation is a crucial step for the next generation of MIRS-systems.

Preliminary Experiment Combining Virtual Reality Haptic Shoes and Audio Synthesis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nordahl, Rolf; Berrezag, Amir; Dimitrov, Smilen

2010-01-01

We describe a system that provides combined auditory and haptic sensations to simulate walking on different grounds. It uses a physical model that drives haptic transducers embedded in sandals and headphones. The model represents walking interactions with solid surfaces that can creak, or be cove...

Haptic virtual reality for skill acquisition in endodontics.

Science.gov (United States)

Suebnukarn, Siriwan; Haddawy, Peter; Rhienmora, Phattanapon; Gajananan, Kugamoorthy

2010-01-01

Haptic virtual reality (VR) has revolutionized the skill acquisition in dentistry. The strength of the haptic VR system is that it can automatically record the outcome and associated kinematic data on how each step of the task is performed, which are not available in the conventional skill training environments. The aim of this study was to assess skill acquisition in endodontics and to identify process and outcome variables for the quantification of proficiency. Twenty novices engaged in the experimental study that involved practicing the access opening task with the haptic VR system. Process (speed, force utilization, and bimanual coordination) and outcome variables were determined for assessing skill performance. These values were compared before and after training. Significant improvements were observed through training in all variables. A unique force used pattern and bimanual coordination were observed in each step of the access opening in the posttraining session. The novices also performed the tasks considerably faster with greater outcome within the first two to three training sessions. The study objectively showed that the novices could learn to perform access opening tasks faster and with more consistency, better bimanual dexterity, and better force utilization. The variables examined showed great promise as objective indicators of proficiency and skill acquisition in haptic VR.

Cortical activation patterns during long-term memory retrieval of visually or haptically encoded objects and locations.

Science.gov (United States)

Stock, Oliver; Röder, Brigitte; Burke, Michael; Bien, Siegfried; Rösler, Frank

2009-01-01

The present study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to delineate cortical networks that are activated when objects or spatial locations encoded either visually (visual encoding group, n=10) or haptically (haptic encoding group, n=10) had to be retrieved from long-term memory. Participants learned associations between auditorily presented words and either meaningless objects or locations in a 3-D space. During the retrieval phase one day later, participants had to decide whether two auditorily presented words shared an association with a common object or location. Thus, perceptual stimulation during retrieval was always equivalent, whereas either visually or haptically encoded object or location associations had to be reactivated. Moreover, the number of associations fanning out from each word varied systematically, enabling a parametric increase of the number of reactivated representations. Recall of visual objects predominantly activated the left superior frontal gyrus and the intraparietal cortex, whereas visually learned locations activated the superior parietal cortex of both hemispheres. Retrieval of haptically encoded material activated the left medial frontal gyrus and the intraparietal cortex in the object condition, and the bilateral superior parietal cortex in the location condition. A direct test for modality-specific effects showed that visually encoded material activated more vision-related areas (BA 18/19) and haptically encoded material more motor and somatosensory-related areas. A conjunction analysis identified supramodal and material-unspecific activations within the medial and superior frontal gyrus and the superior parietal lobe including the intraparietal sulcus. These activation patterns strongly support the idea that code-specific representations are consolidated and reactivated within anatomically distributed cell assemblies that comprise sensory and motor processing systems.

Rapid processing of haptic cues for postural control in blind subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Schieppati, Marco; Schmid, Monica; Sozzi, Stefania

2014-07-01

Vision and touch rapidly lead to postural stabilization in sighted subjects. Is touch-induced stabilization more rapid in blind than in sighted subjects, owing to cross-modal reorganization of function in the blind? We estimated the time-period elapsing from onset of availability of haptic support to onset of lateral stabilization in a group of early- and late-onset blinds. Eleven blind (age 39.4 years±11.7SD) and eleven sighted subjects (age 30.0 years±10.0SD), standing eyes closed with feet in tandem position, touched a pad with their index finger and withdrew the finger from the pad in sequence. EMG of postural muscles and displacement of centre of foot pressure were recorded. The task was repeated fifty times, to allow statistical evaluation of the latency of EMG and sway changes following the haptic shift. Steady-state sway (with or without contact with pad, no haptic shift) did not differ between blind and sighted. On adding the haptic stimulus, EMG and sway diminished in both groups, but at an earlier latency (by about 0.5 s) in the blinds (p blinds. When the haptic stimulus was withdrawn, both groups increased EMG and sway at equally short delays. Blinds are rapid in implementing adaptive postural modifications when granted an external haptic reference. Fast processing of the stabilizing haptic spatial-orientation cues may be favoured by cortical plasticity in blinds. These findings add new information to the field of sensory-guided dynamic control of equilibrium in man. Copyright © 2013 International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Palpation imaging using a haptic system for virtual reality applications in medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Khaled, W; Reichling, S; Bruhns, O T; Boese, H; Baumann, M; Monkman, G; Egersdoerfer, S; Klein, D; Tunayar, A; Freimuth, H; Lorenz, A; Pessavento, A; Ermert, H

2004-01-01

In the field of medical diagnosis, there is a strong need to determine mechanical properties of biological tissue, which are of histological and pathological relevance. Malignant tumors are significantly stiffer than surrounding healthy tissue. One of the established diagnosis procedures is the palpation of body organs and tissue. Palpation is used to measure swelling, detect bone fracture, find and measure pulse, or to locate changes in the pathological state of tissue and organs. Current medical practice routinely uses sophisticated diagnostic tests through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) and ultrasound (US) imaging. However, they cannot provide direct measure of tissue elasticity. Last year we presented the concept of the first haptic sensor actuator system to visualize and reconstruct mechanical properties of tissue using ultrasonic elastography and a haptic display with electrorheological fluids. We developed a real time strain imaging system for tumor diagnosis. It allows biopsies simultaneously to conventional ultrasound B-Mode and strain imaging investigations. We deduce the relative mechanical properties by using finite element simulations and numerical solution models solving the inverse problem. Various modifications on the haptic sensor actuator system have been investigated. This haptic system has the potential of inducing real time substantial forces, using a compact lightweight mechanism which can be applied to numerous areas including intraoperative navigation, telemedicine, teaching and telecommunication.

Effect of haptic assistance on learning vehicle reverse parking skills.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirokawa, Masakazu; Uesugi, Naohisa; Furugori, Satoru; Kitagawa, Tomoko; Suzuki, Kenji

2014-01-01

Compared to conventional visual- and auditory-based assisted driving technologies, haptic modality promises to be more effective and less disturbing assistance to the driver. However, in most previous studies, haptic assistance systems were evaluated from safety and stability viewpoints. Moreover, the effect of haptic assistance on human driving behavior has not been sufficiently discussed. In this paper, we introduce an assisted driving method based on haptic assistance for driver training in reverse parking, which is considered as an uncertain factor in conventional assisted driving systems. The proposed system assists the driver by applying a torque on the steering wheel to guide proper and well-timed steering. To design the appropriate assistance method, we conducted a measurement experiment to determine the qualitative reverse parking driver characteristics. Based on the determined characteristics, we propose a haptic assistance calculation method that utilizes the receding horizon control algorithm. For a simulation environment to assess the proposed assistance method, we also developed a scaled car simulator comprising a 1/10 scaled robot car and an omnidirectional camera. We used the scaled car simulator to conduct comparative experiments on subjects, and observed that the driving skills of the assisted subjects were significantly better than those of the control subjects.

Haptic perception of wetness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bergmann Tiest, W.M.; Kosters, N.D.; Daanen, H.A.M.; Kappers, A.M.L.

2011-01-01

The sensation of wetness is well-known but barely investigated. There are no specific wetness receptors in the skin, but the sensation is mediated by temperature and pressure perception. In our study, we have measured discrimination thresholds for the haptic perception of wetness of three di erent

Haptic perception of wetness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bergmann Tiest, W.M.; Dolfine Kosters, N.; Daanen, h.a.m.; Kappers, A.M.L.

2012-01-01

In daily life, people interact with textiles of different degrees of wetness, but little is known about the me-chanics of wetness perception. This paper describes an experiment with six conditions regarding haptic dis-crimination of the wetness of fabrics. Three materials were used: cotton wool,

Neodymium:YAG laser cutting of intraocular lens haptics.

Science.gov (United States)

Gorn, R A; Steinert, R F

1985-11-01

Neodymium:YAG laser cutting of polymethylmethacrylate and polypropylene anterior chamber and posterior chamber intraocular lens haptics was studied in terms of ease of transection and physical structure of the cut areas as seen by scanning electron microscopy. A marked difference was discovered, with the polymethylmethacrylate cutting easily along transverse planes, whereas the polypropylene resisted cutting along longitudinal fibers. Clinical guidelines are presented.

Haptic device development based on electro static force of cellulose electro active paper

Science.gov (United States)

Yun, Gyu-young; Kim, Sang-Youn; Jang, Sang-Dong; Kim, Dong-Gu; Kim, Jaehwan

2011-04-01

Haptic is one of well-considered device which is suitable for demanding virtual reality applications such as medical equipment, mobile devices, the online marketing and so on. Nowadays, many of concepts for haptic devices have been suggested to meet the demand of industries. Cellulose has received much attention as an emerging smart material, named as electro-active paper (EAPap). The EAPap is attractive for mobile haptic devices due to its unique characteristics in terms of low actuation power, suitability for thin devices and transparency. In this paper, we suggest a new concept of haptic actuator with the use of cellulose EAPap. Its performance is evaluated depending on various actuation conditions. As a result, cellulose electrostatic force actuator shows a large output displacement and fast response, which is suitable for mobile haptic devices.

Haptic and Visual feedback in 3D Audio Mixing Interfaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gelineck, Steven; Overholt, Daniel

2015-01-01

This paper describes the implementation and informal evaluation of a user interface that explores haptic feedback for 3D audio mixing. The implementation compares different approaches using either the LEAP Motion for mid-air hand gesture control, or the Novint Falcon for active haptic feed- back...

A perspective on the role and utility of haptic feedback in laparoscopic skills training.

Science.gov (United States)

Singapogu, Ravikiran; Burg, Timothy; Burg, Karen J L; Smith, Dane E; Eckenrode, Amanda H

2014-01-01

Laparoscopic surgery is a minimally invasive surgical technique with significant potential benefits to the patient, including shorter recovery time, less scarring, and decreased costs. There is a growing need to teach surgical trainees this emerging surgical technique. Simulators, ranging from simple "box" trainers to complex virtual reality (VR) trainers, have emerged as the most promising method for teaching basic laparoscopic surgical skills. Current box trainers require oversight from an expert surgeon for both training and assessing skills. VR trainers decrease the dependence on expert teachers during training by providing objective, real-time feedback and automatic skills evaluation. However, current VR trainers generally have limited credibility as a means to prepare new surgeons and have often fallen short of educators' expectations. Several researchers have speculated that the missing component in modern VR trainers is haptic feedback, which refers to the range of touch sensations encountered during surgery. These force types and ranges need to be adequately rendered by simulators for a more complete training experience. This article presents a perspective of the role and utility of haptic feedback during laparoscopic surgery and laparoscopic skills training by detailing the ranges and types of haptic sensations felt by the operating surgeon, along with quantitative studies of how this feedback is used. Further, a number of research studies that have documented human performance effects as a result of the presence of haptic feedback are critically reviewed. Finally, key research directions in using haptic feedback for laparoscopy training simulators are identified.

Haptic Paddle Enhancements and a Formal Assessment of Student Learning in System Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Gorlewicz, Jenna L.; Kratchman, Louis B.; Webster, Robert J., III

2014-01-01

The haptic paddle is a force-feedback joystick used at several universities in teaching System Dynamics, a core mechanical engineering undergraduate course where students learn to model dynamic systems in several domains. A second goal of the haptic paddle is to increase the accessibility of robotics and haptics by providing a low-cost device for…

Haptic Cues for Balance: Use of a Cane Provides Immediate Body Stabilization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefania Sozzi

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Haptic cues are important for balance. Knowledge of the temporal features of their effect may be crucial for the design of neural prostheses. Touching a stable surface with a fingertip reduces body sway in standing subjects eyes closed (EC, and removal of haptic cue reinstates a large sway pattern. Changes in sway occur rapidly on changing haptic conditions. Here, we describe the effects and time-course of stabilization produced by a haptic cue derived from a walking cane. We intended to confirm that cane use reduces body sway, to evaluate the effect of vision on stabilization by a cane, and to estimate the delay of the changes in body sway after addition and withdrawal of haptic input. Seventeen healthy young subjects stood in tandem position on a force platform, with eyes closed or open (EO. They gently lowered the cane onto and lifted it from a second force platform. Sixty trials per direction of haptic shift (Touch → NoTouch, T-NT; NoTouch → Touch, NT-T and visual condition (EC-EO were acquired. Traces of Center of foot Pressure (CoP and the force exerted by cane were filtered, rectified, and averaged. The position in space of a reflective marker positioned on the cane tip was also acquired by an optoelectronic device. Cross-correlation (CC analysis was performed between traces of cane tip and CoP displacement. Latencies of changes in CoP oscillation in the frontal plane EC following the T-NT and NT-T haptic shift were statistically estimated. The CoP oscillations were larger in EC than EO under both T and NT (p < 0.001 and larger during NT than T conditions (p < 0.001. Haptic-induced effect under EC (Romberg quotient NT/T ~ 1.2 was less effective than that of vision under NT condition (EC/EO ~ 1.5 (p < 0.001. With EO cane had little effect. Cane displacement lagged CoP displacement under both EC and EO. Latencies to changes in CoP oscillations were longer after addition (NT-T, about 1.6 s than withdrawal (T-NT, about 0.9 s of haptic

Assignment about providing of substitute haptic interface for visually disabled persons

OpenAIRE

浅川, 貴史

2013-01-01

[Abstract] This paper is described about an assignment of haptic interface. We have made a proposal for a music baton system for visually disabled persons. The system is constituted by an acceleration sensor, a radio module, and a haptic interface device. We have carried out an experiment of comparing the visual and the haptic interface. The assignments are declared by the results that are rise-time of a motor and pre-motion. In the paper, we make a proposal for new method of the voltage cont...

Brain activation during dichotic presentations of consonant-vowel and musical instrument stimuli: a 15O-PET study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hugdahl, K; Brønnick, K; Kyllingsbaek, S; Law, I; Gade, A; Paulson, O B

1999-04-01

Dichotic listening means that two different stimuli are presented at the same time, one in each ear. This technique is frequently used in experimental and clinical studies as a measure of hemispheric specialization. The primary aim of the present study was to record regional changes in the distribution of cerebral blood flow (CBF) with the 15O-PET technique to dichotically presented consonant-vowel (CV) and musical instrument stimuli, in order to test the basic assumption of differential hemispheric involvement when stimuli presented to one ear dominate over stimuli presented in the other ear. All stimuli were 380 ms in duration with a 1000 ms interstimulus interval, and were presented in blocks of either CV-syllable or musical instrument pairs. Twelve normal healthy subjects had to press a button whenever they detected a CV-syllable or a musical instrument target in a stream of CV- and musical instrument distractor stimuli. The targets appeared equally often in the right and left ear channel. The CV-syllable and musical instrument targets activated bilateral areas in the superior temporal gyri. However, there were significant interactions with regard to asymmetry of the magnitude of peak activation in the significant activation clusters. The CV-syllables resulted in greater neural activation in the left temporal lobe while the musical instruments resulted in greater neural activation in the right temporal lobe. Within-subjects correlations between magnitude of dichotic listening and CBF asymmetry were, however, non-significant. The changes in neural activation were closely mimicked by the performance data which showed a right ear superiority in response accuracy for the CV-syllables, and a left ear superiority for the musical instruments. In addition to the temporal lobe activations, there were activation tendencies in the left inferior frontal lobe, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, left occipital lobe, and cerebellum.

A new visual feedback-based magnetorheological haptic master for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Seung-Hyun; Kim, Soomin; Kim, Pyunghwa; Park, Jinhyuk; Choi, Seung-Bok

2015-06-01

In this study, we developed a novel four-degrees-of-freedom haptic master using controllable magnetorheological (MR) fluid. We also integrated the haptic master with a vision device with image processing for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS). The proposed master can be used in RMIS as a haptic interface to provide the surgeon with a sense of touch by using both kinetic and kinesthetic information. The slave robot, which is manipulated with a proportional-integrative-derivative controller, uses a force sensor to obtain the desired forces from tissue contact, and these desired repulsive forces are then embodied through the MR haptic master. To verify the effectiveness of the haptic master, the desired force and actual force are compared in the time domain. In addition, a visual feedback system is implemented in the RMIS experiment to distinguish between the tumor and organ more clearly and provide better visibility to the operator. The hue-saturation-value color space is adopted for the image processing since it is often more intuitive than other color spaces. The image processing and haptic feedback are realized on surgery performance. In this work, tumor-cutting experiments are conducted under four different operating conditions: haptic feedback on, haptic feedback off, image processing on, and image processing off. The experimental realization shows that the performance index, which is a function of pixels, is different in the four operating conditions.

Contribution to the modeling and the identification of haptic interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Janot, A.

2007-12-01

This thesis focuses on the modeling and the identification of haptic interfaces using cable drive. An haptic interface is a force feedback device, which enables its user to interact with a virtual world or a remote environment explored by a slave system. It aims at the matching between the forces and displacements given by the user and those applied to virtual world. Usually, haptic interfaces make use of a mechanical actuated structure whose distal link is equipped with a handle. When manipulating this handle to interact with explored world, the user feels the apparent mass, compliance and friction of the interface. This distortion introduced between the operator and the virtual world must be modeled and identified to enhance the design of the interface and develop appropriate control laws. The first approach has been to adapt the modeling and identification methods of rigid and localized flexibilities robots to haptic interfaces. The identification technique makes use of the inverse dynamic model and the linear least squares with the measurements of joint torques and positions. This approach is validated on a single degree of freedom and a three degree of freedom haptic devices. A new identification method needing only torque data is proposed. It is based on a closed loop simulation using the direct dynamic model. The optimal parameters minimize the 2 norms of the error between the actual torque and the simulated torque assuming the same control law and the same tracking trajectory. This non linear least squares problem dramatically is simplified using the inverse model to calculate the simulated torque. This method is validated on the single degree of freedom haptic device and the SCARA robot. (author)

Haptic identification of objects and their depictions.

Science.gov (United States)

Klatzky, R L; Loomis, J M; Lederman, S J; Wake, H; Fujita, N

1993-08-01

Haptic identification of real objects is superior to that of raised two-dimensional (2-D) depictions. Three explanations of real-object superiority were investigated: contribution of material information, contribution of 3-D shape and size, and greater potential for integration across the fingers. In Experiment 1, subjects, while wearing gloves that gently attenuated material information, haptically identified real objects that provided reduced cues to compliance, mass, and part motion. The gloves permitted exploration with free hand movement, a single outstretched finger, or five outstretched fingers. Performance decreased over these three conditions but was superior to identification of pictures of the same objects in all cases, indicating the contribution of 3-D structure and integration across the fingers. Picture performance was also better with five fingers than with one. In Experiment 2, the subjects wore open-fingered gloves, which provided them with material information. Consequently, the effect of type of exploration was substantially reduced but not eliminated. Material compensates somewhat for limited access to object structure but is not the primary basis for haptic object identification.

Conceptual Design of Haptic-Feedback Navigation Device for Individuals with Alzheimer's Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Che Me, Rosalam; Biamonti, Alessandro; Mohd Saad, Mohd Rashid

2015-01-01

Wayfinding ability in older adults with Alzheimer's disease (AD) is progressively impaired due to ageing and deterioration of cognitive domains. Usually, the sense of direction is deteriorated as visuospatial and spatial cognition are associated with the sensory acuity. Therefore, navigation systems that support only visual interactions may not be appropriate in case of AD. This paper presents a concept of wearable navigation device that integrates the haptic-feedback technology to facilitate the wayfinding of individuals with AD. The system provides the simplest instructions; left/right using haptic signals, as to avoid users' distraction during navigation. The advantages of haptic/tactile modality for wayfinding purpose based on several significant studies are presented. As preliminary assessment, a survey is conducted to understand the potential of this design concept in terms of (1) acceptability, (2) practicality, (3) wearability, and (4) environmental settings. Results indicate that the concept is highly acceptable and commercially implementable. A working prototype will be developed based on the results of the preliminary assessment. Introducing a new method of navigation should be followed by continuous practices for familiarization purpose. Improved navigability allows the good performance of activities of daily living (ADLs) hence maintain the good quality of life in older adults with AD.

Design and Evaluation of Shape-Changing Haptic Interfaces for Pedestrian Navigation Assistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Spiers, Adam J; Dollar, Aaron M

2017-01-01

Shape-changing interfaces are a category of device capable of altering their form in order to facilitate communication of information. In this work, we present a shape-changing device that has been designed for navigation assistance. 'The Animotus' (previously, 'The Haptic Sandwich' ), resembles a cube with an articulated upper half that is able to rotate and extend (translate) relative to the bottom half, which is fixed in the user's grasp. This rotation and extension, generally felt via the user's fingers, is used to represent heading and proximity to navigational targets. The device is intended to provide an alternative to screen or audio based interfaces for visually impaired, hearing impaired, deafblind, and sighted pedestrians. The motivation and design of the haptic device is presented, followed by the results of a navigation experiment that aimed to determine the role of each device DOF, in terms of facilitating guidance. An additional device, 'The Haptic Taco', which modulated its volume in response to target proximity (negating directional feedback), was also compared. Results indicate that while the heading (rotational) DOF benefited motion efficiency, the proximity (translational) DOF benefited velocity. Combination of the two DOF improved overall performance. The volumetric Taco performed comparably to the Animotus' extension DOF.

A haptic sensing upgrade for the current EOD robotic fleet

Science.gov (United States)

Rowe, Patrick

2014-06-01

The past decade and a half has seen a tremendous rise in the use of mobile manipulator robotic platforms for bomb inspection and disposal, explosive ordnance disposal, and other extremely hazardous tasks in both military and civilian settings. Skilled operators are able to control these robotic vehicles in amazing ways given the very limited situational awareness obtained from a few on-board camera views. Future generations of robotic platforms will, no doubt, provide some sort of additional force or haptic sensor feedback to further enhance the operator's interaction with the robot, especially when dealing with fragile, unstable, and explosive objects. Unfortunately, the robot operators need this capability today. This paper discusses an approach to provide existing (and future) robotic mobile manipulator platforms, with which trained operators are already familiar and highly proficient, this desired haptic and force feedback capability. The goals of this technology are to be rugged, reliable, and affordable. It should also be able to be applied to a wide range of existing robots with a wide variety of manipulator/gripper sizes and styles. Finally, the presentation of the haptic information to the operator is discussed, given the fact that control devices that physically interact with the operators are not widely available and still in the research stages.

TypingSuite: Integrated Software for Presenting Stimuli, and Collecting and Analyzing Typing Data

Science.gov (United States)

Mazerolle, Erin L.; Marchand, Yannick

2015-01-01

Research into typing patterns has broad applications in both psycholinguistics and biometrics (i.e., improving security of computer access via each user's unique typing patterns). We present a new software package, TypingSuite, which can be used for presenting visual and auditory stimuli, collecting typing data, and summarizing and analyzing the…

Dynamics modeling for parallel haptic interfaces with force sensing and control.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernstein, Nicholas; Lawrence, Dale; Pao, Lucy

2013-01-01

Closed-loop force control can be used on haptic interfaces (HIs) to mitigate the effects of mechanism dynamics. A single multidimensional force-torque sensor is often employed to measure the interaction force between the haptic device and the user's hand. The parallel haptic interface at the University of Colorado (CU) instead employs smaller 1D force sensors oriented along each of the five actuating rods to build up a 5D force vector. This paper shows that a particular manipulandum/hand partition in the system dynamics is induced by the placement and type of force sensing, and discusses the implications on force and impedance control for parallel haptic interfaces. The details of a "squaring down" process are also discussed, showing how to obtain reduced degree-of-freedom models from the general six degree-of-freedom dynamics formulation.

A "virtually minimal" visuo-haptic training of attention in severe traumatic brain injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Dvorkin, Assaf Y; Ramaiya, Milan; Larson, Eric B; Zollman, Felise S; Hsu, Nancy; Pacini, Sonia; Shah, Amit; Patton, James L

2013-08-09

Although common during the early stages of recovery from severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), attention deficits have been scarcely investigated. Encouraging evidence suggests beneficial effects of attention training in more chronic and higher functioning patients. Interactive technology may provide new opportunities for rehabilitation in inpatients who are earlier in their recovery. We designed a "virtually minimal" approach using robot-rendered haptics in a virtual environment to train severely injured inpatients in the early stages of recovery to sustain attention to a visuo-motor task. 21 inpatients with severe TBI completed repetitive reaching toward targets that were both seen and felt. Patients were tested over two consecutive days, experiencing 3 conditions (no haptic feedback, a break-through force, and haptic nudge) in 12 successive, 4-minute blocks. The interactive visuo-haptic environments were well-tolerated and engaging. Patients typically remained attentive to the task. However, patients exhibited attention loss both before (prolonged initiation) and during (pauses during motion) a movement. Compared to no haptic feedback, patients benefited from haptic nudge cues but not break-through forces. As training progressed, patients increased the number of targets acquired and spontaneously improved from one day to the next. Interactive visuo-haptic environments could be beneficial for attention training for severe TBI patients in the early stages of recovery and warrants further and more prolonged clinical testing.

Robot-assisted microsurgical forceps with haptic feedback for transoral laser microsurgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Deshpande, Nikhil; Chauhan, Manish; Pacchierotti, Claudio; Prattichizzo, Domenico; Caldwell, Darwin G; Mattos, Leonardo S

2016-08-01

In this paper, a novel, motorized, multi-degrees-of-freedom (DoF), microsurgical forceps tool is presented, which is based on a master-slave teleoperation architecture. The slave device is a 7-DoF manipulator with: (i) 6-DoF positioning and orientation, (ii) 1 open/close gripper DoF; and (iii) an integrated force/torque sensor for tissue grip-force measurement. The master device is a 7-DoF haptic interface which teleoperates the slave device, and provides haptic feedback in its gripper interface. The combination of the device and the surgeon interface replaces the manual, hand-held device providing easy-to-use and ergonomic tissue control, simplifying the surgical tasks. This makes the system suitable to real surgical scenarios in the operating room (OR). The performance of the system was analysed through the evaluation of teleoperation control and characterization of gripping force. The new system offers an overall positioning error of less than 400 μm demonstrating its safety and accuracy. Improved system precision, usability, and ergonomics point to the potential suitability of the device for the OR and its ability to advance haptic-feedback-enhanced transoral laser microsurgeries.

Listening to white noise counteracts visual and haptic pseudoneglect.

Science.gov (United States)

Cattaneo, Zaira; Lega, Carlotta; Vecchi, Tomaso; Vallar, Giuseppe

2012-01-01

Neurologically intact individuals usually show a leftward bias in line bisection, a tendency known as "pseudoneglect", likely reflecting a right-hemisphere dominance in controlling the allocation of spatial attention. Studies in brain-damaged patients with left visuospatial neglect have reported that auditory stimulation may reduce the deficit, both in a spatially dependent and in a spatially independent way. Here we show for the first time that the concurrent binaural presentation of auditory white noise affects healthy individuals' performance in both visual and haptic bisection, reducing their leftward error. We suggest that this effect depends on the noise boosting alertness and restoring the hemispheric activation balance. Our data clearly show that task-irrelevant auditory noise crossmodally affects the allocation of spatial resources in both the haptic and the visual space; future research may clarify whether these effects are specific for the type of auditory stimulation.

Haptic feedback designs in teleoperation systems for minimal invasive surgery

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Font, I.; Weiland, S.; Franken, M.; Steinbuch, M.; Rovers, A.F.

2004-01-01

One of the major shortcomings of state-of-the-art robotic systems for minimal invasive surgery is the lack of haptic feedback for the surgeon. In order to provide haptic information, sensors and actuators have to be added to the master and slave device. A control system should process the data and

A new visual feedback-based magnetorheological haptic master for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Seung-Hyun; Kim, Soomin; Kim, Pyunghwa; Park, Jinhyuk; Choi, Seung-Bok

2015-01-01

In this study, we developed a novel four-degrees-of-freedom haptic master using controllable magnetorheological (MR) fluid. We also integrated the haptic master with a vision device with image processing for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS). The proposed master can be used in RMIS as a haptic interface to provide the surgeon with a sense of touch by using both kinetic and kinesthetic information. The slave robot, which is manipulated with a proportional-integrative-derivative controller, uses a force sensor to obtain the desired forces from tissue contact, and these desired repulsive forces are then embodied through the MR haptic master. To verify the effectiveness of the haptic master, the desired force and actual force are compared in the time domain. In addition, a visual feedback system is implemented in the RMIS experiment to distinguish between the tumor and organ more clearly and provide better visibility to the operator. The hue-saturation-value color space is adopted for the image processing since it is often more intuitive than other color spaces. The image processing and haptic feedback are realized on surgery performance. In this work, tumor-cutting experiments are conducted under four different operating conditions: haptic feedback on, haptic feedback off, image processing on, and image processing off. The experimental realization shows that the performance index, which is a function of pixels, is different in the four operating conditions. (paper)

Force Sensitive Handles and Capacitive Touch Sensor for Driving a Flexible Haptic-Based Immersive System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Umberto Cugini

2013-10-01

Full Text Available In this article, we present an approach that uses both two force sensitive handles (FSH and a flexible capacitive touch sensor (FCTS to drive a haptic-based immersive system. The immersive system has been developed as part of a multimodal interface for product design. The haptic interface consists of a strip that can be used by product designers to evaluate the quality of a 3D virtual shape by using touch, vision and hearing and, also, to interactively change the shape of the virtual object. Specifically, the user interacts with the FSH to move the virtual object and to appropriately position the haptic interface for retrieving the six degrees of freedom required for both manipulation and modification modalities. The FCTS allows the system to track the movement and position of the user’s fingers on the strip, which is used for rendering visual and sound feedback. Two evaluation experiments are described, which involve both the evaluation and the modification of a 3D shape. Results show that the use of the haptic strip for the evaluation of aesthetic shapes is effective and supports product designers in the appreciation of the aesthetic qualities of the shape.

Force sensitive handles and capacitive touch sensor for driving a flexible haptic-based immersive system.

Science.gov (United States)

Covarrubias, Mario; Bordegoni, Monica; Cugini, Umberto

2013-10-09

In this article, we present an approach that uses both two force sensitive handles (FSH) and a flexible capacitive touch sensor (FCTS) to drive a haptic-based immersive system. The immersive system has been developed as part of a multimodal interface for product design. The haptic interface consists of a strip that can be used by product designers to evaluate the quality of a 3D virtual shape by using touch, vision and hearing and, also, to interactively change the shape of the virtual object. Specifically, the user interacts with the FSH to move the virtual object and to appropriately position the haptic interface for retrieving the six degrees of freedom required for both manipulation and modification modalities. The FCTS allows the system to track the movement and position of the user's fingers on the strip, which is used for rendering visual and sound feedback. Two evaluation experiments are described, which involve both the evaluation and the modification of a 3D shape. Results show that the use of the haptic strip for the evaluation of aesthetic shapes is effective and supports product designers in the appreciation of the aesthetic qualities of the shape.

Sound Descriptions of Haptic Experiences of Art Work by Deafblind Cochlear Implant Users

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Riitta Lahtinen

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Deafblind persons’ perception and experiences are based on their residual auditive and visual senses, and touch. Their haptic exploration, through movements and orientation towards objects give blind persons direct, independent experience. Few studies explore the aesthetic experiences and appreciation of artefacts of deafblind people using cochlear implant (CI technology, and how they interpret and express their perceived aesthetic experience through another sensory modality. While speech recognition is studied extensively in this area, the aspect of auditive descriptions made by CI users are a less-studied domain. This present research intervention describes and analyses five different deafblind people sharing their interpretation of five statues vocally, using sounds and written descriptions based on their haptic explorations. The participants found new and multimodal ways of expressing their experiences, as well as re-experiencing them through technological aids. We also found that the CI users modify technology to better suit their personal needs. We conclude that CI technology in combination with self-made sound descriptions enhance memorization of haptic art experiences that can be re-called by the recording of the sound descriptions. This research expands the idea of auditive descriptions, and encourages user-produced descriptions as artistic supports to traditional linguistic, audio descriptions. These can be used to create personal auditive–haptic memory collections similar to how sighted create photo albums.

Do vision and haptics share common representations? Implicit and explicit memory within and between modalities.

Science.gov (United States)

Easton, R D; Srinivas, K; Greene, A J

1997-01-01

Previous assessments of verbal cross-modal priming have typically been conducted with the visual and auditory modalities. Within-modal priming is always found to be substantially larger than cross-modal priming, a finding that could reflect modality modularity, or alternatively, differences between the coding of visual and auditory verbal information (i.e., geometric vs. phonological). The present experiments assessed implicit and explicit memory within and between vision and haptics, where verbal information could be coded in geometric terms. Because haptic perception of words is sequential or letter-by-letter, experiments were also conducted to isolate the effects of simultaneous versus sequential processing from the manipulation of modality. Together, the results reveal no effects of modality change on implicit or explicit tests. The authors discuss representational similarities between vision and haptics as well as image mediation as possible explanations for the results.

Haptic Feedback in Motor Hand Virtual Therapy Increases Precision and Generates Less Mental Workload

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristina Ramírez-Fernández

2015-10-01

Full Text Available In this work we show that haptic feedback in upper limb motor therapy improves performance and generates a lower mental workload. To demonstrate this, two groups of participants (healthy adults and elders with hand motor problems used a low-cost haptic device (Novint Falcon and a non-robotic device (Leap Motion Controller. Participants conducted the same rehabilitation task by using a non-immersive virtual environment. Results show significant differences for all participants regarding precision on the use of the haptic feedback device. Additionally, participants in the older adult group demonstrated a lower mental workload while using the haptic device (Novint Falcon. Finally, qualitative results show that participants preferred to conduct their therapy exercises by using the haptic device, as they found it more useful, easier to use and easier to learn

Open Touch/Sound Maps: A system to convey street data through haptic and auditory feedback

Science.gov (United States)

Kaklanis, Nikolaos; Votis, Konstantinos; Tzovaras, Dimitrios

2013-08-01

The use of spatial (geographic) information is becoming ever more central and pervasive in today's internet society but the most of it is currently inaccessible to visually impaired users. However, access in visual maps is severely restricted to visually impaired and people with blindness, due to their inability to interpret graphical information. Thus, alternative ways of a map's presentation have to be explored, in order to enforce the accessibility of maps. Multiple types of sensory perception like touch and hearing may work as a substitute of vision for the exploration of maps. The use of multimodal virtual environments seems to be a promising alternative for people with visual impairments. The present paper introduces a tool for automatic multimodal map generation having haptic and audio feedback using OpenStreetMap data. For a desired map area, an elevation map is being automatically generated and can be explored by touch, using a haptic device. A sonification and a text-to-speech (TTS) mechanism provide also audio navigation information during the haptic exploration of the map.

Force Sensitive Handles and Capacitive Touch Sensor for Driving a Flexible Haptic-Based Immersive System

OpenAIRE

Covarrubias, Mario; Bordegoni, Monica; Cugini, Umberto

2013-01-01

In this article, we present an approach that uses both two force sensitive handles (FSH) and a flexible capacitive touch sensor (FCTS) to drive a haptic-based immersive system. The immersive system has been developed as part of a multimodal interface for product design. The haptic interface consists of a strip that can be used by product designers to evaluate the quality of a 3D virtual shape by using touch, vision and hearing and, also, to interactively change the shape of the virtual object...

Haptic shared control improves hot cell remote handling despite controller inaccuracies

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Oosterhout, J.; Abbink, D. A.; Koning, J. F.; Boessenkool, H.; Wildenbeest, J. G. W.; Heemskerk, C. J. M.

2013-01-01

A promising solution to improve task performance in ITER hot cell remote handling is the use of haptic shared control. Haptic shared control can assist the human operator along a safe and optimal path with continuous guiding forces from an intelligent autonomous controller. Previous research tested

Touch Is Everywhere: Floor Surfaces as Ambient Haptic Interfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Visell, Y; Law, A; Cooperstock, J R

2009-01-01

Floor surfaces are notable for the diverse roles that they play in our negotiation of everyday environments. Haptic communication via floor surfaces could enhance or enable many computer-supported activities that involve movement on foot. In this paper, we discuss potential applications of such interfaces in everyday environments and present a haptically augmented floor component through which several interaction methods are being evaluated. We describe two approaches to the design of structured vibrotactile signals for this device. The first is centered on a musical phrase metaphor, as employed in prior work on tactile display. The second is based upon the synthesis of rhythmic patterns of virtual physical impact transients. We report on an experiment in which participants were able to identify communication units that were constructed from these signals and displayed via a floor interface at well above chance levels. The results support the feasibility of tactile information display via such interfaces and provide further indications as to how to effectively design vibrotactile signals for them.

Training haptic stiffness discrimination: time course of learning with or without visual information and knowledge of results.

Science.gov (United States)

Teodorescu, Kinneret; Bouchigny, Sylvain; Korman, Maria

2013-08-01

In this study, we explored the time course of haptic stiffness discrimination learning and how it was affected by two experimental factors, the addition of visual information and/or knowledge of results (KR) during training. Stiffness perception may integrate both haptic and visual modalities. However, in many tasks, the visual field is typically occluded, forcing stiffness perception to be dependent exclusively on haptic information. No studies to date addressed the time course of haptic stiffness perceptual learning. Using a virtual environment (VE) haptic interface and a two-alternative forced-choice discrimination task, the haptic stiffness discrimination ability of 48 participants was tested across 2 days. Each day included two haptic test blocks separated by a training block Additional visual information and/or KR were manipulated between participants during training blocks. Practice repetitions alone induced significant improvement in haptic stiffness discrimination. Between days, accuracy was slightly improved, but decision time performance was deteriorated. The addition of visual information and/or KR had only temporary effects on decision time, without affecting the time course of haptic discrimination learning. Learning in haptic stiffness discrimination appears to evolve through at least two distinctive phases: A single training session resulted in both immediate and latent learning. This learning was not affected by the training manipulations inspected. Training skills in VE in spaced sessions can be beneficial for tasks in which haptic perception is critical, such as surgery procedures, when the visual field is occluded. However, training protocols for such tasks should account for low impact of multisensory information and KR.

Sensorimotor Interactions in the Haptic Perception of Virtual Objects

Science.gov (United States)

1997-01-01

the human user. 2 Compared to our understanding of vision and audition , our knowledge of the human haptic perception is very limited. Many basic...modalities such as vision and audition on haptic perception of viscosity or mass, for example. 116 Some preliminary work has already been done in this...string[3]; *posx="x" *forf="f’ *velv="v" * acca ="a" trial[64]; resp[64]; /* random number */ /* trial number */ /* index */ /* array holding stim

Enhancing Mediated Interpersonal Communication through Affective Haptics

Science.gov (United States)

Tsetserukou, Dzmitry; Neviarouskaya, Alena; Prendinger, Helmut; Kawakami, Naoki; Ishizuka, Mitsuru; Tachi, Susumu

Driven by the motivation to enhance emotionally immersive experience of real-time messaging in 3D virtual world Second Life, we are proposing a conceptually novel approach to reinforcing (intensifying) own feelings and reproducing (simulating) the emotions felt by the partner through specially designed system, iFeel_IM!. In the paper we are describing the development of novel haptic devices (HaptiHeart, HaptiHug, HaptiTickler, HaptiCooler, and HaptiWarmer) integrated into iFeel_IM! system, which architecture is presented in detail.

Comparison of two metrological approaches for the prediction of human haptic perception

Science.gov (United States)

Neumann, Annika; Frank, Daniel; Vondenhoff, Thomas; Schmitt, Robert

2016-06-01

Haptic perception is regarded as a key component of customer appreciation and acceptance for various products. The prediction of customers’ haptic perception is of interest both during product development and production phases. This paper presents the results of a multivariate analysis between perceived roughness and texture related surface measurements, to examine whether perceived roughness can be accurately predicted using technical measurements. Studies have shown that standardized measurement parameters, such as the roughness coefficients (e.g. Rz or Ra), do not show a one-dimensional linear correlation with the human perception (of roughness). Thus, an alternative measurement method was compared to standard measurements of roughness, in regard to its capability of predicting perceived roughness through technical measurements. To estimate perceived roughness, an experimental study was conducted in which 102 subjects evaluated four sets of 12 different geometrical surface structures regarding their relative perceived roughness. The two different metrological procedures were examined in relation to their capability to predict the perceived roughness of the subjects stated within the study. The standardized measurements of the surface roughness were made using a structured light 3D-scanner. As an alternative method, surface induced vibrations were measured by a finger-like sensor during robot-controlled traverse over a surface. The presented findings provide a better understanding of the predictability of human haptic perception using technical measurements.

Modeling and Design of an Electro-Rheological Fluid Based Haptic System for Tele-Operation of Space Robots

Science.gov (United States)

Mavroidis, Constantinos; Pfeiffer, Charles; Paljic, Alex; Celestino, James; Lennon, Jamie; Bar-Cohen, Yoseph

2000-01-01

For many years, the robotic community sought to develop robots that can eventually operate autonomously and eliminate the need for human operators. However, there is an increasing realization that there are some tasks that human can perform significantly better but, due to associated hazards, distance, physical limitations and other causes, only robot can be employed to perform these tasks. Remotely performing these types of tasks requires operating robots as human surrogates. While current "hand master" haptic systems are able to reproduce the feeling of rigid objects, they present great difficulties in emulating the feeling of remote/virtual stiffness. In addition, they tend to be heavy, cumbersome and usually they only allow limited operator workspace. In this paper a novel haptic interface is presented to enable human-operators to "feel" and intuitively mirror the stiffness/forces at remote/virtual sites enabling control of robots as human-surrogates. This haptic interface is intended to provide human operators intuitive feeling of the stiffness and forces at remote or virtual sites in support of space robots performing dexterous manipulation tasks (such as operating a wrench or a drill). Remote applications are referred to the control of actual robots whereas virtual applications are referred to simulated operations. The developed haptic interface will be applicable to IVA operated robotic EVA tasks to enhance human performance, extend crew capability and assure crew safety. The electrically controlled stiffness is obtained using constrained ElectroRheological Fluids (ERF), which changes its viscosity under electrical stimulation. Forces applied at the robot end-effector due to a compliant environment will be reflected to the user using this ERF device where a change in the system viscosity will occur proportionally to the force to be transmitted. In this paper, we will present the results of our modeling, simulation, and initial testing of such an

Graphic and haptic simulation system for virtual laparoscopic rectum surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Jun J; Chang, Jian; Yang, Xiaosong; Zhang, Jian J; Qureshi, Tahseen; Howell, Robert; Hickish, Tamas

2011-09-01

Medical simulators with vision and haptic feedback techniques offer a cost-effective and efficient alternative to the traditional medical trainings. They have been used to train doctors in many specialties of medicine, allowing tasks to be practised in a safe and repetitive manner. This paper describes a virtual-reality (VR) system which will help to influence surgeons' learning curves in the technically challenging field of laparoscopic surgery of the rectum. Data from MRI of the rectum and real operation videos are used to construct the virtual models. A haptic force filter based on radial basis functions is designed to offer realistic and smooth force feedback. To handle collision detection efficiently, a hybrid model is presented to compute the deformation of intestines. Finally, a real-time cutting technique based on mesh is employed to represent the incision operation. Despite numerous research efforts, fast and realistic solutions of soft tissues with large deformation, such as intestines, prove extremely challenging. This paper introduces our latest contribution to this endeavour. With this system, the user can haptically operate with the virtual rectum and simultaneously watch the soft tissue deformation. Our system has been tested by colorectal surgeons who believe that the simulated tactile and visual feedbacks are realistic. It could replace the traditional training process and effectively transfer surgical skills to novices. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Obstacle Crossing Differences Between Blind and Blindfolded Subjects After Haptic Exploration

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Forner-Cordero, A.; Garcia, V.D.; Rodrigues, S.T.; Duysens, J.

2016-01-01

Little is known about the ability of blind people to cross obstacles after they have explored haptically their size and position. Long-term absence of vision may affect spatial cognition in the blind while their extensive experience with the use of haptic information for guidance may lead to

A novel approach to haptic tele-operation of aerial robot vehicles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stramigioli, Stefano; Mahony, Robert; Corke, Peter

2010-01-01

We present a novel, simple and effective approach for tele-operation of aerial robotic vehicles with haptic feedback. Such feedback provides the remote pilot with an intuitive feel of the robot's state and perceived local environment that will ensure simple and safe operation in cluttered 3D

A “virtually minimal” visuo-haptic training of attention in severe traumatic brain injury

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Although common during the early stages of recovery from severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), attention deficits have been scarcely investigated. Encouraging evidence suggests beneficial effects of attention training in more chronic and higher functioning patients. Interactive technology may provide new opportunities for rehabilitation in inpatients who are earlier in their recovery. Methods We designed a “virtually minimal” approach using robot-rendered haptics in a virtual environment to train severely injured inpatients in the early stages of recovery to sustain attention to a visuo-motor task. 21 inpatients with severe TBI completed repetitive reaching toward targets that were both seen and felt. Patients were tested over two consecutive days, experiencing 3 conditions (no haptic feedback, a break-through force, and haptic nudge) in 12 successive, 4-minute blocks. Results The interactive visuo-haptic environments were well-tolerated and engaging. Patients typically remained attentive to the task. However, patients exhibited attention loss both before (prolonged initiation) and during (pauses during motion) a movement. Compared to no haptic feedback, patients benefited from haptic nudge cues but not break-through forces. As training progressed, patients increased the number of targets acquired and spontaneously improved from one day to the next. Conclusions Interactive visuo-haptic environments could be beneficial for attention training for severe TBI patients in the early stages of recovery and warrants further and more prolonged clinical testing. PMID:23938101

Haptic exploration of fingertip-sized geometric features using a multimodal tactile sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Ponce Wong, Ruben D.; Hellman, Randall B.; Santos, Veronica J.

2014-06-01

Haptic perception remains a grand challenge for artificial hands. Dexterous manipulators could be enhanced by "haptic intelligence" that enables identification of objects and their features via touch alone. Haptic perception of local shape would be useful when vision is obstructed or when proprioceptive feedback is inadequate, as observed in this study. In this work, a robot hand outfitted with a deformable, bladder-type, multimodal tactile sensor was used to replay four human-inspired haptic "exploratory procedures" on fingertip-sized geometric features. The geometric features varied by type (bump, pit), curvature (planar, conical, spherical), and footprint dimension (1.25 - 20 mm). Tactile signals generated by active fingertip motions were used to extract key parameters for use as inputs to supervised learning models. A support vector classifier estimated order of curvature while support vector regression models estimated footprint dimension once curvature had been estimated. A distal-proximal stroke (along the long axis of the finger) enabled estimation of order of curvature with an accuracy of 97%. Best-performing, curvature-specific, support vector regression models yielded R2 values of at least 0.95. While a radial-ulnar stroke (along the short axis of the finger) was most helpful for estimating feature type and size for planar features, a rolling motion was most helpful for conical and spherical features. The ability to haptically perceive local shape could be used to advance robot autonomy and provide haptic feedback to human teleoperators of devices ranging from bomb defusal robots to neuroprostheses.

Haptically guided grasping. FMRI shows right-hemisphere parietal stimulus encoding, and bilateral dorso-ventral parietal gradients of object- and action-related processing during grasp execution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mattia eMarangon

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The neural bases of haptically-guided grasp planning and execution are largely unknown, especially for stimuli having no visual representations. Therefore, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI to monitor brain activity during haptic exploration of novel 3D complex objects, subsequent grasp planning, and the execution of the pre-planned grasps. Haptic object exploration, involving extraction of shape, orientation and length of the to-be-grasped targets, was associated with the fronto-parietal, temporo-occipital, and insular cortex activity. Yet, only the anterior divisions of the posterior parietal cortex (PPC of the right hemisphere were significantly more engaged in exploration of complex objects (vs. simple control disks. None of these regions were re-recruited during the planning phase. Even more surprisingly, the left-hemisphere intraparietal, temporal, and occipital areas that were significantly invoked for grasp planning did not show sensitivity to object features. Finally, grasp execution, involving the re-recruitment of the critical right-hemisphere PPC clusters, was also significantly associated with two kinds of bilateral parieto-frontal processes. The first represents transformations of grasp-relevant target features and is linked to the dorso-dorsal (lateral and medial parieto-frontal networks. The second monitors grasp kinematics and belongs to the ventro-dorsal networks. Indeed, signal modulations associated with these distinct functions follow dorso-ventral gradients, with left aIPS showing significant sensitivity to both target features and the characteristics of the required grasp. Thus, our results from the haptic domain are consistent with the notion that the parietal processing for action guidance reflects primarily transformations from object-related to effector-related coding, and these mechanisms are rather independent of sensory input modality.

The workload implications of haptic displays in multi-display environments such as the cockpit: Dual-task interference of within-sense haptic inputs (tactile/proprioceptive) and between-sense inputs (tactile/proprioceptive/auditory/visual)

OpenAIRE

Castle, H

2007-01-01

Visual workload demand within the cockpit is reaching saturation, whereas the haptic sense (proprioceptive and tactile sensation) is relatively untapped, despite studies suggesting the benefits of haptic displays. MRT suggests that inputs from haptic displays will not interfere with inputs from visual or auditory displays. MRT is based on the premise that multisensory integration occurs only after unisensory processing. However, recent neuroscientific findings suggest that t...

The development of a haptic virtual reality environment to study body image and affect.

Science.gov (United States)

Tremblay, Line; Bouchard, Stephane; Chebbi, Brahim; Wei, Lai; Monthuy-Blanc, Johana; Boulanger, Dominic

2013-01-01

We report the results of a preliminary study testing the effect of participants' mood rating on visual motor performance using a haptic device to manipulate a cartoonish human body. Our results suggest that moods involving high arousal (e.g. happiness) produce larger movements whereas mood involving low arousal (e.g. sadness) produce slower speed of performance. Our results are used for the development of a new haptic virtual reality application that we briefly present here. This application is intended to create a more interactive and motivational environment to treat body image issues and for emotional communication.

A haptic unit designed for magnetic-resonance-guided biopsy.

Science.gov (United States)

Tse, Z T H; Elhawary, H; Rea, M; Young, I; Davis, B L; Lamperth, M

2009-02-01

The magnetic fields present in the magnetic resonance (MR) environment impose severe constraints on any mechatronic device present in its midst, requiring alternative actuators, sensors, and materials to those conventionally used in traditional system engineering. In addition the spatial constraints of closed-bore scanners require a physical separation between the radiologist and the imaged region of the patient. This configuration produces a loss of the sense of touch from the target anatomy for the clinician, which often provides useful information. To recover the force feedback from the tissue, an MR-compatible haptic unit, designed to be integrated with a five-degrees-of-freedom mechatronic system for MR-guided prostate biopsy, has been developed which incorporates position control and force feedback to the operator. The haptic unit is designed to be located inside the scanner isocentre with the master console in the control room. MR compatibility of the device has been demonstrated, showing a negligible degradation of the signal-to-noise ratio and virtually no geometric distortion. By combining information from the position encoder and force sensor, tissue stiffness measurement along the needle trajectory is demonstrated in a lamb liver to aid diagnosis of suspected cancerous tissue.

Development of visuo-haptic transfer for object recognition in typical preschool and school-aged children.

Science.gov (United States)

Purpura, Giulia; Cioni, Giovanni; Tinelli, Francesca

2018-07-01

Object recognition is a long and complex adaptive process and its full maturation requires combination of many different sensory experiences as well as cognitive abilities to manipulate previous experiences in order to develop new percepts and subsequently to learn from the environment. It is well recognized that the transfer of visual and haptic information facilitates object recognition in adults, but less is known about development of this ability. In this study, we explored the developmental course of object recognition capacity in children using unimodal visual information, unimodal haptic information, and visuo-haptic information transfer in children from 4 years to 10 years and 11 months of age. Participants were tested through a clinical protocol, involving visual exploration of black-and-white photographs of common objects, haptic exploration of real objects, and visuo-haptic transfer of these two types of information. Results show an age-dependent development of object recognition abilities for visual, haptic, and visuo-haptic modalities. A significant effect of time on development of unimodal and crossmodal recognition skills was found. Moreover, our data suggest that multisensory processes for common object recognition are active at 4 years of age. They facilitate recognition of common objects, and, although not fully mature, are significant in adaptive behavior from the first years of age. The study of typical development of visuo-haptic processes in childhood is a starting point for future studies regarding object recognition in impaired populations.

Advanced Maintenance Simulation by Means of Hand-Based Haptic Interfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Nappi, Michele; Paolino, Luca; Ricciardi, Stefano; Sebillo, Monica; Vitiello, Giuliana

Aerospace industry has been involved in virtual simulation for design and testing since the birth of virtual reality. Today this industry is showing a growing interest in the development of haptic-based maintenance training applications, which represent the most advanced way to simulate maintenance and repair tasks within a virtual environment by means of a visual-haptic approach. The goal is to allow the trainee to experiment the service procedures not only as a workflow reproduced at a visual level but also in terms of the kinaesthetic feedback involved with the manipulation of tools and components. This study, conducted in collaboration with aerospace industry specialists, is aimed to the development of an immersive virtual capable of immerging the trainees into a virtual environment where mechanics and technicians can perform maintenance simulation or training tasks by directly manipulating 3D virtual models of aircraft parts while perceiving force feedback through the haptic interface. The proposed system is based on ViRstperson, a virtual reality engine under development at the Italian Center for Aerospace Research (CIRA) to support engineering and technical activities such as design-time maintenance procedure validation, and maintenance training. This engine has been extended to support haptic-based interaction, enabling a more complete level of interaction, also in terms of impedance control, and thus fostering the development of haptic knowledge in the user. The user’s “sense of touch” within the immersive virtual environment is simulated through an Immersion CyberForce® hand-based force-feedback device. Preliminary testing of the proposed system seems encouraging.

Shifty: A Weight-Shifting Dynamic Passive Haptic Proxy to Enhance Object Perception in Virtual Reality.

Science.gov (United States)

Zenner, Andre; Kruger, Antonio

2017-04-01

We define the concept of Dynamic Passive Haptic Feedback (DPHF) for virtual reality by introducing the weight-shifting physical DPHF proxy object Shifty. This concept combines actuators known from active haptics and physical proxies known from passive haptics to construct proxies that automatically adapt their passive haptic feedback. We describe the concept behind our ungrounded weight-shifting DPHF proxy Shifty and the implementation of our prototype. We then investigate how Shifty can, by automatically changing its internal weight distribution, enhance the user's perception of virtual objects interacted with in two experiments. In a first experiment, we show that Shifty can enhance the perception of virtual objects changing in shape, especially in length and thickness. Here, Shifty was shown to increase the user's fun and perceived realism significantly, compared to an equivalent passive haptic proxy. In a second experiment, Shifty is used to pick up virtual objects of different virtual weights. The results show that Shifty enhances the perception of weight and thus the perceived realism by adapting its kinesthetic feedback to the picked-up virtual object. In the same experiment, we additionally show that specific combinations of haptic, visual and auditory feedback during the pick-up interaction help to compensate for visual-haptic mismatch perceived during the shifting process.

Kinetic scrolling-based position mapping for haptic teleoperation of unmanned aerial vehicles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ruesch, A.; Mersha, A.Y.; Stramigioli, Stefano; Carloni, Raffaella

In this paper, we present a haptic teleoperation control algorithm for unmanned aerial vehicles, applying a kinetic scrolling-based position mapping. The proposed algorithm overcomes the master workspace limitations and enables to teleoperate the aerial vehicle in unbounded workspace in a fast and

Effects of kinesthetic haptic feedback on standing stability of young healthy subjects and stroke patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Afzal, Muhammad Raheel; Byun, Ha-Young; Oh, Min-Kyun; Yoon, Jungwon

2015-03-13

Haptic control is a useful therapeutic option in rehabilitation featuring virtual reality interaction. As with visual and vibrotactile biofeedback, kinesthetic haptic feedback may assist in postural control, and can achieve balance control. Kinesthetic haptic feedback in terms of body sway can be delivered via a commercially available haptic device and can enhance the balance stability of both young healthy subjects and stroke patients. Our system features a waist-attached smartphone, software running on a computer (PC), and a dedicated Phantom Omni® device. Young healthy participants performed balance tasks after assumption of each of four distinct postures for 30 s (one foot on the ground; the Tandem Romberg stance; one foot on foam; and the Tandem Romberg stance on foam) with eyes closed. Patient eyes were not closed and assumption of the Romberg stance (only) was tested during a balance task 25 s in duration. An Android application running continuously on the smartphone sent mediolateral (ML) and anteroposterior (AP) tilt angles to a PC, which generated kinesthetic haptic feedback via Phantom Omni®. A total of 16 subjects, 8 of whom were young healthy and 8 of whom had suffered stroke, participated in the study. Post-experiment data analysis was performed using MATLAB®. Mean Velocity Displacement (MVD), Planar Deviation (PD), Mediolateral Trajectory (MLT) and Anteroposterior Trajectory (APT) parameters were analyzed to measure reduction in body sway. Our kinesthetic haptic feedback system was effective to reduce postural sway in young healthy subjects regardless of posture and the condition of the substrate (the ground) and to improve MVD and PD in stroke patients who assumed the Romberg stance. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) revealed that kinesthetic haptic feedback significantly reduced body sway in both categories of subjects. Kinesthetic haptic feedback can be implemented using a commercial haptic device and a smartphone. Intuitive balance cues were

Design and control of MR haptic master/slave robot system for minimally invasive surgery

Science.gov (United States)

Uhm, Chang-Ho; Nguyen, Phoung Bac; Choi, Seung-Bok

2013-04-01

In this work, magnetorheological (MR) haptic master and slave robot for minimally invasive surgery (MIS) have been designed and tested. The proposed haptic master consists of four actuators; three MR brakes featuring gimbal structure for 3-DOF rotation motion(X, Y and Z axes) and one MR linear actuator for 1-DOF translational motion. The proposed slave robot which is connected with the haptic master has vertically multi- joints, and it consists of four DC servomotors; three for positioning endoscope and one for spinning motion. We added a fixed bar with a ball joint on the base of the slave for the endoscope position at the patient's abdomen to maintain safety. A gimbal structure at the end of the slave robotic arm for the last joint rotates freely with respect to the pivot point of the fixed bar. This master-slave system runs as if a teleoperation system through TCP/IP connection, programmed by LabVIEW. In order to achieve the desired position trajectory, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller is designed and implemented. It has been demonstrated that the effective tracking control performances for the desired motion are well achieved and presented in time domain. At last, an experiment in virtual environments is undertaken to investigate the effectiveness of the MR haptic master device for MIS system.

Development of a wearable haptic game interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Foottit

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This paper outlines the ongoing development of a wearable haptic game interface, in this case for controlling a flight simulator. The device differs from many traditional haptic feedback implementations in that it combines vibrotactile feedback with gesture based input, thus becoming a two-way conduit between the user and the virtual environment. The device is intended to challenge what is considered an “interface” and sets out to purposefully blur the boundary between man and machine. This allows for a more immersive experience, and a user evaluation shows that the intuitive interface allows the user to become the aircraft that is controlled by the movements of the user's hand.

Haptically Guided Grasping. fMRI Shows Right-Hemisphere Parietal Stimulus Encoding, and Bilateral Dorso-Ventral Parietal Gradients of Object- and Action-Related Processing during Grasp Execution.

Science.gov (United States)

Marangon, Mattia; Kubiak, Agnieszka; Króliczak, Gregory

2015-01-01

The neural bases of haptically-guided grasp planning and execution are largely unknown, especially for stimuli having no visual representations. Therefore, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to monitor brain activity during haptic exploration of novel 3D complex objects, subsequent grasp planning, and the execution of the pre-planned grasps. Haptic object exploration, involving extraction of shape, orientation, and length of the to-be-grasped targets, was associated with the fronto-parietal, temporo-occipital, and insular cortex activity. Yet, only the anterior divisions of the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) of the right hemisphere were significantly more engaged in exploration of complex objects (vs. simple control disks). None of these regions were re-recruited during the planning phase. Even more surprisingly, the left-hemisphere intraparietal, temporal, and occipital areas that were significantly invoked for grasp planning did not show sensitivity to object features. Finally, grasp execution, involving the re-recruitment of the critical right-hemisphere PPC clusters, was also significantly associated with two kinds of bilateral parieto-frontal processes. The first represents transformations of grasp-relevant target features and is linked to the dorso-dorsal (lateral and medial) parieto-frontal networks. The second monitors grasp kinematics and belongs to the ventro-dorsal networks. Indeed, signal modulations associated with these distinct functions follow dorso-ventral gradients, with left aIPS showing significant sensitivity to both target features and the characteristics of the required grasp. Thus, our results from the haptic domain are consistent with the notion that the parietal processing for action guidance reflects primarily transformations from object-related to effector-related coding, and these mechanisms are rather independent of sensory input modality.

[The P300-based brain-computer interface: presentation of the complex "flash + movement" stimuli].

Science.gov (United States)

Ganin, I P; Kaplan, A Ia

2014-01-01

The P300 based brain-computer interface requires the detection of P300 wave of brain event-related potentials. Most of its users learn the BCI control in several minutes and after the short classifier training they can type a text on the computer screen or assemble an image of separate fragments in simple BCI-based video games. Nevertheless, insufficient attractiveness for users and conservative stimuli organization in this BCI may restrict its integration into real information processes control. At the same time initial movement of object (motion-onset stimuli) may be an independent factor that induces P300 wave. In current work we checked the hypothesis that complex "flash + movement" stimuli together with drastic and compact stimuli organization on the computer screen may be much more attractive for user while operating in P300 BCI. In 20 subjects research we showed the effectiveness of our interface. Both accuracy and P300 amplitude were higher for flashing stimuli and complex "flash + movement" stimuli compared to motion-onset stimuli. N200 amplitude was maximal for flashing stimuli, while for "flash + movement" stimuli and motion-onset stimuli it was only a half of it. Similar BCI with complex stimuli may be embedded into compact control systems requiring high level of user attention under impact of negative external effects obstructing the BCI control.

Recruitment of Foveal Retinotopic Cortex During Haptic Exploration of Shapes and Actions in the Dark.

Science.gov (United States)

Monaco, Simona; Gallivan, Jason P; Figley, Teresa D; Singhal, Anthony; Culham, Jody C

2017-11-29

The role of the early visual cortex and higher-order occipitotemporal cortex has been studied extensively for visual recognition and to a lesser degree for haptic recognition and visually guided actions. Using a slow event-related fMRI experiment, we investigated whether tactile and visual exploration of objects recruit the same "visual" areas (and in the case of visual cortex, the same retinotopic zones) and if these areas show reactivation during delayed actions in the dark toward haptically explored objects (and if so, whether this reactivation might be due to imagery). We examined activation during visual or haptic exploration of objects and action execution (grasping or reaching) separated by an 18 s delay. Twenty-nine human volunteers (13 females) participated in this study. Participants had their eyes open and fixated on a point in the dark. The objects were placed below the fixation point and accordingly visual exploration activated the cuneus, which processes retinotopic locations in the lower visual field. Strikingly, the occipital pole (OP), representing foveal locations, showed higher activation for tactile than visual exploration, although the stimulus was unseen and location in the visual field was peripheral. Moreover, the lateral occipital tactile-visual area (LOtv) showed comparable activation for tactile and visual exploration. Psychophysiological interaction analysis indicated that the OP showed stronger functional connectivity with anterior intraparietal sulcus and LOtv during the haptic than visual exploration of shapes in the dark. After the delay, the cuneus, OP, and LOtv showed reactivation that was independent of the sensory modality used to explore the object. These results show that haptic actions not only activate "visual" areas during object touch, but also that this information appears to be used in guiding grasping actions toward targets after a delay. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Visual presentation of an object activates shape

A Study on Immersion and Presence of a Portable Hand Haptic System for Immersive Virtual Reality

OpenAIRE

Kim, Mingyu; Jeon, Changyu; Kim, Jinmo

2017-01-01

This paper proposes a portable hand haptic system using Leap Motion as a haptic interface that can be used in various virtual reality (VR) applications. The proposed hand haptic system was designed as an Arduino-based sensor architecture to enable a variety of tactile senses at low cost, and is also equipped with a portable wristband. As a haptic system designed for tactile feedback, the proposed system first identifies the left and right hands and then sends tactile senses (vibration and hea...

Skin-Inspired Haptic Memory Arrays with an Electrically Reconfigurable Architecture.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Bowen; Wang, Hong; Liu, Yaqing; Qi, Dianpeng; Liu, Zhiyuan; Wang, Hua; Yu, Jiancan; Sherburne, Matthew; Wang, Zhaohui; Chen, Xiaodong

2016-02-24

Skin-inspired haptic-memory devices, which can retain pressure information after the removel of external pressure by virtue of the nonvolatile nature of the memory devices, are achieved. The rise of haptic-memory devices will allow for mimicry of human sensory memory, opening new avenues for the design of next-generation high-performance sensing devices and systems. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Haptic biofeedback for improving compliance with lower-extremity partial weight bearing.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Michael C; DeLuke, Levi; Buerba, Rafael A; Fan, Richard E; Zheng, Ying Jean; Leslie, Michael P; Baumgaertner, Michael R; Grauer, Jonathan N

2014-11-01

After lower-extremity orthopedic trauma and surgery, patients are often advised to restrict weight bearing on the affected limb. Conventional training methods are not effective at enabling patients to comply with recommendations for partial weight bearing. The current study assessed a novel method of using real-time haptic (vibratory/vibrotactile) biofeedback to improve compliance with instructions for partial weight bearing. Thirty healthy, asymptomatic participants were randomized into 1 of 3 groups: verbal instruction, bathroom scale training, and haptic biofeedback. Participants were instructed to restrict lower-extremity weight bearing in a walking boot with crutches to 25 lb, with an acceptable range of 15 to 35 lb. A custom weight bearing sensor and biofeedback system was attached to all participants, but only those in the haptic biofeedback group were given a vibrotactile signal if they exceeded the acceptable range. Weight bearing in all groups was measured with a separate validated commercial system. The verbal instruction group bore an average of 60.3±30.5 lb (mean±standard deviation). The bathroom scale group averaged 43.8±17.2 lb, whereas the haptic biofeedback group averaged 22.4±9.1 lb (Phaptic biofeedback group averaged 14.5±6.3% (Phaptic biofeedback to improve compliance with lower-extremity partial weight bearing, haptic biofeedback was superior to conventional physical therapy methods. Further studies in patients with clinical orthopedic trauma are warranted. Copyright 2014, SLACK Incorporated.

2D co-ordinate transformation based on a spike timing-dependent plasticity learning mechanism.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, QingXiang; McGinnity, Thomas Martin; Maguire, Liam; Belatreche, Ammar; Glackin, Brendan

2008-11-01

In order to plan accurate motor actions, the brain needs to build an integrated spatial representation associated with visual stimuli and haptic stimuli. Since visual stimuli are represented in retina-centered co-ordinates and haptic stimuli are represented in body-centered co-ordinates, co-ordinate transformations must occur between the retina-centered co-ordinates and body-centered co-ordinates. A spiking neural network (SNN) model, which is trained with spike-timing-dependent-plasticity (STDP), is proposed to perform a 2D co-ordinate transformation of the polar representation of an arm position to a Cartesian representation, to create a virtual image map of a haptic input. Through the visual pathway, a position signal corresponding to the haptic input is used to train the SNN with STDP synapses such that after learning the SNN can perform the co-ordinate transformation to generate a representation of the haptic input with the same co-ordinates as a visual image. The model can be applied to explain co-ordinate transformation in spiking neuron based systems. The principle can be used in artificial intelligent systems to process complex co-ordinate transformations represented by biological stimuli.

A Basic Study on P300 Event-Related Potentials Evoked by Simultaneous Presentation of Visual and Auditory Stimuli for the Communication Interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masami Hashimoto

2011-10-01

Full Text Available We have been engaged in the development of a brain-computer interface (BCI based on the cognitive P300 event-related potentials (ERPs evoked by simultaneous presentation of visual and auditory stimuli in order to assist with the communication in severe physical limitation persons. The purpose of the simultaneous presentation of these stimuli is to give the user more choices as commands. First, we extracted P300 ERPs by either visual oddball paradigm or auditory oddball paradigm. Then amplitude and latency of the P300 ERPs were measured. Second, visual and auditory stimuli were presented simultaneously, we measured the P300 ERPs varying the condition of combinations of these stimuli. In this report, we used 3 colors as visual stimuli and 3 types of MIDI sounds as auditory stimuli. Two types of simultaneous presentations were examined. The one was conducted with random combination. The other was called group stimulation, combining one color, such as red, and one MIDI sound, such as piano, in order to make a group; three groups were made. Each group was presented to users randomly. We evaluated the possibility of BCI using these stimuli from the amplitudes and the latencies of P300 ERPs.

Using postural synergies to animate a low-dimensional hand avatar in haptic simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Mulatto, Sara; Formaglio, Alessandro; Malvezzi, Monica; Prattichizzo, Domenico

2013-01-01

A technique to animate a realistic hand avatar with 20 DoFs based on the biomechanics of the human hand is presented. The animation does not use any sensor glove or advanced tracker with markers. The proposed approach is based on the knowledge of a set of kinematic constraints on the model of the hand, referred to as postural synergies, which allows to represent the hand posture using a number of variables lower than the number of joints of the hand model. This low-dimensional set of parameters is estimated from direct measurement of the motion of thumb and index finger tracked using two haptic devices. A kinematic inversion algorithm has been developed, which takes synergies into account and estimates the kinematic configuration of the whole hand, i.e., also of the fingers whose end tips are not directly tracked by the two haptic devices. The hand skin is deformable and its deformation is computed using a linear vertex blending technique. The proposed synergy-based animation of the hand avatar involves only algebraic computations and is suitable for real-time implementation as required in haptics.

Haptic shared control improves hot cell remote handling despite controller inaccuracies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oosterhout, J. van; Abbink, D.A.; Koning, J.F.; Boessenkool, H.; Wildenbeest, J.G.W.; Heemskerk, C.J.M.

2013-01-01

Highlights: Haptic shared control is generally based upon perfect environment information. A realistic implementation holds model errors with respect to the environment. Operators were aided with inaccurate guiding forces during a peg-in-hole task. The results showed that small guiding inaccuracies still aid the operator. -- Abstract: A promising solution to improve task performance in ITER hot cell remote handling is the use of haptic shared control. Haptic shared control can assist the human operator along a safe and optimal path with continuous guiding forces from an intelligent autonomous controller. Previous research tested such controllers with accurate knowledge of the environment (giving flawless guiding forces), while in a practical implementation guidance forces will sometimes be flawed due to inaccurate models or sensor information. This research investigated the effect of zero and small (7.5 mm) errors on task performance compared to normal (unguided) operation. In a human factors experiment subjects performed a three dimensional virtual reality peg-in-hole type task (30 mm diameter; 0.1 mm clearance), with and without potentially flawed haptic shared control. The results showed that the presence of guiding forces, despite of small guiding errors, still improved task performance with respect to unguided operations

Haptic shared control improves hot cell remote handling despite controller inaccuracies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oosterhout, J. van, E-mail: J.vanOosterhout@differ.nl [Delft University of Technology, Faculty of 3mE, BioMechanical Engineering Department, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft (Netherlands); Abbink, D.A. [Delft University of Technology, Faculty of 3mE, BioMechanical Engineering Department, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft (Netherlands); Koning, J.F. [Heemskerk Innovative Technology B.V., Jonckerweg 12, 2201 DZ Noordwijk (Netherlands); Boessenkool, H. [FOM Institute DIFFER (Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research), Association EURATOM-FOM, Partner in the Trilateral Euregio Cluster, PO Box 1207, 3430 BE Nieuwegein (Netherlands); Wildenbeest, J.G.W. [Delft University of Technology, Faculty of 3mE, BioMechanical Engineering Department, Mekelweg 2, 2628 CD Delft (Netherlands); Heemskerk Innovative Technology B.V., Jonckerweg 12, 2201 DZ Noordwijk (Netherlands); Heemskerk, C.J.M. [Heemskerk Innovative Technology B.V., Jonckerweg 12, 2201 DZ Noordwijk (Netherlands)

2013-10-15

Highlights: Haptic shared control is generally based upon perfect environment information. A realistic implementation holds model errors with respect to the environment. Operators were aided with inaccurate guiding forces during a peg-in-hole task. The results showed that small guiding inaccuracies still aid the operator. -- Abstract: A promising solution to improve task performance in ITER hot cell remote handling is the use of haptic shared control. Haptic shared control can assist the human operator along a safe and optimal path with continuous guiding forces from an intelligent autonomous controller. Previous research tested such controllers with accurate knowledge of the environment (giving flawless guiding forces), while in a practical implementation guidance forces will sometimes be flawed due to inaccurate models or sensor information. This research investigated the effect of zero and small (7.5 mm) errors on task performance compared to normal (unguided) operation. In a human factors experiment subjects performed a three dimensional virtual reality peg-in-hole type task (30 mm diameter; 0.1 mm clearance), with and without potentially flawed haptic shared control. The results showed that the presence of guiding forces, despite of small guiding errors, still improved task performance with respect to unguided operations.

Guidelines for haptic interpersonal communication applications : an exploration of foot interaction styles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rovers, A.F.; Essen, van H.A.

2006-01-01

A new method for researching haptic interaction styles is presented, based on a layered interaction model and a classification of existing devices. The method is illustrated by designing a new foot interaction device. The aim of which is to enhance non-verbal communication over a computer network. A

Control of repulsive force in a virtual environment using an electrorheological haptic master for a surgical robot application

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Jong-Seok; Choi, Seung-Hyun; Choi, Seung-Bok

2014-01-01

This paper presents control performances of a new type of four-degrees-of-freedom (4-DOF) haptic master that can be used for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS). By adopting a controllable electrorheological (ER) fluid, the function of the proposed master is realized as a haptic feedback as well as remote manipulation. In order to verify the efficacy of the proposed master and method, an experiment is conducted with deformable objects featuring human organs. Since the use of real human organs is difficult for control due to high cost and moral hazard, an excellent alternative method, the virtual reality environment, is used for control in this work. In order to embody a human organ in the virtual space, the experiment adopts a volumetric deformable object represented by a shape-retaining chain linked (S-chain) model which has salient properties such as fast and realistic deformation of elastic objects. In haptic architecture for RMIS, the desired torque/force and desired position originating from the object of the virtual slave and operator of the haptic master are transferred to each other. In order to achieve the desired torque/force trajectories, a sliding mode controller (SMC) which is known to be robust to uncertainties is designed and empirically implemented. Tracking control performances for various torque/force trajectories from the virtual slave are evaluated and presented in the time domain.

Control of repulsive force in a virtual environment using an electrorheological haptic master for a surgical robot application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, Jong-Seok; Choi, Seung-Hyun; Choi, Seung-Bok

2014-01-01

This paper presents control performances of a new type of four-degrees-of-freedom (4-DOF) haptic master that can be used for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS). By adopting a controllable electrorheological (ER) fluid, the function of the proposed master is realized as a haptic feedback as well as remote manipulation. In order to verify the efficacy of the proposed master and method, an experiment is conducted with deformable objects featuring human organs. Since the use of real human organs is difficult for control due to high cost and moral hazard, an excellent alternative method, the virtual reality environment, is used for control in this work. In order to embody a human organ in the virtual space, the experiment adopts a volumetric deformable object represented by a shape-retaining chain linked (S-chain) model which has salient properties such as fast and realistic deformation of elastic objects. In haptic architecture for RMIS, the desired torque/force and desired position originating from the object of the virtual slave and operator of the haptic master are transferred to each other. In order to achieve the desired torque/force trajectories, a sliding mode controller (SMC) which is known to be robust to uncertainties is designed and empirically implemented. Tracking control performances for various torque/force trajectories from the virtual slave are evaluated and presented in the time domain. (paper)

Command Recognition of Robot with Low Dimension Whole-Body Haptic Sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Ito, Tatsuya; Tsuji, Toshiaki

The authors have developed “haptic armor”, a whole-body haptic sensor that has an ability to estimate contact position. Although it is developed for safety assurance of robots in human environment, it can also be used as an interface. This paper proposes a command recognition method based on finger trace information. This paper also discusses some technical issues for improving recognition accuracy of this system.

Displaying Sensed Tactile Cues with a Fingertip Haptic Device.

Science.gov (United States)

Pacchierotti, Claudio; Prattichizzo, Domenico; Kuchenbecker, Katherine J

2015-01-01

Telerobotic systems enable humans to explore and manipulate remote environments for applications such as surgery and disaster response, but few such systems provide the operator with cutaneous feedback. This article presents a novel approach to remote cutaneous interaction; our method is compatible with any fingertip tactile sensor and any mechanical tactile display device, and it does not require a position/force or skin deformation model. Instead, it directly maps the sensed stimuli to the best possible input commands for the device's motors using a data set recorded with the tactile sensor inside the device. As a proof of concept, we considered a haptic system composed of a BioTac tactile sensor, in charge of measuring contact deformations, and a custom 3-DoF cutaneous device with a flat contact platform, in charge of applying deformations to the user's fingertip. To validate the proposed approach and discover its inherent tradeoffs, we carried out two remote tactile interaction experiments. The first one evaluated the error between the tactile sensations registered by the BioTac in a remote environment and the sensations created by the cutaneous device for six representative tactile interactions and 27 variations of the display algorithm. The normalized average errors in the best condition were 3.0 percent of the BioTac's full 12-bit scale. The second experiment evaluated human subjects' experiences for the same six remote interactions and eight algorithm variations. The average subjective rating for the best algorithm variation was 8.2 out of 10, where 10 is best.

Haptically facilitated bimanual training combined with augmented visual feedback in moderate to severe hemiplegia.

Science.gov (United States)

Boos, Amy; Qiu, Qinyin; Fluet, Gerard G; Adamovich, Sergei V

2011-01-01

This study describes the design and feasibility testing of a hand rehabilitation system that provides haptic assistance for hand opening in moderate to severe hemiplegia while subjects attempt to perform bilateral hand movements. A cable-actuated exoskeleton robot assists the subjects in performing impaired finger movements but is controlled by movement of the unimpaired hand. In an attempt to combine the neurophysiological stimuli of bilateral movement and action observation during training, visual feedback of the impaired hand is replaced by feedback of the unimpaired hand, either by using a sagittaly oriented mirror or a virtual reality setup with a pair of virtual hands presented on a flat screen controlled with movement of the unimpaired hand, providing a visual image of their paretic hand moving normally. Joint angles for both hands are measured using data gloves. The system is programmed to maintain a symmetrical relationship between the two hands as they respond to commands to open and close simultaneously. Three persons with moderate to severe hemiplegia secondary to stroke trained with the system for eight, 30 to 60 minute sessions without adverse events. Each demonstrated positive motor adaptations to training. The system was well tolerated by persons with moderate to severe upper extremity hemiplegia. Further testing of its effects on motor ability with a broader range of clinical presentations is indicated.

Safe Local Navigation for Visually Impaired Users With a Time-of-Flight and Haptic Feedback Device.

Science.gov (United States)

Katzschmann, Robert K; Araki, Brandon; Rus, Daniela

2018-03-01

This paper presents ALVU (Array of Lidars and Vibrotactile Units), a contactless, intuitive, hands-free, and discreet wearable device that allows visually impaired users to detect low- and high-hanging obstacles, as well as physical boundaries in their immediate environment. The solution allows for safe local navigation in both confined and open spaces by enabling the user to distinguish free space from obstacles. The device presented is composed of two parts: a sensor belt and a haptic strap. The sensor belt is an array of time-of-flight distance sensors worn around the front of a user's waist, and the pulses of infrared light provide reliable and accurate measurements of the distances between the user and surrounding obstacles or surfaces. The haptic strap communicates the measured distances through an array of vibratory motors worn around the user's upper abdomen, providing haptic feedback. The linear vibration motors are combined with a point-loaded pretensioned applicator to transmit isolated vibrations to the user. We validated the device's capability in an extensive user study entailing 162 trials with 12 blind users. Users wearing the device successfully walked through hallways, avoided obstacles, and detected staircases.

Control of an ER haptic master in a virtual slave environment for minimally invasive surgery applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Young-Min; Choi, Seung-Bok

2008-01-01

This paper presents the control performance of an electrorheological (ER) fluid-based haptic master device connected to a virtual slave environment that can be used for minimally invasive surgery (MIS). An already developed haptic joint featuring controllable ER fluid and a spherical joint mechanism is adopted for the master system. Medical forceps and an angular position measuring device are devised and integrated with the joint to establish the MIS master system. In order to embody a human organ in virtual space, a volumetric deformable object is used. The virtual object is then mathematically formulated by a shape-retaining chain-linked (S-chain) model. After evaluating the reflection force, computation time and compatibility with real-time control, the haptic architecture for MIS is established by incorporating the virtual slave with the master device so that the reflection force for the object of the virtual slave and the desired position for the master operator are transferred to each other. In order to achieve the desired force trajectories, a sliding mode controller is formulated and then experimentally realized. Tracking control performances for various force trajectories are evaluated and presented in the time domain

Immediate Memory for Haptically-Examined Braille Symbols by Blind and Sighted Subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Newman, Slater E.; And Others

The paper reports on two experiments in Braille learning which compared blind and sighted subjects on the immediate recall of haptically-examined Braille symbols. In the first study, sighted subjects (N=64) haptically examined each of a set of Braille symbols with their preferred or nonpreferred hand and immediately recalled the symbol by drawing…

Differential effects of non-informative vision and visual interference on haptic spatial processing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Volcic, Robert; Van Rheede, Joram J.; Postma, Albert; Kappers, Astrid M L

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the effects of non-informative vision and visual interference upon haptic spatial processing, which supposedly derives from an interaction between an allocentric and egocentric reference frame. To this end, a haptic parallelity task served as baseline

Improved Haptic Linear Lines for Better Movement Accuracy in Upper Limb Rehabilitation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joan De Boeck

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Force feedback has proven to be beneficial in the domain of robot-assisted rehabilitation. According to the patients' personal needs, the generated forces may either be used to assist, support, or oppose their movements. In our current research project, we focus onto the upper limb training for MS (multiple sclerosis and CVA (cerebrovascular accident patients, in which a basic building block to implement many rehabilitation exercises was found. This building block is a haptic linear path: a second-order continuous path, defined by a list of points in space. Earlier, different attempts have been investigated to realize haptic linear paths. In order to have a good training quality, it is important that the haptic simulation is continuous up to the second derivative while the patient is enforced to follow the path tightly, even when low or no guiding forces are provided. In this paper, we describe our best solution to these haptic linear paths, discuss the weaknesses found in practice, and propose and validate an improvement.

Haptic feedback improves surgeons' user experience and fracture reduction in facial trauma simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Girod, Sabine; Schvartzman, Sara C; Gaudilliere, Dyani; Salisbury, Kenneth; Silva, Rebeka

2016-01-01

Computer-assisted surgical (CAS) planning tools are available for craniofacial surgery, but are usually based on computer-aided design (CAD) tools that lack the ability to detect the collision of virtual objects (i.e., fractured bone segments). We developed a CAS system featuring a sense of touch (haptic) that enables surgeons to physically interact with individual, patient-specific anatomy and immerse in a three-dimensional virtual environment. In this study, we evaluated initial user experience with our novel system compared to an existing CAD system. Ten surgery resident trainees received a brief verbal introduction to both the haptic and CAD systems. Users simulated mandibular fracture reduction in three clinical cases within a 15 min time limit for each system and completed a questionnaire to assess their subjective experience. We compared standard landmarks and linear and angular measurements between the simulated results and the actual surgical outcome and found that haptic simulation results were not significantly different from actual postoperative outcomes. In contrast, CAD results significantly differed from both the haptic simulation and actual postoperative results. In addition to enabling a more accurate fracture repair, the haptic system provided a better user experience than the CAD system in terms of intuitiveness and self-reported quality of repair.

An Investigation on Temporal Aspects in the Audio-Haptic Simulation of Footsteps

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Turchet, Luca; Serafin, Stefania

2011-01-01

In this paper, we present an experiment whose goal is to assess the role of temporal aspects in sonically and haptically simulating the act of walking on a bump or a hole. In particular, we investigated whether the timing between heel and toe and the timing between footsteps affected perception...

Ambient visual information confers a context-specific, long-term benefit on memory for haptic scenes.

Science.gov (United States)

Pasqualotto, Achille; Finucane, Ciara M; Newell, Fiona N

2013-09-01

We investigated the effects of indirect, ambient visual information on haptic spatial memory. Using touch only, participants first learned an array of objects arranged in a scene and were subsequently tested on their recognition of that scene which was always hidden from view. During haptic scene exploration, participants could either see the surrounding room or were blindfolded. We found a benefit in haptic memory performance only when ambient visual information was available in the early stages of the task but not when participants were initially blindfolded. Specifically, when ambient visual information was available a benefit on performance was found in a subsequent block of trials during which the participant was blindfolded (Experiment 1), and persisted over a delay of one week (Experiment 2). However, we found that the benefit for ambient visual information did not transfer to a novel environment (Experiment 3). In Experiment 4 we further investigated the nature of the visual information that improved haptic memory and found that geometric information about a surrounding (virtual) room rather than isolated object landmarks, facilitated haptic scene memory. Our results suggest that vision improves haptic memory for scenes by providing an environment-centred, allocentric reference frame for representing object location through touch. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Study of Electric Music Baton using Haptic Interface for Assistance of Visually Disabled Persons

OpenAIRE

浅川, 貴史

2012-01-01

[Abstract] We have made a proposal for a music baton system for visual disabled persons. The system is constituted by an acceleration sensor, a radio module, and a haptic interface device. When a conductor moves the baton, Players are able to acknowledge the action using the haptic interface device. We have carried out an experiment of comparing the visual and the haptic interface. The result declared that a pre-motion is important for the visual interface. In the paper, we make a proposal fo...

Feasibility Study of Haptic Display for Rotation Tasks of Wrist Work

OpenAIRE

曽根, 順治; 岩井, 秀樹; 山田, 勝実; 陳, 軍; 徳山, 喜政; 今野, 晃市; Sone, Junji; Iwai, Hideki; Yamada, Katsumi; Chen, Jun; Tokuyama, Yoshimasa; Konno, Kouichi

2011-01-01

We have developed a haptic display for rotational tasks that involve functions of the human wrist. We represent the torque using a motor and a brake. Reference torque curves are obtained by the measuring torque required for each actual task using a torque sensor. The brake represents the stop condition. We have confirmed the effectiveness of the display by comparing the actual tasks with the haptic display experiment.

The role of haptic versus visual volume cues in the size-weight illusion.

Science.gov (United States)

Ellis, R R; Lederman, S J

1993-03-01

Three experiments establish the size-weight illusion as a primarily haptic phenomenon, despite its having been more traditionally considered an example of vision influencing haptic processing. Experiment 1 documents, across a broad range of stimulus weights and volumes, the existence of a purely haptic size-weight illusion, equal in strength to the traditional illusion. Experiment 2 demonstrates that haptic volume cues are both sufficient and necessary for a full-strength illusion. In contrast, visual volume cues are merely sufficient, and produce a relatively weaker effect. Experiment 3 establishes that congenitally blind subjects experience an effect as powerful as that of blindfolded sighted observers, thus demonstrating that visual imagery is also unnecessary for a robust size-weight illusion. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for both sensory and cognitive theories of the size-weight illusion. Applications of this work to a human factors design and to sensor-based systems for robotic manipulation are also briefly considered.

HapTip: Displaying Haptic Shear Forces at the Fingertips for Multi-Finger Interaction in Virtual Environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adrien eGirard

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The fingertips are one of the most important and sensitive parts of our body.They are the first stimulated areas of the hand when we interact with our environment.Providing haptic feedback to the fingertips in virtual reality could thus drastically improve perception and interaction with virtual environments.In this paper, we present a modular approach called HapTip to display such haptic sensations at the level of the fingertips.This approach relies on a wearable and compact haptic device able to simulate 2 Degree of Freedom (DoF shear forces on the fingertip with a displacement range of +/- 2 mm. Several modules can be added and used jointly in order to address multi-finger and/or bimanual scenarios in virtual environments.For that purpose, we introduce several haptic rendering techniques to cover different cases of 3D interaction such as touching a rough virtual surface, or feeling the inertia or weight of a virtual object.In order to illustrate the possibilities offered by HapTip, we provide four use cases focused on touching or grasping virtual objects.To validate the efficiency of our approach, we also conducted experiments to assess the tactile perception obtained with HapTip.Our results show that participants can successfully discriminate the directions of the 2 DoF stimulation of our haptic device.We found also that participants could well perceive different weights of virtual objects simulated using two HapTip devices. We believe that HapTip could be used in numerous applications in virtual reality for which 3D manipulation and tactile sensations are often crucial, such as in virtual prototyping or virtual training.

HapticScreenを用いたメディアインスタレーション : ANOMALOCARIS(<特集>インタラクティブアート)

OpenAIRE

岩田, 洋夫; 矢野, 博明; 中泉, 文孝

2000-01-01

"ANOMALOCARIS" is an interactive work, which represents virtual creature through visual and haptic sensation. Anomalocaris is a name of an animal that supposed to live during the Cambrian Era. Virtual anomalocaris is displayed on the HapticScreen. HapticScreen is a new configuration of a force feedback device. HapticScreen has an innovative mechanism that creates sense of touch on whole palm. The device deforms itself to present shapes of virtual object. Typical force feedback device uses a g...

Design and Calibration of a New 6 DOF Haptic Device

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huanhuan Qin

2015-12-01

Full Text Available For many applications such as tele-operational robots and interactions with virtual environments, it is better to have performance with force feedback than without. Haptic devices are force reflecting interfaces. They can also track human hand positions simultaneously. A new 6 DOF (degree-of-freedom haptic device was designed and calibrated in this study. It mainly contains a double parallel linkage, a rhombus linkage, a rotating mechanical structure and a grasping interface. Benefited from the unique design, it is a hybrid structure device with a large workspace and high output capability. Therefore, it is capable of multi-finger interactions. Moreover, with an adjustable base, operators can change different postures without interrupting haptic tasks. To investigate the performance regarding position tracking accuracy and static output forces, we conducted experiments on a three-dimensional electric sliding platform and a digital force gauge, respectively. Displacement errors and force errors are calculated and analyzed. To identify the capability and potential of the device, four application examples were programmed.

Design and Calibration of a New 6 DOF Haptic Device

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Huanhuan; Song, Aiguo; Liu, Yuqing; Jiang, Guohua; Zhou, Bohe

2015-01-01

For many applications such as tele-operational robots and interactions with virtual environments, it is better to have performance with force feedback than without. Haptic devices are force reflecting interfaces. They can also track human hand positions simultaneously. A new 6 DOF (degree-of-freedom) haptic device was designed and calibrated in this study. It mainly contains a double parallel linkage, a rhombus linkage, a rotating mechanical structure and a grasping interface. Benefited from the unique design, it is a hybrid structure device with a large workspace and high output capability. Therefore, it is capable of multi-finger interactions. Moreover, with an adjustable base, operators can change different postures without interrupting haptic tasks. To investigate the performance regarding position tracking accuracy and static output forces, we conducted experiments on a three-dimensional electric sliding platform and a digital force gauge, respectively. Displacement errors and force errors are calculated and analyzed. To identify the capability and potential of the device, four application examples were programmed. PMID:26690449

Design of a 7-DOF slave robot integrated with a magneto-rheological haptic master

Science.gov (United States)

Hwang, Yong-Hoon; Cha, Seung-Woo; Kang, Seok-Rae; Choi, Seung-Bok

2017-04-01

In this study, a 7-DOF slave robot integrated with the haptic master is designed and its dynamic motion is controlled. The haptic master is made using a controllable magneto-rheological (MR) clutch and brake and it provides the surgeon with a sense of touch by using both kinetic and kinesthetic information. Due to the size constraint of the slave robot, a wire actuating is adopted to make the desired motion of the end-effector which has 3-DOF instead of a conventional direct-driven motor. Another motions of the link parts that have 4-DOF use direct-driven motor. In total system, for working as a haptic device, the haptic master need to receive the information of repulsive forces applied on the slave robot. Therefore, repulsive forces on the end-effector are sensed by using three uniaxial torque transducer inserted in the wire actuating system and another repulsive forces applied on link part are sensed by using 6-axis transducer that is able to sense forces and torques. Using another 6-axis transducer, verify the reliability of force information on final end of slave robot. Lastly, integrated with a MR haptic master, psycho-physical test is conducted by different operators who can feel the different repulsive force or torque generated from the haptic master which is equivalent to the force or torque occurred on the end-effector to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed system.

Identification of virtual grounds using virtual reality haptic shoes and sound synthesis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Serafin, Stefania; Turchet, Luca; Nordahl, Rolf

2010-01-01

We describe a system which simulates in real-time the auditory and haptic sensation of walking on different surfaces. The system is based on physical models, that drive both the haptic and audio synthesizers, and a pair of shoes enhanced with sensors and actuators. In a discrimination experiment,...

Effects of visual information regarding allocentric processing in haptic parallelity matching.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Mier, Hanneke I

2013-10-01

Research has revealed that haptic perception of parallelity deviates from physical reality. Large and systematic deviations have been found in haptic parallelity matching most likely due to the influence of the hand-centered egocentric reference frame. Providing information that increases the influence of allocentric processing has been shown to improve performance on haptic matching. In this study allocentric processing was stimulated by providing informative vision in haptic matching tasks that were performed using hand- and arm-centered reference frames. Twenty blindfolded participants (ten men, ten women) explored the orientation of a reference bar with the non-dominant hand and subsequently matched (task HP) or mirrored (task HM) its orientation on a test bar with the dominant hand. Visual information was provided by means of informative vision with participants having full view of the test bar, while the reference bar was blocked from their view (task VHP). To decrease the egocentric bias of the hands, participants also performed a visual haptic parallelity drawing task (task VHPD) using an arm-centered reference frame, by drawing the orientation of the reference bar. In all tasks, the distance between and orientation of the bars were manipulated. A significant effect of task was found; performance improved from task HP, to VHP to VHPD, and HM. Significant effects of distance were found in the first three tasks, whereas orientation and gender effects were only significant in tasks HP and VHP. The results showed that stimulating allocentric processing by means of informative vision and reducing the egocentric bias by using an arm-centered reference frame led to most accurate performance on parallelity matching. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Development of a Robotic Colonoscopic Manipulation System, Using Haptic Feedback Algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Woo, Jaehong; Choi, Jae Hyuk; Seo, Jong Tae; Kim, Tae Il; Yi, Byung Ju

2017-01-01

Colonoscopy is one of the most effective diagnostic and therapeutic tools for colorectal diseases. We aim to propose a master-slave robotic colonoscopy that is controllable in remote site using conventional colonoscopy. The master and slave robot were developed to use conventional flexible colonoscopy. The robotic colonoscopic procedure was performed using a colonoscope training model by one expert endoscopist and two unexperienced engineers. To provide the haptic sensation, the insertion force and the rotating torque were measured and sent to the master robot. A slave robot was developed to hold the colonoscopy and its knob, and perform insertion, rotation, and two tilting motions of colonoscope. A master robot was designed to teach motions of the slave robot. These measured force and torque were scaled down by one tenth to provide the operator with some reflection force and torque at the haptic device. The haptic sensation and feedback system was successful and helpful to feel the constrained force or torque in colon. The insertion time using robotic system decreased with repeated procedures. This work proposed a robotic approach for colonoscopy using haptic feedback algorithm, and this robotic device would effectively perform colonoscopy with reduced burden and comparable safety for patients in remote site.

Development of a Robotic Colonoscopic Manipulation System, Using Haptic Feedback Algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Woo, Jaehong; Choi, Jae Hyuk; Seo, Jong Tae

2017-01-01

Purpose Colonoscopy is one of the most effective diagnostic and therapeutic tools for colorectal diseases. We aim to propose a master-slave robotic colonoscopy that is controllable in remote site using conventional colonoscopy. Materials and Methods The master and slave robot were developed to use conventional flexible colonoscopy. The robotic colonoscopic procedure was performed using a colonoscope training model by one expert endoscopist and two unexperienced engineers. To provide the haptic sensation, the insertion force and the rotating torque were measured and sent to the master robot. Results A slave robot was developed to hold the colonoscopy and its knob, and perform insertion, rotation, and two tilting motions of colonoscope. A master robot was designed to teach motions of the slave robot. These measured force and torque were scaled down by one tenth to provide the operator with some reflection force and torque at the haptic device. The haptic sensation and feedback system was successful and helpful to feel the constrained force or torque in colon. The insertion time using robotic system decreased with repeated procedures. Conclusion This work proposed a robotic approach for colonoscopy using haptic feedback algorithm, and this robotic device would effectively perform colonoscopy with reduced burden and comparable safety for patients in remote site. PMID:27873506

Modulation of visually evoked postural responses by contextual visual, haptic and auditory information: a 'virtual reality check'.

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, Georg F; Shao, Fei; White, Mark D; Hopkins, Carl; Robotham, Antony J

2013-01-01

Externally generated visual motion signals can cause the illusion of self-motion in space (vection) and corresponding visually evoked postural responses (VEPR). These VEPRs are not simple responses to optokinetic stimulation, but are modulated by the configuration of the environment. The aim of this paper is to explore what factors modulate VEPRs in a high quality virtual reality (VR) environment where real and virtual foreground objects served as static visual, auditory and haptic reference points. Data from four experiments on visually evoked postural responses show that: 1) visually evoked postural sway in the lateral direction is modulated by the presence of static anchor points that can be haptic, visual and auditory reference signals; 2) real objects and their matching virtual reality representations as visual anchors have different effects on postural sway; 3) visual motion in the anterior-posterior plane induces robust postural responses that are not modulated by the presence of reference signals or the reality of objects that can serve as visual anchors in the scene. We conclude that automatic postural responses for laterally moving visual stimuli are strongly influenced by the configuration and interpretation of the environment and draw on multisensory representations. Different postural responses were observed for real and virtual visual reference objects. On the basis that automatic visually evoked postural responses in high fidelity virtual environments should mimic those seen in real situations we propose to use the observed effect as a robust objective test for presence and fidelity in VR.

Real-time haptic cutting of high-resolution soft tissues.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Jun; Westermann, Rüdiger; Dick, Christian

2014-01-01

We present our systematic efforts in advancing the computational performance of physically accurate soft tissue cutting simulation, which is at the core of surgery simulators in general. We demonstrate a real-time performance of 15 simulation frames per second for haptic soft tissue cutting of a deformable body at an effective resolution of 170,000 finite elements. This is achieved by the following innovative components: (1) a linked octree discretization of the deformable body, which allows for fast and robust topological modifications of the simulation domain, (2) a composite finite element formulation, which thoroughly reduces the number of simulation degrees of freedom and thus enables to carefully balance simulation performance and accuracy, (3) a highly efficient geometric multigrid solver for solving the linear systems of equations arising from implicit time integration, (4) an efficient collision detection algorithm that effectively exploits the composition structure, and (5) a stable haptic rendering algorithm for computing the feedback forces. Considering that our method increases the finite element resolution for physically accurate real-time soft tissue cutting simulation by an order of magnitude, our technique has a high potential to significantly advance the realism of surgery simulators.

Comparison of Walking and Traveling-Wave Piezoelectric Motors as Actuators in Kinesthetic Haptic Devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Olsson, Pontus; Nysjo, Fredrik; Carlbom, Ingrid B; Johansson, Stefan

2016-01-01

Piezoelectric motors offer an attractive alternative to electromagnetic actuators in portable haptic interfaces: they are compact, have a high force-to-volume ratio, and can operate with limited or no gearing. However, the choice of a piezoelectric motor type is not obvious due to differences in performance characteristics. We present our evaluation of two commercial, operationally different, piezoelectric motors acting as actuators in two kinesthetic haptic grippers, a walking quasi-static motor and a traveling wave ultrasonic motor. We evaluate each gripper's ability to display common virtual objects including springs, dampers, and rigid walls, and conclude that the walking quasi-static motor is superior at low velocities. However, for applications where high velocity is required, traveling wave ultrasonic motors are a better option.

Learning of Temporal and Spatial Movement Aspects: A Comparison of Four Types of Haptic Control and Concurrent Visual Feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Rauter, Georg; Sigrist, Roland; Riener, Robert; Wolf, Peter

2015-01-01

In literature, the effectiveness of haptics for motor learning is controversially discussed. Haptics is believed to be effective for motor learning in general; however, different types of haptic control enhance different movement aspects. Thus, in dependence on the movement aspects of interest, one type of haptic control may be effective whereas another one is not. Therefore, in the current work, it was investigated if and how different types of haptic controllers affect learning of spatial and temporal movement aspects. In particular, haptic controllers that enforce active participation of the participants were expected to improve spatial aspects. Only haptic controllers that provide feedback about the task's velocity profile were expected to improve temporal aspects. In a study on learning a complex trunk-arm rowing task, the effect of training with four different types of haptic control was investigated: position control, path control, adaptive path control, and reactive path control. A fifth group (control) trained with visual concurrent augmented feedback. As hypothesized, the position controller was most effective for learning of temporal movement aspects, while the path controller was most effective in teaching spatial movement aspects of the rowing task. Visual feedback was also effective for learning temporal and spatial movement aspects.

Communicating Emotion through Haptic Design: A Study Using Physical Keys

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjellerup, Marie Kjær; Larsen, Anne Cathrine; Maier, Anja

2014-01-01

This paper explores how designers may communicate with the users of their products through haptic design. More specifically, how tactile properties of materials evoke emotions such as satisfaction, joy, or disgust. A research through design approach has been followed; mood- and material boards...... and prototypes of four ‘haptically enhanced’ (physical) keys were created. Types of keys selected include home, bicycle, hobby, and basement. An experiment with ten participants was conducted, using word association and a software to elicit product emotions (PrEmo). Results show a mapping between the designer...

A novel shape-changing haptic table-top display

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jiabin; Zhao, Lu; Liu, Yue; Wang, Yongtian; Cai, Yi

2018-01-01

A shape-changing table-top display with haptic feedback allows its users to perceive 3D visual and texture displays interactively. Since few existing devices are developed as accurate displays with regulatory haptic feedback, a novel attentive and immersive shape changing mechanical interface (SCMI) consisting of image processing unit and transformation unit was proposed in this paper. In order to support a precise 3D table-top display with an offset of less than 2 mm, a custommade mechanism was developed to form precise surface and regulate the feedback force. The proposed image processing unit was capable of extracting texture data from 2D picture for rendering shape-changing surface and realizing 3D modeling. The preliminary evaluation result proved the feasibility of the proposed system.

Development of a Whole-Body Haptic Sensor with Multiple Supporting Points and Its Application to a Manipulator

Science.gov (United States)

Hanyu, Ryosuke; Tsuji, Toshiaki

This paper proposes a whole-body haptic sensing system that has multiple supporting points between the body frame and the end-effector. The system consists of an end-effector and multiple force sensors. Using this mechanism, the position of a contact force on the surface can be calculated without any sensor array. A haptic sensing system with a single supporting point structure has previously been developed by the present authors. However, the system has drawbacks such as low stiffness and low strength. Therefore, in this study, a mechanism with multiple supporting points was proposed and its performance was verified. In this paper, the basic concept of the mechanism is first introduced. Next, an evaluation of the proposed method, performed by conducting some experiments, is presented.

The Phenomenon of Touch in Architectural Design and a Field Study on Haptic Mapping

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Pınar ÖKTEM ERKARTAL

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Ocular-centrism is the utilitarian-aesthetic perspective which dominates the perception of spatial quality and architectural success in the West. In locating vision as the dominant discourse in architectural design, this perspective has been criticized for ignoring the physical and psychological relation created between subject and space during the spatial experience, sensual memory, movement and time. The phenomenon of touch, which may be defined as the interaction between architecture and subject dependent on physical and cognitive perception, offers another way of thinking and interpreting architecture, and constitutes an alternative starting point for design. The aim of this study was three-fold: to research and describe the phenomenon of touch in design concepts, to present the effects of hapticity in spatial experience on the user, and to present a visualization study for this phenomenon which is quite challenging to express. For the fieldwork, five buildings designed by Peter Zumthor were chosen. Zumthor stresses the importance of sensation, materiality and atmosphere in the architectural design process. Zumthor’s abstract design elements, their use in architectural space and the effect were determined using physical measurement. The findings were represented in “haptic mapping”. This visualization study consisted of a “haptic scatter chart”, “materiality- affect analysis” and “sensation analysis” and revealed that the phenomenon of touch and concepts identified it such as sensations, influence, materiality and mental associations are not abstract and inaccessible assumptions, but tools which can be included in the architectural design process.

P1-17: Pseudo-Haptics Using Motion-in-Depth Stimulus and Second-Order Motion Stimulus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuichi Sato

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Modification of motion of the computer cursor during the manipulation by the observer evokes illusory haptic sensation (Lecuyer et al., 2004 ACM SIGCHI '04 239–246. This study investigates the pseudo-haptics using motion-in-depth and second-order motion. A stereoscopic display and a PHANTOM were used in the first experiment. A subject was asked to move a visual target at a constant speed in horizontal, vertical, or front-back direction. During the manipulation, the speed was reduced to 50% for 500 msec. The haptic sensation was measured using the magnitude estimation method. The result indicates that perceived haptic sensation from motion-in-depth was about 30% of that from horizontal or vertical motion. A 2D display and the PHANTOM were used in the second experiment. The motion cue was second order—in each frame, dots in a square patch reverses in contrast (i.e., all black dots become white and all white dots become black. The patch was moved in a horizontal direction. The result indicates that perceived haptic sensation from second-order motion was about 90% of that from first-order motion.

Structural health monitoring for bolt loosening via a non-invasive vibro-haptics human-machine cooperative interface

Science.gov (United States)

Pekedis, Mahmut; Mascerañas, David; Turan, Gursoy; Ercan, Emre; Farrar, Charles R.; Yildiz, Hasan

2015-08-01

For the last two decades, developments in damage detection algorithms have greatly increased the potential for autonomous decisions about structural health. However, we are still struggling to build autonomous tools that can match the ability of a human to detect and localize the quantity of damage in structures. Therefore, there is a growing interest in merging the computational and cognitive concepts to improve the solution of structural health monitoring (SHM). The main object of this research is to apply the human-machine cooperative approach on a tower structure to detect damage. The cooperation approach includes haptic tools to create an appropriate collaboration between SHM sensor networks, statistical compression techniques and humans. Damage simulation in the structure is conducted by releasing some of the bolt loads. Accelerometers are bonded to various locations of the tower members to acquire the dynamic response of the structure. The obtained accelerometer results are encoded in three different ways to represent them as a haptic stimulus for the human subjects. Then, the participants are subjected to each of these stimuli to detect the bolt loosened damage in the tower. Results obtained from the human-machine cooperation demonstrate that the human subjects were able to recognize the damage with an accuracy of 88 ± 20.21% and response time of 5.87 ± 2.33 s. As a result, it is concluded that the currently developed human-machine cooperation SHM may provide a useful framework to interact with abstract entities such as data from a sensor network.

Testing haptic sensations for spinal anesthesia.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

2011-01-01

Having identified key determinants of teaching and learning spinal anesthesia, it was necessary to characterize and render the haptic sensations (feeling of touch) associated with needle insertion in the lower back. The approach used is to match recreated sensations (eg, "pop" through skin or dura mater) with experts\\' perceptions of the equivalent clinical events.

Improving the performance of DTP2 bilateral teleoperation control system with haptic augmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viinikainen, Mikko; Tuominen, Janne; Alho, Pekka; Mattila, Jouni

2014-01-01

Highlights: •An experimental haptic shared control system, called CAT developed at the DTP2. •We investigate how the system integrates with the ITER compliant DTP2 RHCS. •The effect of CAT experimentally assessed in an ITER relevant maintenance scenario. -- Abstract: The remote maintenance of the ITER divertor is largely dependent on the usage of haptically teleoperated manipulators and man-in-the-loop operations. These maintenance operations are very demanding for the manipulator operators, yet vital for the success of the whole ITER experiment. Haptic shared control of the maintenance manipulators offers a promising solution for assisting the teleoperators in the maintenance tasks. A shared control system assists the operator by generating artificial guiding force effects and overlaying them on top of the haptic feedback from the teleoperation environment. An experimental haptic shared control system, called the Computer Assisted Teleoperation (CAT) has been developed at the Divertor Test Platform 2 (DTP2). In this paper, we investigate the design of the system and how the system integrates with the ITER compliant DTP2 prototype Remote Handling Control System (RHCS). We also experimentally assess the effect of the guidance to the operator performance in an ITER-relevant maintenance scenario using the Water Hydraulic MANipulator (WHMAN), which is specially designed for the divertor maintenance. The result of the experiment gives suggestive indication that the CAT system improves the performance of the operators of the system

Patient adaptive control of end-effector based gait rehabilitation devices using a haptic control framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Hussein, Sami; Kruger, Jörg

2011-01-01

Robot assisted training has proven beneficial as an extension of conventional therapy to improve rehabilitation outcome. Further facilitation of this positive impact is expected from the application of cooperative control algorithms to increase the patient's contribution to the training effort according to his level of ability. This paper presents an approach for cooperative training for end-effector based gait rehabilitation devices. Thereby it provides the basis to firstly establish sophisticated cooperative control methods in this class of devices. It uses a haptic control framework to synthesize and render complex, task specific training environments, which are composed of polygonal primitives. Training assistance is integrated as part of the environment into the haptic control framework. A compliant window is moved along a nominal training trajectory compliantly guiding and supporting the foot motion. The level of assistance is adjusted via the stiffness of the moving window. Further an iterative learning algorithm is used to automatically adjust this assistance level. Stable haptic rendering of the dynamic training environments and adaptive movement assistance have been evaluated in two example training scenarios: treadmill walking and stair climbing. Data from preliminary trials with one healthy subject is provided in this paper. © 2011 IEEE

Modulation of Visually Evoked Postural Responses by Contextual Visual, Haptic and Auditory Information: A ‘Virtual Reality Check’

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, Georg F.; Shao, Fei; White, Mark D.; Hopkins, Carl; Robotham, Antony J.

2013-01-01

Externally generated visual motion signals can cause the illusion of self-motion in space (vection) and corresponding visually evoked postural responses (VEPR). These VEPRs are not simple responses to optokinetic stimulation, but are modulated by the configuration of the environment. The aim of this paper is to explore what factors modulate VEPRs in a high quality virtual reality (VR) environment where real and virtual foreground objects served as static visual, auditory and haptic reference points. Data from four experiments on visually evoked postural responses show that: 1) visually evoked postural sway in the lateral direction is modulated by the presence of static anchor points that can be haptic, visual and auditory reference signals; 2) real objects and their matching virtual reality representations as visual anchors have different effects on postural sway; 3) visual motion in the anterior-posterior plane induces robust postural responses that are not modulated by the presence of reference signals or the reality of objects that can serve as visual anchors in the scene. We conclude that automatic postural responses for laterally moving visual stimuli are strongly influenced by the configuration and interpretation of the environment and draw on multisensory representations. Different postural responses were observed for real and virtual visual reference objects. On the basis that automatic visually evoked postural responses in high fidelity virtual environments should mimic those seen in real situations we propose to use the observed effect as a robust objective test for presence and fidelity in VR. PMID:23840760

Haptics using a smart material for eyes-free interaction in personal devices

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Huihui; Lane, William Brian; Pappas, Devin; Duque, Bryam; Leong, John

2014-03-01

In this paper we present a prototype using a dry ionic polymer metal composite (IPMC) in interactive personal devices such as bracelet, necklace, pocket key chain or mobile devices for haptic interaction when audio or visual feedback is not possible or practical. This prototype interface is an electro-mechanical system that realizes a shape-changing haptic display for information communication. A dry IPMC will change its dimensions due to the electrostatic effect when an electrical potential is provided to them. The IPMC can operate at a lower voltage (less than 2.5V) which is compatible with requirements for personal electrical devices or mobile devices. The prototype consists of the addressable arrays of the IPMCs with different dimensions which are deformable to different shapes with proper handling or customization. 3D printing technology will be used to form supporting parts. Microcontrollers (about 3cm square) from DigiKey will be imbedded into this personal device. An Android based mobile APP will be developed to talk with microcontrollers to control IPMCs. When personal devices receive information signals, the original shape of the prototype will change to another shape related to the specific sender or types of information sources. This interactive prototype can simultaneously realize multiple methods for conveying haptic information such as dimension, force, and texture due to the flexible array design. We conduct several studies of user experience to explore how users' respond to shape change information.

A Study on Immersion and Presence of a Portable Hand Haptic System for Immersive Virtual Reality.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Mingyu; Jeon, Changyu; Kim, Jinmo

2017-05-17

This paper proposes a portable hand haptic system using Leap Motion as a haptic interface that can be used in various virtual reality (VR) applications. The proposed hand haptic system was designed as an Arduino-based sensor architecture to enable a variety of tactile senses at low cost, and is also equipped with a portable wristband. As a haptic system designed for tactile feedback, the proposed system first identifies the left and right hands and then sends tactile senses (vibration and heat) to each fingertip (thumb and index finger). It is incorporated into a wearable band-type system, making its use easy and convenient. Next, hand motion is accurately captured using the sensor of the hand tracking system and is used for virtual object control, thus achieving interaction that enhances immersion. A VR application was designed with the purpose of testing the immersion and presence aspects of the proposed system. Lastly, technical and statistical tests were carried out to assess whether the proposed haptic system can provide a new immersive presence to users. According to the results of the presence questionnaire and the simulator sickness questionnaire, we confirmed that the proposed hand haptic system, in comparison to the existing interaction that uses only the hand tracking system, provided greater presence and a more immersive environment in the virtual reality.

A Study on Immersion and Presence of a Portable Hand Haptic System for Immersive Virtual Reality

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Mingyu; Jeon, Changyu; Kim, Jinmo

2017-01-01

This paper proposes a portable hand haptic system using Leap Motion as a haptic interface that can be used in various virtual reality (VR) applications. The proposed hand haptic system was designed as an Arduino-based sensor architecture to enable a variety of tactile senses at low cost, and is also equipped with a portable wristband. As a haptic system designed for tactile feedback, the proposed system first identifies the left and right hands and then sends tactile senses (vibration and heat) to each fingertip (thumb and index finger). It is incorporated into a wearable band-type system, making its use easy and convenient. Next, hand motion is accurately captured using the sensor of the hand tracking system and is used for virtual object control, thus achieving interaction that enhances immersion. A VR application was designed with the purpose of testing the immersion and presence aspects of the proposed system. Lastly, technical and statistical tests were carried out to assess whether the proposed haptic system can provide a new immersive presence to users. According to the results of the presence questionnaire and the simulator sickness questionnaire, we confirmed that the proposed hand haptic system, in comparison to the existing interaction that uses only the hand tracking system, provided greater presence and a more immersive environment in the virtual reality. PMID:28513545

Haptic Manipulation of Deformable Objects in Hybrid Bilateral Teleoperation System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Manuel Ibarra-Zannatha

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this work is the integration of a virtual environment containing a deformable object, manipulated by an open kinematical chain virtual slave robot, to a bilateral teleoperation scheme based on a real haptic device. The virtual environment of this hybrid bilateral teleoperation system combines collision detection algorithms, dynamical, kinematical and geometrical models with a position–position and/or force–position bilateral control algorithm, to produce on the operator side the reflected forces corresponding to the virtual mechanical interactions, through a haptic device. Contact teleoperation task over the virtual environment with a flexible object is implemented and analysed.

Differences between early-blind, late-blind, and blindfolded-sighted people in haptic spatial-configuration learning and resulting memory traces

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Postma, Albert; Zuidhoek, Sander; Noordzij, Matthijs L.; Kappers, Astrid M L

2007-01-01

The roles of visual and haptic experience in different aspects of haptic processing of objects in peripersonal space are examined. In three trials, early-blind, late-blind, and blindfoldedsighted individuals had to match ten shapes haptically to the cut-outs in a board as fast as possible. Both

An investigation of a passively controlled haptic interface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Davis, J.T. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States); Book, W.J. [Georgia Inst. of Tech., Atlanta, GA (United States). School of Mechanical Engineering

1997-03-01

Haptic interfaces enhance cooperation between humans and robotic manipulators by providing force and tactile feedback to the human user during the execution of arbitrary tasks. The use of active actuators in haptic displays presents a certain amount of risk since they are capable of providing unacceptable levels of energy to the systems upon which they operate. An alternative to providing numerous safeguards is to remove the sources of risk altogether. This research investigates the feasibility of trajectory control using passive devices, that is, devices that cannot add energy to the system. Passive actuators are capable only of removing energy from the system or transferring energy within the system. It is proposed that the utility of passive devices is greatly enhanced by the use of redundant actuators. In a passive system, once motion is provided to the system, presumably by a human user, passive devices may be able to modify this motion to achieve a desired resultant trajectory. A mechanically passive, 2-Degree-of-Freedom (D.O.F.) manipulator has been designed and built. It is equipped with four passive actuators: two electromagnetic brakes and two electromagnetic clutches. This paper gives a review of the literature on passive and robotics and describes the experimental test bed used in this research. Several control algorithms are investigated, resulting in the formulation of a passive control law.

An investigation of a passively controlled haptic interface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davis, J.T.; Book, W.J.

1997-01-01

Haptic interfaces enhance cooperation between humans and robotic manipulators by providing force and tactile feedback to the human user during the execution of arbitrary tasks. The use of active actuators in haptic displays presents a certain amount of risk since they are capable of providing unacceptable levels of energy to the systems upon which they operate. An alternative to providing numerous safeguards is to remove the sources of risk altogether. This research investigates the feasibility of trajectory control using passive devices, that is, devices that cannot add energy to the system. Passive actuators are capable only of removing energy from the system or transferring energy within the system. It is proposed that the utility of passive devices is greatly enhanced by the use of redundant actuators. In a passive system, once motion is provided to the system, presumably by a human user, passive devices may be able to modify this motion to achieve a desired resultant trajectory. A mechanically passive, 2-Degree-of-Freedom (D.O.F.) manipulator has been designed and built. It is equipped with four passive actuators: two electromagnetic brakes and two electromagnetic clutches. This paper gives a review of the literature on passive and robotics and describes the experimental test bed used in this research. Several control algorithms are investigated, resulting in the formulation of a passive control law

The Effect of Dopaminergic Medication on Joint Kinematics during Haptic Movements in Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kuan-yi Li

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This study examined whether altered joint angular motion during haptic exploration could account for a decline in haptic sensitivity in individuals with PD by analyzing joint position data during haptic exploration of a curved contour. Each participant’s hand was passively moved by a robotic arm along the edges of a virtual box (5 cm × 15 cm with a curved left wall. After each trial, participants indicated whether the contour was curved or straight. Visual, auditory, and tactile cues were occluded, and an electrogoniometer recorded shoulder and elbow joint angles during each trial. The PD group in the OFF state had a higher mean detection threshold (4.67 m−1 than the control group (3.06 m−1. Individuals with PD in the OFF state also had a significantly greater magnitude of shoulder abduction than those in the ON state (p=0.003 and a smaller magnitude of elbow flexion than those in the ON state or compared to the control group (both p<0.001. These findings suggest that individuals with PD employ joint configurations that may contribute to haptic insensitivity. Dopamine replacement therapy improved joint configurations during haptic exploration in patients with PD, suggesting a role for dopaminergic dysfunction in PD-related haptic insensitivity.

An MRI-Guided Telesurgery System Using a Fabry-Perot Interferometry Force Sensor and a Pneumatic Haptic Device.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Hao; Shang, Weijian; Li, Gang; Patel, Niravkumar; Fischer, Gregory S

2017-08-01

This paper presents a surgical master-slave teleoperation system for percutaneous interventional procedures under continuous magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) guidance. The slave robot consists of a piezoelectrically actuated 6-degree-of-freedom (DOF) robot for needle placement with an integrated fiber optic force sensor (1-DOF axial force measurement) using the Fabry-Perot interferometry (FPI) sensing principle; it is configured to operate inside the bore of the MRI scanner during imaging. By leveraging the advantages of pneumatic and piezoelectric actuation in force and position control respectively, we have designed a pneumatically actuated master robot (haptic device) with strain gauge based force sensing that is configured to operate the slave from within the scanner room during imaging. The slave robot follows the insertion motion of the haptic device while the haptic device displays the needle insertion force as measured by the FPI sensor. Image interference evaluation demonstrates that the telesurgery system presents a signal to noise ratio reduction of less than 17% and less than 1% geometric distortion during simultaneous robot motion and imaging. Teleoperated needle insertion and rotation experiments were performed to reach 10 targets in a soft tissue-mimicking phantom with 0.70 ± 0.35 mm Cartesian space error.

Timing of presentation and nature of stimuli determine retroactive interference with social recognition memory in mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Perna, Judith Camats; Wotjak, Carsten T; Stork, Oliver; Engelmann, Mario

2015-05-01

The present study was designed to further investigate the nature of stimuli and the timing of their presentation, which can induce retroactive interference with social recognition memory in mice. In accordance with our previous observations, confrontation with an unfamiliar conspecific juvenile 3h and 6h, but not 22 h, after the initial learning session resulted in retroactive interference. The same effect was observed with the exposure to both enantiomers of the monomolecular odour carvone, and with a novel object. Exposure to a loud tone (12 KHz, 90 dB) caused retroactive interference at 6h, but not 3h and 22 h, after sampling. Our data show that retroactive interference of social recognition memory can be induced by exposing the experimental subjects to the defined stimuli presented <22 h after learning in their home cage. The distinct interference triggered by the tone presentation at 6h after sampling may be linked to the intrinsic aversiveness of the loud tone and suggests that at this time point memory consolidation is particularly sensitive to stress. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The value of haptic feedback in conventional and robot-assisted minimal invasive surgery and virtual reality training: a current review.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Meijden, O A J; Schijven, M P

2009-06-01

Virtual reality (VR) as surgical training tool has become a state-of-the-art technique in training and teaching skills for minimally invasive surgery (MIS). Although intuitively appealing, the true benefits of haptic (VR training) platforms are unknown. Many questions about haptic feedback in the different areas of surgical skills (training) need to be answered before adding costly haptic feedback in VR simulation for MIS training. This study was designed to review the current status and value of haptic feedback in conventional and robot-assisted MIS and training by using virtual reality simulation. A systematic review of the literature was undertaken using PubMed and MEDLINE. The following search terms were used: Haptic feedback OR Haptics OR Force feedback AND/OR Minimal Invasive Surgery AND/OR Minimal Access Surgery AND/OR Robotics AND/OR Robotic Surgery AND/OR Endoscopic Surgery AND/OR Virtual Reality AND/OR Simulation OR Surgical Training/Education. The results were assessed according to level of evidence as reflected by the Oxford Centre of Evidence-based Medicine Levels of Evidence. In the current literature, no firm consensus exists on the importance of haptic feedback in performing minimally invasive surgery. Although the majority of the results show positive assessment of the benefits of force feedback, results are ambivalent and not unanimous on the subject. Benefits are least disputed when related to surgery using robotics, because there is no haptic feedback in currently used robotics. The addition of haptics is believed to reduce surgical errors resulting from a lack of it, especially in knot tying. Little research has been performed in the area of robot-assisted endoscopic surgical training, but results seem promising. Concerning VR training, results indicate that haptic feedback is important during the early phase of psychomotor skill acquisition.

Virtual reality cerebral aneurysm clipping simulation with real-time haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Alaraj, Ali; Luciano, Cristian J; Bailey, Daniel P; Elsenousi, Abdussalam; Roitberg, Ben Z; Bernardo, Antonio; Banerjee, P Pat; Charbel, Fady T

2015-03-01

With the decrease in the number of cerebral aneurysms treated surgically and the increase of complexity of those treated surgically, there is a need for simulation-based tools to teach future neurosurgeons the operative techniques of aneurysm clipping. To develop and evaluate the usefulness of a new haptic-based virtual reality simulator in the training of neurosurgical residents. A real-time sensory haptic feedback virtual reality aneurysm clipping simulator was developed using the ImmersiveTouch platform. A prototype middle cerebral artery aneurysm simulation was created from a computed tomographic angiogram. Aneurysm and vessel volume deformation and haptic feedback are provided in a 3-dimensional immersive virtual reality environment. Intraoperative aneurysm rupture was also simulated. Seventeen neurosurgery residents from 3 residency programs tested the simulator and provided feedback on its usefulness and resemblance to real aneurysm clipping surgery. Residents thought that the simulation would be useful in preparing for real-life surgery. About two-thirds of the residents thought that the 3-dimensional immersive anatomic details provided a close resemblance to real operative anatomy and accurate guidance for deciding surgical approaches. They thought the simulation was useful for preoperative surgical rehearsal and neurosurgical training. A third of the residents thought that the technology in its current form provided realistic haptic feedback for aneurysm surgery. Neurosurgical residents thought that the novel immersive VR simulator is helpful in their training, especially because they do not get a chance to perform aneurysm clippings until late in their residency programs.

Exploring laterality and memory effects in the haptic discrimination of verbal and non-verbal shapes.

Science.gov (United States)

Stoycheva, Polina; Tiippana, Kaisa

2018-03-14

The brain's left hemisphere often displays advantages in processing verbal information, while the right hemisphere favours processing non-verbal information. In the haptic domain due to contra-lateral innervations, this functional lateralization is reflected in a hand advantage during certain functions. Findings regarding the hand-hemisphere advantage for haptic information remain contradictory, however. This study addressed these laterality effects and their interaction with memory retention times in the haptic modality. Participants performed haptic discrimination of letters, geometric shapes and nonsense shapes at memory retention times of 5, 15 and 30 s with the left and right hand separately, and we measured the discriminability index d'. The d' values were significantly higher for letters and geometric shapes than for nonsense shapes. This might result from dual coding (naming + spatial) or/and from a low stimulus complexity. There was no stimulus-specific laterality effect. However, we found a time-dependent laterality effect, which revealed that the performance of the left hand-right hemisphere was sustained up to 15 s, while the performance of the right-hand-left hemisphere decreased progressively throughout all retention times. This suggests that haptic memory traces are more robust to decay when they are processed by the left hand-right hemisphere.

Functional Contour-following via Haptic Perception and Reinforcement Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Hellman, Randall B; Tekin, Cem; van der Schaar, Mihaela; Santos, Veronica J

2018-01-01

Many tasks involve the fine manipulation of objects despite limited visual feedback. In such scenarios, tactile and proprioceptive feedback can be leveraged for task completion. We present an approach for real-time haptic perception and decision-making for a haptics-driven, functional contour-following task: the closure of a ziplock bag. This task is challenging for robots because the bag is deformable, transparent, and visually occluded by artificial fingertip sensors that are also compliant. A deep neural net classifier was trained to estimate the state of a zipper within a robot's pinch grasp. A Contextual Multi-Armed Bandit (C-MAB) reinforcement learning algorithm was implemented to maximize cumulative rewards by balancing exploration versus exploitation of the state-action space. The C-MAB learner outperformed a benchmark Q-learner by more efficiently exploring the state-action space while learning a hard-to-code task. The learned C-MAB policy was tested with novel ziplock bag scenarios and contours (wire, rope). Importantly, this work contributes to the development of reinforcement learning approaches that account for limited resources such as hardware life and researcher time. As robots are used to perform complex, physically interactive tasks in unstructured or unmodeled environments, it becomes important to develop methods that enable efficient and effective learning with physical testbeds.

Soft Robotic Haptic Interface with Variable Stiffness for Rehabilitation of Neurologically Impaired Hand Function

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frederick Sebastian

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The human hand comprises complex sensorimotor functions that can be impaired by neurological diseases and traumatic injuries. Effective rehabilitation can bring the impaired hand back to a functional state because of the plasticity of the central nervous system to relearn and remodel the lost synapses in the brain. Current rehabilitation therapies focus on strengthening motor skills, such as grasping, employ multiple objects of varying stiffness so that affected persons can experience a wide range of strength training. These devices have limited range of stiffness due to the rigid mechanisms employed in their variable stiffness actuators. This paper presents a novel soft robotic haptic device for neuromuscular rehabilitation of the hand, which is designed to offer adjustable stiffness and can be utilized in both clinical and home settings. The device eliminates the need for multiple objects by employing a pneumatic soft structure made with highly compliant materials that act as the actuator of the haptic interface. It is made with interchangeable sleeves that can be customized to include materials of varying stiffness to increase the upper limit of the stiffness range. The device is fabricated using existing 3D printing technologies, and polymer molding and casting techniques, thus keeping the cost low and throughput high. The haptic interface is linked to either an open-loop system that allows for an increased pressure during usage or closed-loop system that provides pressure regulation in accordance to the stiffness the user specifies. Preliminary evaluation is performed to characterize the effective controllable region of variance in stiffness. It was found that the region of controllable stiffness was between points 3 and 7, where the stiffness appeared to plateau with each increase in pressure. The two control systems are tested to derive relationships between internal pressure, grasping force exertion on the surface, and displacement using

New geometric data structures for collision detection and haptics

CERN Document Server

Weller, René

2013-01-01

Starting with novel algorithms for optimally updating bounding volume hierarchies of objects undergoing arbitrary deformations, the author presents a new data structure that allows, for the first time, the computation of the penetration volume. The penetration volume is related to the water displacement of the overlapping region, and thus corresponds to a physically motivated and continuous force. The practicability of the approaches used is shown by realizing new applications in the field of robotics and haptics, including a user study that evaluates the influence of the degrees of freedom in

Modulation of visually evoked postural responses by contextual visual, haptic and auditory information: a 'virtual reality check'.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georg F Meyer

Full Text Available Externally generated visual motion signals can cause the illusion of self-motion in space (vection and corresponding visually evoked postural responses (VEPR. These VEPRs are not simple responses to optokinetic stimulation, but are modulated by the configuration of the environment. The aim of this paper is to explore what factors modulate VEPRs in a high quality virtual reality (VR environment where real and virtual foreground objects served as static visual, auditory and haptic reference points. Data from four experiments on visually evoked postural responses show that: 1 visually evoked postural sway in the lateral direction is modulated by the presence of static anchor points that can be haptic, visual and auditory reference signals; 2 real objects and their matching virtual reality representations as visual anchors have different effects on postural sway; 3 visual motion in the anterior-posterior plane induces robust postural responses that are not modulated by the presence of reference signals or the reality of objects that can serve as visual anchors in the scene. We conclude that automatic postural responses for laterally moving visual stimuli are strongly influenced by the configuration and interpretation of the environment and draw on multisensory representations. Different postural responses were observed for real and virtual visual reference objects. On the basis that automatic visually evoked postural responses in high fidelity virtual environments should mimic those seen in real situations we propose to use the observed effect as a robust objective test for presence and fidelity in VR.

Mechanical model of orthopaedic drilling for augmented-haptics-based training.

Science.gov (United States)

Pourkand, Ashkan; Zamani, Naghmeh; Grow, David

2017-10-01

In this study, augmented-haptic feedback is used to combine a physical object with virtual elements in order to simulate anatomic variability in bone. This requires generating levels of force/torque consistent with clinical bone drilling, which exceed the capabilities of commercially available haptic devices. Accurate total force generation is facilitated by a predictive model of axial force during simulated orthopaedic drilling. This model is informed by kinematic data collected while drilling into synthetic bone samples using an instrumented linkage attached to the orthopaedic drill. Axial force is measured using a force sensor incorporated into the bone fixture. A nonlinear function, relating force to axial position and velocity, was used to fit the data. The normalized root-mean-square error (RMSE) of forces predicted by the model compared to those measured experimentally was 0.11 N across various bones with significant differences in geometry and density. This suggests that a predictive model can be used to capture relevant variations in the thickness and hardness of cortical and cancellous bone. The practical performance of this approach is measured using the Phantom Premium haptic device, with some required customizations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Multi-arm multilateral haptics-based immersive tele-robotic system (HITS) for improvised explosive device disposal

Science.gov (United States)

Erickson, David; Lacheray, Hervé; Lai, Gilbert; Haddadi, Amir

2014-06-01

This paper presents the latest advancements of the Haptics-based Immersive Tele-robotic System (HITS) project, a next generation Improvised Explosive Device (IED) disposal (IEDD) robotic interface containing an immersive telepresence environment for a remotely-controlled three-articulated-robotic-arm system. While the haptic feedback enhances the operator's perception of the remote environment, a third teleoperated dexterous arm, equipped with multiple vision sensors and cameras, provides stereo vision with proper visual cues, and a 3D photo-realistic model of the potential IED. This decentralized system combines various capabilities including stable and scaled motion, singularity avoidance, cross-coupled hybrid control, active collision detection and avoidance, compliance control and constrained motion to provide a safe and intuitive control environment for the operators. Experimental results and validation of the current system are presented through various essential IEDD tasks. This project demonstrates that a two-armed anthropomorphic Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) robot interface can achieve complex neutralization techniques against realistic IEDs without the operator approaching at any time.

Generalization of the disruptive effects of alternative stimuli when combined with target stimuli in extinction.

Science.gov (United States)

Podlesnik, Christopher A; Miranda-Dukoski, Ludmila; Jonas Chan, C K; Bland, Vikki J; Bai, John Y H

2017-09-01

Differential-reinforcement treatments reduce target problem behavior in the short term but at the expense of making it more persistent long term. Basic and translational research based on behavioral momentum theory suggests that combining features of stimuli governing an alternative response with the stimuli governing target responding could make target responding less persistent. However, changes to the alternative stimulus context when combining alternative and target stimuli could diminish the effectiveness of the alternative stimulus in reducing target responding. In an animal model with pigeons, the present study reinforced responding in the presence of target and alternative stimuli. When combining the alternative and target stimuli during extinction, we altered the alternative stimulus through changes in line orientation. We found that (1) combining alternative and target stimuli in extinction more effectively decreased target responding than presenting the target stimulus on its own; (2) combining these stimuli was more effective in decreasing target responding trained with lower reinforcement rates; and (3) changing the alternative stimulus reduced its effectiveness when it was combined with the target stimulus. Therefore, changing alternative stimuli (e.g., therapist, clinical setting) during behavioral treatments that combine alternative and target stimuli could reduce the effectiveness of those treatments in disrupting problem behavior. © 2017 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Fiber optical sensor system for shape and haptics for flexible instruments in minimally invasive surgery: overview and status quo

Science.gov (United States)

Ledermann, Christoph; Pauer, Hendrikje; Woern, Heinz

2014-05-01

In minimally invasive surgery, exible mechatronic instruments promise to improve the overall performance of surgical interventions. However, those instruments require highly developed sensors in order to provide haptic feedback to the surgeon or to enable (semi-)autonomous tasks. Precisely, haptic sensors and a shape sensor are required. In this paper, we present our ber optical sensor system of Fiber Bragg Gratings, which consists of a shape sensor, a kinesthetic sensor and a tactile sensor. The status quo of each of the three sensors is described, as well as the concept to integrate them into one ber optical sensor system.

Performance improvement of haptic collision detection using subdivision surface and sphere clustering.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A Ram Choi

Full Text Available Haptics applications such as surgery simulations require collision detections that are more precise than others. An efficient collision detection method based on the clustering of bounding spheres was proposed in our prior study. This paper analyzes and compares the applied effects of the five most common subdivision surface methods on some 3D models for haptic collision detection. The five methods are Butterfly, Catmull-Clark, Mid-point, Loop, and LS3 (Least Squares Subdivision Surface. After performing a number of experiments, we have concluded that LS3 method is the most appropriate for haptic simulations. The more we applied surface subdivision, the more the collision detection results became precise. However, it is observed that the performance becomes better until a certain threshold and degrades afterward. In order to reduce the performance degradation, we adopted our prior work, which was the fast and precise collision detection method based on adaptive clustering. As a result, we obtained a notable improvement of the speed of collision detection.

IMPROVING MEDICAL EDUCATION: SIMULATING CHANGES IN PATIENT ANATOMY USING DYNAMIC HAPTIC FEEDBACK.

Science.gov (United States)

Yovanoff, Mary; Pepley, David; Mirkin, Katelin; Moore, Jason; Han, David; Miller, Scarlett

2016-09-01

Virtual simulation is an emerging field in medical education. Research suggests that simulation reduces complication rates and improves learning gains for medical residents. One benefit of simulators is their allowance for more realistic and dynamic patient anatomies. While potentially useful throughout medical education, few studies have explored the impact of dynamic haptic simulators on medical training. In light of this research void, this study was developed to examine how a Dynamic-Haptic Robotic Trainer (DHRT) impacts medical student self-efficacy and skill gains compared to traditional simulators developed to train students in Internal Jugular Central Venous Catheter (IJ CVC) placement. The study was conducted with 18 third year medical students with no prior CVC insertion experience who underwent a pre-test, simulator training (manikin, robotic, or mixed) and post-test. The results revealed the DHRT as a useful method for training CVC skills and supports further research on dynamic haptic trainers in medical education.

Virtual Reality Cerebral Aneurysm Clipping Simulation With Real-time Haptic Feedback

Science.gov (United States)

Alaraj, Ali; Luciano, Cristian J.; Bailey, Daniel P.; Elsenousi, Abdussalam; Roitberg, Ben Z.; Bernardo, Antonio; Banerjee, P. Pat; Charbel, Fady T.

2014-01-01

Background With the decrease in the number of cerebral aneurysms treated surgically and the increase of complexity of those treated surgically, there is a need for simulation-based tools to teach future neurosurgeons the operative techniques of aneurysm clipping. Objective To develop and evaluate the usefulness of a new haptic-based virtual reality (VR) simulator in the training of neurosurgical residents. Methods A real-time sensory haptic feedback virtual reality aneurysm clipping simulator was developed using the Immersive Touch platform. A prototype middle cerebral artery aneurysm simulation was created from a computed tomography angiogram. Aneurysm and vessel volume deformation and haptic feedback are provided in a 3-D immersive VR environment. Intraoperative aneurysm rupture was also simulated. Seventeen neurosurgery residents from three residency programs tested the simulator and provided feedback on its usefulness and resemblance to real aneurysm clipping surgery. Results Residents felt that the simulation would be useful in preparing for real-life surgery. About two thirds of the residents felt that the 3-D immersive anatomical details provided a very close resemblance to real operative anatomy and accurate guidance for deciding surgical approaches. They believed the simulation is useful for preoperative surgical rehearsal and neurosurgical training. One third of the residents felt that the technology in its current form provided very realistic haptic feedback for aneurysm surgery. Conclusion Neurosurgical residents felt that the novel immersive VR simulator is helpful in their training especially since they do not get a chance to perform aneurysm clippings until very late in their residency programs. PMID:25599200

Short-term plasticity of visuo-haptic object recognition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kassuba, Tanja; Klinge, Corinna; Hölig, Cordula

2014-01-01

, the same stimulation gave rise to relative increases in activation during S2 processing in the right LO, left FG, bilateral IPS, and other regions previously associated with object recognition. Critically, the modality of S2 determined which regions were recruited after rTMS. Relative to sham rTMS, real r......TMS induced increased activations during crossmodal congruent matching in the left FG for haptic S2 and the temporal pole for visual S2. In addition, we found stronger activations for incongruent than congruent matching in the right anterior parahippocampus and middle frontal gyrus for crossmodal matching......Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have provided ample evidence for the involvement of the lateral occipital cortex (LO), fusiform gyrus (FG), and intraparietal sulcus (IPS) in visuo-haptic object integration. Here we applied 30 min of sham (non-effective) or real offline 1 Hz...

Virtual reality haptic dissection.

Science.gov (United States)

Erolin, Caroline; Wilkinson, Caroline; Soames, Roger

2011-12-01

This project aims to create a three-dimensional digital model of the human hand and wrist which can be virtually 'dissected' through a haptic interface. Tissue properties will be added to the various anatomical structures to replicate a realistic look and feel. The project will explore the role of the medical artist, and investigate cross-discipline collaborations in the field of virtual anatomy. The software will be used to train anatomy students in dissection skills, before experience on a real cadaver. The effectiveness of the software will be evaluated and assessed both quantitatively as well as qualitatively.

Design of a smart haptic system for repulsive force control under irregular manipulation environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sang-Rock; Choi, Seung-Hyun; Choi, Seung-Bok; Cho, Myeong-Woo

2014-01-01

This paper describes how to make an operator feel the desired repulsive force in a haptic system. When an operator manipulates a haptic system, the repulsive force of the operator varies significantly, depending on many factors such as position, velocity and force. In order to reflect the desired repulsive force to the operator, it is commonly known that a haptic system must compensate for irregularly changing forces. The irregularity of the forces, however, has discouraged many researchers from establishing a clear principle on how to make the operator feel the desired repulsive force. To resolve this problem, we introduce a smart haptic framework that can reflect the desired repulsive force to the operator, regardless of the operator’s movement. A dummy governing equation technique is introduced and used to calculate the proper actuating force in real time. The actuating force is generated by a PID controller. To verify the proposed method, a mathematical proof is offered to show that the repulsive force converges to the desired repulsive force. Additionally, to demonstrate the performance of the proposed method, simulational and experimental tests are implemented. (paper)

Heterogeneous Deformable Modeling of Bio-Tissues and Haptic Force Rendering for Bio-Object Modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Shiyong; Lee, Yuan-Shin; Narayan, Roger J.

This paper presents a novel technique for modeling soft biological tissues as well as the development of an innovative interface for bio-manufacturing and medical applications. Heterogeneous deformable models may be used to represent the actual internal structures of deformable biological objects, which possess multiple components and nonuniform material properties. Both heterogeneous deformable object modeling and accurate haptic rendering can greatly enhance the realism and fidelity of virtual reality environments. In this paper, a tri-ray node snapping algorithm is proposed to generate a volumetric heterogeneous deformable model from a set of object interface surfaces between different materials. A constrained local static integration method is presented for simulating deformation and accurate force feedback based on the material properties of a heterogeneous structure. Biological soft tissue modeling is used as an example to demonstrate the proposed techniques. By integrating the heterogeneous deformable model into a virtual environment, users can both observe different materials inside a deformable object as well as interact with it by touching the deformable object using a haptic device. The presented techniques can be used for surgical simulation, bio-product design, bio-manufacturing, and medical applications.

Optimal design of a new 3D haptic gripper for telemanipulation, featuring magnetorheological fluid brakes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nguyen, Q H; Choi, S B; Lee, Y S; Han, M S

2013-01-01

In this research work, a new configuration of a 3D haptic gripper for telemanipulation is proposed and optimally designed. The proposed haptic gripper, featuring three magnetorheological fluid brakes (MRBs), reflects the rolling torque, the grasping force and the approach force from the slave manipulator to the master operator. After describing the operational principle of the haptic gripper, an optimal design of the MRBs for the gripper is performed. The purpose of the optimization problem is to find the most compact MRB that can provide a required braking torque/force to the master operator while the off-state torque/force is kept as small as possible. In the optimal design, different types of MRBs and different MR fluids (MRFs) are considered. In order to obtain the optimal solution of the MRBs, an optimization approach based on finite element analysis (FEA) integrated with an optimization tool is used. The optimal solutions of the MRBs are then obtained and the optimized MRBs for the haptic gripper are identified. In addition, discussions on the optimal solutions and performance of the optimized MRBs are given. (paper)

Effects of Temporal Congruity Between Auditory and Visual Stimuli Using Rapid Audio-Visual Serial Presentation.

Science.gov (United States)

An, Xingwei; Tang, Jiabei; Liu, Shuang; He, Feng; Qi, Hongzhi; Wan, Baikun; Ming, Dong

2016-10-01

Combining visual and auditory stimuli in event-related potential (ERP)-based spellers gained more attention in recent years. Few of these studies notice the difference of ERP components and system efficiency caused by the shifting of visual and auditory onset. Here, we aim to study the effect of temporal congruity of auditory and visual stimuli onset on bimodal brain-computer interface (BCI) speller. We designed five visual and auditory combined paradigms with different visual-to-auditory delays (-33 to +100 ms). Eleven participants attended in this study. ERPs were acquired and aligned according to visual and auditory stimuli onset, respectively. ERPs of Fz, Cz, and PO7 channels were studied through the statistical analysis of different conditions both from visual-aligned ERPs and audio-aligned ERPs. Based on the visual-aligned ERPs, classification accuracy was also analyzed to seek the effects of visual-to-auditory delays. The latencies of ERP components depended mainly on the visual stimuli onset. Auditory stimuli onsets influenced mainly on early component accuracies, whereas visual stimuli onset determined later component accuracies. The latter, however, played a dominate role in overall classification. This study is important for further studies to achieve better explanations and ultimately determine the way to optimize the bimodal BCI application.

Feeling the beat where it counts: fostering multi-limb rhythm skills with the haptic drum kit

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Holland, S.; Bouwer, A.J.; Dalgleish, M.; Hurtig, T.M.

2010-01-01

This paper introduces a tool known as the Haptic Drum Kit, which employs four computer-controlled vibrotactile devices, one attached to each wrist and ankle. In the applications discussed here, haptic pulses are used to guide the playing, on a drum kit, of rhythmic patterns that require multi-limb

Cognitive aspects of haptic form recognition by blind and sighted subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailes, S M; Lambert, R M

1986-11-01

Studies using haptic form recognition tasks have generally concluded that the adventitiously blind perform better than the congenitally blind, implicating the importance of early visual experience in improved spatial functioning. The hypothesis was tested that the adventitiously blind have retained some ability to encode successive information obtained haptically in terms of a global visual representation, while the congenitally blind use a coding system based on successive inputs. Eighteen blind (adventitiously and congenitally) and 18 sighted (blindfolded and performing with vision) subjects were tested on their recognition of raised line patterns when the standard was presented in segments: in immediate succession, or with unfilled intersegmental delays of 5, 10, or 15 seconds. The results did not support the above hypothesis. Three main findings were obtained: normally sighted subjects were both faster and more accurate than the other groups; all groups improved in accuracy of recognition as a function of length of interstimulus interval; sighted subjects tended to report using strategies with a strong verbal component while the blind tended to rely on imagery coding. These results are explained in terms of information-processing theory consistent with dual encoding systems in working memory.

The C-Lever Project: Haptics for Automotive Applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Garcia Canseco, E.; Ayemlong Fokem, A.; Serrarens, A.F.A.; Steinbuch, M.; Stigter, H.

2010-01-01

The goal of this project is to research the effectiveness of a controlled haptic force feedback shift lever that can accurately reproduce the behavior of a manual gear shift during driving, and that can also be used to control interior and comfort functions in the car.

Adapting haptic guidance authority based on user grip

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smisek, J.; Mugge, W.; Smeets, J.B.J.; Van Paassen, M.M.; Schiele, A

2014-01-01

Haptic guidance systems support the operator in task execution using additional forces on the input device. Scaling of the guidance forces determines the control authority of the support system. As task complexity may vary, one level of the guidance scaling may be insufficient, and adaptation of the

The Use of Haptic Display Technology in Education

Science.gov (United States)

Barfield, Woodrow

2009-01-01

The experience of "virtual reality" can consist of head-tracked and stereoscopic virtual worlds, spatialized sound, haptic feedback, and to a lesser extent olfactory cues. Although virtual reality systems have been proposed for numerous applications, the field of education is one particular application that seems well-suited for virtual…

Design of high-fidelity haptic display for one-dimensional force reflection applications

Science.gov (United States)

Gillespie, Brent; Rosenberg, Louis B.

1995-12-01

This paper discusses the development of a virtual reality platform for the simulation of medical procedures which involve needle insertion into human tissue. The paper's focus is the hardware and software requirements for haptic display of a particular medical procedure known as epidural analgesia. To perform this delicate manual procedure, an anesthesiologist must carefully guide a needle through various layers of tissue using only haptic cues for guidance. As a simplifying aspect for the simulator design, all motions and forces involved in the task occur along a fixed line once insertion begins. To create a haptic representation of this procedure, we have explored both physical modeling and perceptual modeling techniques. A preliminary physical model was built based on CT-scan data of the operative site. A preliminary perceptual model was built based on current training techniques for the procedure provided by a skilled instructor. We compare and contrast these two modeling methods and discuss the implications of each. We select and defend the perceptual model as a superior approach for the epidural analgesia simulator.

Surgical virtual reality - highlights in developing a high performance surgical haptic device.

Science.gov (United States)

Custură-Crăciun, D; Cochior, D; Constantinoiu, S; Neagu, C

2013-01-01

Just like simulators are a standard in aviation and aerospace sciences, we expect for surgical simulators to soon become a standard in medical applications. These will correctly instruct future doctors in surgical techniques without there being a need for hands on patient instruction. Using virtual reality by digitally transposing surgical procedures changes surgery in are volutionary manner by offering possibilities for implementing new, much more efficient, learning methods, by allowing the practice of new surgical techniques and by improving surgeon abilities and skills. Perfecting haptic devices has opened the door to a series of opportunities in the fields of research,industry, nuclear science and medicine. Concepts purely theoretical at first, such as telerobotics, telepresence or telerepresentation,have become a practical reality as calculus techniques, telecommunications and haptic devices evolved,virtual reality taking a new leap. In the field of surgery barrier sand controversies still remain, regarding implementation and generalization of surgical virtual simulators. These obstacles remain connected to the high costs of this yet fully sufficiently developed technology, especially in the domain of haptic devices. Celsius.

Haptic orientation perception benefits from visual experience : Evidence from early-blind, late-blind, and sighted people

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Postma, Albert; Zuidhoek, Sander; Noordzij, Matthijs L.; Kappers, A. M L

2008-01-01

Early-blind, late-blind, and blindfolded sighted participants were presented with two haptic allocentric spatial tasks: a parallel-setting task, in an immediate and a 10-sec delay condition, and a task in which the orientation of a single bar was judged verbally. With respect to deviation size, the

Summation of reinforcement rates when conditioned stimuli are presented in compound.

Science.gov (United States)

Andrew, Benjamin J; Harris, Justin A

2011-10-01

Three experiments used delay conditioning of magazine approach in rats to examine the summation of responding when two conditioned stimuli (CSs) are presented together as a compound. The duration of each CS varied randomly from trial-to-trial around a mean that differed between the CSs. This meant that the rats' response rate to each CS was systematically related to the reinforcement rate of that CS, but remained steady as time elapsed during the CS (Harris & Carpenter, 2011; Harris, Gharaei, & Pincham, 2011). When the rats were presented with a compound of two CSs that had been conditioned separately, they responded more during the compound than during either of the CSs individually. More significantly, however, in all three experiments, the rats responded to the compound at the same rate as they responded to a third CS that had been reinforced at a rate equal to the sum of the reinforcement rates of the two CSs in compound. We discuss the implications of this finding for associative models (e.g., Rescorla & Wagner, 1972) and rate-based models (Gallistel & Gibbon, 2000) of conditioning.

A Taxonomy and Comparison of Haptic Actions for Disassembly Tasks

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Bloomfield, Aaron; Deng, Yu; Wampler, Jeff; Rondot, Pascale; Harth, Dina; McManus, Mary; Badler, Norman

2003-01-01

.... We conducted a series of human subject experiments to compare user performance and preference on a disassembly task with and without haptic feedback using CyberGlove, Phantom, and SpaceMouse interfaces...

Salient features in 3-D haptic shape perception

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Plaisier, Myrthe A; Bergmann Tiest, Wouter M.; Kappers, Astrid M L

2009-01-01

Shape is an important cue for recognizing an object by touch. Several features, such as edges, curvature, surface area, and aspect ratio, are associated with 3-D shape. To investigate the saliency of 3-D shape features, we developed a haptic search task. The target and distractor items consisted of

Haptic Human-Human Interaction Through a Compliant Connection Does Not Improve Motor Learning in a Force Field

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beckers, Niek; Keemink, Arvid; van Asseldonk, Edwin; van der Kooij, Herman; Prattichizzo, Domenico; Shinoda, Hiroyuki; Tan, Hong Z.; Ruffaldi, Emanuele; Frisoli, Antonio

2018-01-01

Humans have a natural ability to haptically interact with other humans, for instance during physically assisting a child to learn how to ride a bicycle. A recent study has shown that haptic human-human interaction can improve individual motor performance and motor learning rate while learning to

The Effect of Trial-by-trial Adaptation on Conflicts in Haptic Shared Control for Free-Air Teleoperation Tasks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jonge, A. W.; Wildenbeest, J. G. W.; Boessenkool, H.; Abbink, D. A.

2016-01-01

Haptic shared control can improve execution of teleoperation and driving tasks. However, shared control designs may suffer from conflicts between individual human operators and constant haptic assistance when their desired trajectories differ, leading to momentarily increased forces, discomfort or

Valuation of Go Stimuli or Devaluation of No-Go Stimuli? Evidence of an Increased Preference for Attended Go Stimuli Following a Go/No-Go Task.

Science.gov (United States)

Inoue, Kazuya; Sato, Nobuya

2017-01-01

Attentional inhibition that occurs during discrimination tasks leads to the negative evaluation of distractor stimuli. This phenomenon, known as the distractor devaluation effect also occurs when go/no-go tasks require response inhibition. However, it remains unclear whether there are interactions between attention and response controls when the distractor devaluation effect occurs. The aims of this study were to investigate whether attention to stimuli in the go/no-go task plays a facilitative role in distractor devaluation through response inhibition, and to clarify whether this effect reflects a decreased preference for no-go stimuli. Participants evaluated the preference for pictures before and after a go/no-go task. In Experiments 1 and 2, they made a go or no-go response depending on the category of pictures displayed (gummy candies or rice crackers), whereas in Experiment 3 they did on the basis digit category, even or odd numbers, superimposed on such pictures. Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrated that the pictures presented as no-go stimuli in the preceding go/no-go task were evaluated as less positive than the pictures presented as go stimuli. This devaluation effect reflected an increased preference for the go stimuli but not a decreased preference for the no-go stimuli. Experiment 3 indicated that response inhibition did not affect the preference for the pictures that had not received attention in a preceding go/no-go task. These results suggest that although attention plays an important role in differential ratings for go and no-go stimuli, such differences, in fact, reflect the valuation of go stimuli.

The Design Space of Information Presentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

May, Michael; Petersen, Johannes

2007-01-01

A semiotic approach to the design space of information presentation is presented in which Formal Concept Analysis (FCA) is used to represent and explore attributes of abstract sign types and the media (graphical, haptic, acoustic, gestic) through which they are presented as specific...

Towards a standard on evaluation of tactile/haptic interactions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sinclair, I.; Carter, J.; Kassner, S.; Erp, J.B.F. van; Weber, G.; Elliott, L.; Andrew, I.

2012-01-01

Tactile and haptic interaction is becoming increasingly important; ergonomic standards can ensure that systems are designed with sufficient concern for ergonomics and interoperability. ISO (through working group TC159/SC4/WG9) is developing international standards in this subject area, dual-tracked

Handling in the Micro/nano-world: haptic device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nigues, A.

2012-09-01

experiments are presented: in the first type our assembly is piloted directly by the computer and shows its performances in achieving the gripping of micrometric objects in controlled way. The second type involves the coupling between our assembly and the haptic system to explore a surface and achieve fast recognition of shapes of sub-micron samples. This experiment shows the capability of haptic coupling in directly transmitting to the user the interactions registered at nanometer scale and the possibility of performing complex tasks on the recognition of shapes and tracking of contours. (author)

Design and implementation of visual-haptic assistive control system for virtual rehabilitation exercise and teleoperation manipulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Veras, Eduardo J; De Laurentis, Kathryn J; Dubey, Rajiv

2008-01-01

This paper describes the design and implementation of a control system that integrates visual and haptic information to give assistive force feedback through a haptic controller (Omni Phantom) to the user. A sensor-based assistive function and velocity scaling program provides force feedback that helps the user complete trajectory following exercises for rehabilitation purposes. This system also incorporates a PUMA robot for teleoperation, which implements a camera and a laser range finder, controlled in real time by a PC, were implemented into the system to help the user to define the intended path to the selected target. The real-time force feedback from the remote robot to the haptic controller is made possible by using effective multithreading programming strategies in the control system design and by novel sensor integration. The sensor-based assistant function concept applied to teleoperation as well as shared control enhances the motion range and manipulation capabilities of the users executing rehabilitation exercises such as trajectory following along a sensor-based defined path. The system is modularly designed to allow for integration of different master devices and sensors. Furthermore, because this real-time system is versatile the haptic component can be used separately from the telerobotic component; in other words, one can use the haptic device for rehabilitation purposes for cases in which assistance is needed to perform tasks (e.g., stroke rehab) and also for teleoperation with force feedback and sensor assistance in either supervisory or automatic modes.

Modeling and test of a kinaesthetic actuator based on MR fluid for haptic applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Tae-Heon; Koo, Jeong-Hoi; Kim, Sang-Youn; Kwon, Dong-Soo

2017-03-01

Haptic display units have been widely used for conveying button sensations to users, primarily employing vibrotactile actuators. However, the human feeling for pressing buttons mainly relies on kinaesthetic sensations (rather than vibrotactile sensations), and little studies exist on small-scale kinaesthetic haptic units. Thus, the primary goals of this paper are to design a miniature kinaesthetic actuator based on Magneto-Rheological (MR) fluid that can convey various button-clicking sensations and to experimentally evaluate its haptic performance. The design focuses of the proposed actuator were to produce sufficiently large actuation forces (resistive forces) for human users in a given size constraint and to offer a wide range of actuation forces for conveying vivid haptic sensations to users. To this end, this study first performed a series of parametric studies using mathematical force models for multiple operating modes of MR fluid in conjunction with finite element electromagnetism analysis. After selecting design parameters based on parametric studies, a prototype actuator was constructed, and its performance was evaluated using a dynamic mechanical analyzer. It measured the actuator's resistive force with a varying stroke (pressed depth) up to 1 mm and a varying input current from 0 A to 200 mA. The results show that the proposed actuator creates a wide range of resistive forces from around 2 N (off-state) to over 9.5 N at 200 mA. In order to assess the prototype's performance in the terms of the haptic application prospective, a maximum force rate was calculated to determine just noticeable difference in force changes for the 1 mm stoke of the actuator. The results show that the force rate is sufficient to mimic various levels of button sensations, indicating that the proposed kinaesthetic actuator can offer a wide range of resistive force changes that can be conveyed to human operators.

Graphic and haptic simulation for transvaginal cholecystectomy training in NOTES.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Jun J; Ahn, Woojin; Dargar, Saurabh; Halic, Tansel; Li, Bai C; Sankaranarayanan, Ganesh; Roberts, Kurt; Schwaitzberg, Steven; De, Suvranu

2016-04-01

Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (NOTES) provides an emerging surgical technique which usually needs a long learning curve for surgeons. Virtual reality (VR) medical simulators with vision and haptic feedback can usually offer an efficient and cost-effective alternative without risk to the traditional training approaches. Under this motivation, we developed the first virtual reality simulator for transvaginal cholecystectomy in NOTES (VTEST™). This VR-based surgical simulator aims to simulate the hybrid NOTES of cholecystectomy. We use a 6DOF haptic device and a tracking sensor to construct the core hardware component of simulator. For software, an innovative approach based on the inner-spheres is presented to deform the organs in real time. To handle the frequent collision between soft tissue and surgical instruments, an adaptive collision detection method based on GPU is designed and implemented. To give a realistic visual performance of gallbladder fat tissue removal by cautery hook, a multi-layer hexahedral model is presented to simulate the electric dissection of fat tissue. From the experimental results, trainees can operate in real time with high degree of stability and fidelity. A preliminary study was also performed to evaluate the realism and the usefulness of this hybrid NOTES simulator. This prototyped simulation system has been verified by surgeons through a pilot study. Some items of its visual performance and the utility were rated fairly high by the participants during testing. It exhibits the potential to improve the surgical skills of trainee and effectively shorten their learning curve. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Perceiving, imaging, and preferring physiognomic stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Lindauer, M S

1986-01-01

Physiognomic color responses in perception, imagery, and affect were investigated. Maluma and taketa, nonsense stimuli defined by many investigators as physiognomic, were utilized as prototypical physiognomic stimuli, along with eight other stimuli of various sorts. In Experiment 1, 22 subjects matched the colors of the stimuli; in Experiment 2, 27 subjects reported their imagery to the stimuli; and in Experiment 3, 16 subjects gave their color preferences for the stimuli. The Munsell sets of colors were employed throughout. Significant differences between the physiognomic and other stimuli were found on the brightness and saturation of color matches, images, and preferences. Other differences (e.g., the latency of color images) were also present. Distinctions were also noted between the two physiognomic stimuli. These results support the priority of innate and perceptual processes in physiognomy over those of learning and memory, although some ambiguities still remain.

The Phenomenology of Trauma. Sound and Haptic Sensuality in Son of Saul

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vincze Teréz

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The winner of many prestigious prizes (Oscar for the best foreign language film, Grand Prize of the Cannes Film Festival, and the Golden Globe among them, the Hungarian film, Son of Saul – according to most critics – represents the Holocaust trauma in a completely new and intriguing way. The filmmakers have invented a special form in order to tackle the heroic task of showing the unwatchable, representing the unthinkable. In this essay I analyse the representational strategy of the film from a phenomenological point of view, and position it in the theoretical framework of haptic sensuality formulated by Vivian Sobchack and Laura U. Marks, among others. I mainly focus on the use of sound, in particular the role of sound design in the creation of haptic space. With the help of the analysis of the representation and artistic invocation of the different bodily senses in the film, I demonstrate how traditional artistic formal elements (characteristic of highly artistic, even experimental productions are combined with high impact effects often present in popular film forms. I argue that the successful combination of these two factors makes the film an example of artistic immersive cinema.1

Haptic perception of object curvature in Parkinson's disease.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jürgen Konczak

2008-07-01

Full Text Available The haptic perception of the curvature of an object is essential for adequate object manipulation and critical for our guidance of actions. This study investigated how the ability to perceive the curvature of an object is altered by Parkinson's disease (PD.Eight healthy subjects and 11 patients with mild to moderate PD had to judge, without vision, the curvature of a virtual "box" created by a robotic manipulandum. Their hands were either moved passively along a defined curved path or they actively explored the curved curvature of a virtual wall. The curvature was either concave or convex (bulging to the left or right and was judged in two locations of the hand workspace--a left workspace location, where the curved hand path was associated with curved shoulder and elbow joint paths, and a right workspace location in which these joint paths were nearly linear. After exploring the curvature of the virtual object, subjects had to judge whether the curvature was concave or convex. Based on these data, thresholds for curvature sensitivity were established. The main findings of the study are: First, 9 out 11 PD patients (82% showed elevated thresholds for detecting convex curvatures in at least one test condition. The respective median threshold for the PD group was increased by 343% when compared to the control group. Second, when distal hand paths became less associated with proximal joint paths (right workspace, haptic acuity was reduced substantially in both groups. Third, sensitivity to hand trajectory curvature was not improved during active exploration in either group.Our data demonstrate that PD is associated with a decreased acuity of the haptic sense, which may occur already at an early stage of the disease.

Discriminating Tissue Stiffness with a Haptic Catheter: Feeling the Inside of the Beating Heart.

Science.gov (United States)

Kesner, Samuel B; Howe, Robert D

2011-01-01

Catheter devices allow physicians to access the inside of the human body easily and painlessly through natural orifices and vessels. Although catheters allow for the delivery of fluids and drugs, the deployment of devices, and the acquisition of the measurements, they do not allow clinicians to assess the physical properties of tissue inside the body due to the tissue motion and transmission limitations of the catheter devices, including compliance, friction, and backlash. The goal of this research is to increase the tactile information available to physicians during catheter procedures by providing haptic feedback during palpation procedures. To accomplish this goal, we have developed the first motion compensated actuated catheter system that enables haptic perception of fast moving tissue structures. The actuated catheter is instrumented with a distal tip force sensor and a force feedback interface that allows users to adjust the position of the catheter while experiencing the forces on the catheter tip. The efficacy of this device and interface is evaluated through a psychophyisical study comparing how accurately users can differentiate various materials attached to a cardiac motion simulator using the haptic device and a conventional manual catheter. The results demonstrate that haptics improves a user's ability to differentiate material properties and decreases the total number of errors by 50% over the manual catheter system.

One-Dimensional Haptic Rendering Using Audio Speaker with Displacement Determined by Inductance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Avin Khera

2016-03-01

Full Text Available We report overall design considerations and preliminary results for a new haptic rendering device based on an audio loudspeaker. Our application models tissue properties during microsurgery. For example, the device could respond to the tip of a tool by simulating a particular tissue, displaying a desired compressibility and viscosity, giving way as the tissue is disrupted, or exhibiting independent motion, such as that caused by pulsations in blood pressure. Although limited to one degree of freedom and with a relatively small range of displacement compared to other available haptic rendering devices, our design exhibits high bandwidth, low friction, low hysteresis, and low mass. These features are consistent with modeling interactions with delicate tissues during microsurgery. In addition, our haptic rendering device is designed to be simple and inexpensive to manufacture, in part through an innovative method of measuring displacement by existing variations in the speaker’s inductance as the voice coil moves over the permanent magnet. Low latency and jitter are achieved by running the real-time simulation models on a dedicated microprocessor, while maintaining bidirectional communication with a standard laptop computer for user controls and data logging.

Audio Haptic Videogaming for Developing Wayfinding Skills in Learners Who are Blind.

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez, Jaime; de Borba Campos, Marcia; Espinoza, Matías; Merabet, Lotfi B

2014-01-01

Interactive digital technologies are currently being developed as a novel tool for education and skill development. Audiopolis is an audio and haptic based videogame designed for developing orientation and mobility (O&M) skills in people who are blind. We have evaluated the cognitive impact of videogame play on O&M skills by assessing performance on a series of behavioral tasks carried out in both indoor and outdoor virtual spaces. Our results demonstrate that the use of Audiopolis had a positive impact on the development and use of O&M skills in school-aged learners who are blind. The impact of audio and haptic information on learning is also discussed.

Haptic Control with a Robotic Gripper

OpenAIRE

Rody, Morgan

2011-01-01

The Novint Falcon is a low cost, 3-axis, haptic device primarily designed and built for the gaming industry. Meant to replace the conventional mouse, the Novint Falcon has sub- millimeter accuracy and is capable of real time updates. The device itself has the potential to be used in telerobotics applications when coupled with a robotic gripper for example. Recently, the Intelligent Control Lab at Örebro University in Sweden built such a robotic gripper. The robotic gripper has three fingers a...

Virtual reality haptic human dissection.

Science.gov (United States)

Needham, Caroline; Wilkinson, Caroline; Soames, Roger

2011-01-01

This project aims to create a three-dimensional digital model of the human hand and wrist which can be virtually 'dissected' through a haptic interface. Tissue properties will be added to the various anatomical structures to replicate a realistic look and feel. The project will explore the role of the medical artist and investigate the cross-discipline collaborations required in the field of virtual anatomy. The software will be used to train anatomy students in dissection skills before experience on a real cadaver. The effectiveness of the software will be evaluated and assessed both quantitatively as well as qualitatively.

A haptic floor for interaction and diagnostics with goal based tasks during virtual reality supported balance training

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrej Krpič

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Balance training of patients after stroke is one of the primary tasks of physiotherapy after the hospitalization. It is based on the intensive training, which consists of simple, repetitive, goal-based tasks. The tasks are carried out by physiotherapists, who follow predefined protocols. Introduction of a standing frame and a virtual reality decrease the physical load and number of required physiotherapists. The patients benefit in terms of safety and increased motivation. Additional feedback – haptic floor can enhance the virtual reality experience, add additional level of difficulty and could be also used for generating postural perturbations. The purpose of this article is to examine whether haptic information can be used to identify specific anomalies in dynamic posturography.Methods: The performance and stability of closed-loop system of the haptic floor were tested using frequency analysis. A postural response normative was set up from data assessed in four healthy individuals who were exposed to unexpected movements of the haptic floor in eight directions. Postural responses of a patient after stroke participating in virtual reality supported balance training, where collisions resulted in floor movements, were assessed and contrasted to the normative.Results: Haptic floor system was stable and controllable up to the frequency of 1.1 Hz, sufficient for the generation of postural perturbations. Responses obtained after perturbations in two major directions for a patient after stroke demonstrated noticeable deviations from the normative.Conclusions: Haptic floor design, together with a standing frame and a virtual reality used for balance training, enables an assessment of directionally specific postural responses. The system was designed to identify postural disorders during balance training and rehabilitation progress outside specialized clinics, e.g. at patient’s home.

Sensory modality of smoking cues modulates neural cue reactivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Yalachkov, Yavor; Kaiser, Jochen; Görres, Andreas; Seehaus, Arne; Naumer, Marcus J

2013-01-01

Behavioral experiments have demonstrated that the sensory modality of presentation modulates drug cue reactivity. The present study on nicotine addiction tested whether neural responses to smoking cues are modulated by the sensory modality of stimulus presentation. We measured brain activation using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 15 smokers and 15 nonsmokers while they viewed images of smoking paraphernalia and control objects and while they touched the same objects without seeing them. Haptically presented, smoking-related stimuli induced more pronounced neural cue reactivity than visual cues in the left dorsal striatum in smokers compared to nonsmokers. The severity of nicotine dependence correlated positively with the preference for haptically explored smoking cues in the left inferior parietal lobule/somatosensory cortex, right fusiform gyrus/inferior temporal cortex/cerebellum, hippocampus/parahippocampal gyrus, posterior cingulate cortex, and supplementary motor area. These observations are in line with the hypothesized role of the dorsal striatum for the expression of drug habits and the well-established concept of drug-related automatized schemata, since haptic perception is more closely linked to the corresponding object-specific action pattern than visual perception. Moreover, our findings demonstrate that with the growing severity of nicotine dependence, brain regions involved in object perception, memory, self-processing, and motor control exhibit an increasing preference for haptic over visual smoking cues. This difference was not found for control stimuli. Considering the sensory modality of the presented cues could serve to develop more reliable fMRI-specific biomarkers, more ecologically valid experimental designs, and more effective cue-exposure therapies of addiction.

A real-time haptic interface for interventional radiology procedures.

Science.gov (United States)

Moix, Thomas; Ilic, Dejan; Fracheboud, Blaise; Zoethout, Jurjen; Bleuler, Hannes

2005-01-01

Interventional Radiology (IR) is a minimally-invasive surgery technique (MIS) where guidewires and catheters are steered in the vascular system under X-ray imaging. In order to perform these procedures, a radiologist has to be correctly trained to master hand-eye coordination, instrument manipulation and procedure protocols. This paper proposes a computer-assisted training environment dedicated to IR. The system is composed of a virtual reality (VR) simulation of the anatomy of the patient linked to a robotic interface providing haptic force feedback.The paper focuses on the requirements, design and prototyping of a specific part of the haptic interface dedicated to catheters. Translational tracking and force feedback on the catheter is provided by two cylinders forming a friction drive arrangement. The whole friction can be set in rotation with an additional motor providing torque feedback. A force and a torque sensor are integrated in the cylinders for direct measurement on the catheter enabling disturbance cancellation with a close-loop force control strategy.

Should drivers be operating within an automation-free bandwidth? Evaluating haptic steering support systems with different levels of authority.

Science.gov (United States)

Petermeijer, Sebastiaan M; Abbink, David A; de Winter, Joost C F

2015-02-01

The aim of this study was to compare continuous versus bandwidth haptic steering guidance in terms of lane-keeping behavior, aftereffects, and satisfaction. An important human factors question is whether operators should be supported continuously or only when tolerance limits are exceeded. We aimed to clarify this issue for haptic steering guidance by investigating costs and benefits of both approaches in a driving simulator. Thirty-two participants drove five trials, each with a different level of haptic support: no guidance (Manual); guidance outside a 0.5-m bandwidth (Band1); a hysteresis version of Band1, which guided back to the lane center once triggered (Band2); continuous guidance (Cont); and Cont with double feedback gain (ContS). Participants performed a reaction time task while driving. Toward the end of each trial, the guidance was unexpectedly disabled to investigate aftereffects. All four guidance systems prevented large lateral errors (>0.7 m). Cont and especially ContS yielded smaller lateral errors and higher time to line crossing than Manual, Band1, and Band2. Cont and ContS yielded short-lasting aftereffects, whereas Band1 and Band2 did not. Cont yielded higher self-reported satisfaction and faster reaction times than Band1. Continuous and bandwidth guidance both prevent large driver errors. Continuous guidance yields improved performance and satisfaction over bandwidth guidance at the cost of aftereffects and variability in driver torque (indicating human-automation conflicts). The presented results are useful for designers of haptic guidance systems and support critical thinking about the costs and benefits of automation support systems.

Haptic over visual information in the distribution of visual attention after tool-use in near and far space.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, George D; Reed, Catherine L

2015-10-01

Despite attentional prioritization for grasping space near the hands, tool-use appears to transfer attentional bias to the tool's end/functional part. The contributions of haptic and visual inputs to attentional distribution along a tool were investigated as a function of tool-use in near (Experiment 1) and far (Experiment 2) space. Visual attention was assessed with a 50/50, go/no-go, target discrimination task, while a tool was held next to targets appearing near the tool-occupied hand or tool-end. Target response times (RTs) and sensitivity (d-prime) were measured at target locations, before and after functional tool practice for three conditions: (1) open-tool: tool-end visible (visual + haptic inputs), (2) hidden-tool: tool-end visually obscured (haptic input only), and (3) short-tool: stick missing tool's length/end (control condition: hand occupied but no visual/haptic input). In near space, both open- and hidden-tool groups showed a tool-end, attentional bias (faster RTs toward tool-end) before practice; after practice, RTs near the hand improved. In far space, the open-tool group showed no bias before practice; after practice, target RTs near the tool-end improved. However, the hidden-tool group showed a consistent tool-end bias despite practice. Lack of short-tool group results suggested that hidden-tool group results were specific to haptic inputs. In conclusion, (1) allocation of visual attention along a tool due to tool practice differs in near and far space, and (2) visual attention is drawn toward the tool's end even when visually obscured, suggesting haptic input provides sufficient information for directing attention along the tool.

Haptic perception disambiguates visual perception of 3D shape

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wijntjes, Maarten W A; Volcic, Robert; Pont, Sylvia C.; Koenderink, Jan J.; Kappers, Astrid M L

We studied the influence of haptics on visual perception of three-dimensional shape. Observers were shown pictures of an oblate spheroid in two different orientations. A gauge-figure task was used to measure their perception of the global shape. In the first two sessions only vision was used. The

Characterization of a smartphone size haptic rendering system based on thin-film AlN actuators on glass substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Bernard, F.; Casset, F.; Danel, J. S.; Chappaz, C.; Basrour, S.

2016-08-01

This paper presents for the first time the characterization of a smartphone-size haptic rendering system based on the friction modulation effect. According to previous work and finite element modeling, the homogeneous flexural modes are needed to get the haptic feedback effect. The device studied consists of a thin film AlN transducers deposited on an 110  ×  65 mm2 glass substrate. The transducer’s localization on the glass plate allows a transparent central area of 90  ×  49 mm2. Electrical and mechanical parameters of the system are extracted from measurement. From this extraction, the electrical impedance matching reduced the applied voltage to 17.5 V AC and the power consumption to 1.53 W at the resonance frequency of the vibrating system to reach the haptic rendering specification. Transient characterizations of the actuation highlight a delay under the dynamic tactile detection. The characterization of the AlN transducers used as sensors, including the noise rejection, the delay or the output charge amplitude allows detections with high accuracy of any variation due to external influences. Those specifications are the first step to a low-power-consumption feedback-looped system.

Characterization of a smartphone size haptic rendering system based on thin-film AlN actuators on glass substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernard, F; Basrour, S; Casset, F; Danel, J S; Chappaz, C

2016-01-01

This paper presents for the first time the characterization of a smartphone-size haptic rendering system based on the friction modulation effect. According to previous work and finite element modeling, the homogeneous flexural modes are needed to get the haptic feedback effect. The device studied consists of a thin film AlN transducers deposited on an 110  ×  65 mm 2 glass substrate. The transducer’s localization on the glass plate allows a transparent central area of 90  ×  49 mm 2 . Electrical and mechanical parameters of the system are extracted from measurement. From this extraction, the electrical impedance matching reduced the applied voltage to 17.5 V AC and the power consumption to 1.53 W at the resonance frequency of the vibrating system to reach the haptic rendering specification. Transient characterizations of the actuation highlight a delay under the dynamic tactile detection. The characterization of the AlN transducers used as sensors, including the noise rejection, the delay or the output charge amplitude allows detections with high accuracy of any variation due to external influences. Those specifications are the first step to a low-power-consumption feedback-looped system. (paper)

Resident simulation training in endoscopic endonasal surgery utilizing haptic feedback technology.

Science.gov (United States)

Thawani, Jayesh P; Ramayya, Ashwin G; Abdullah, Kalil G; Hudgins, Eric; Vaughan, Kerry; Piazza, Matthew; Madsen, Peter J; Buch, Vivek; Sean Grady, M

2016-12-01

Simulated practice may improve resident performance in endoscopic endonasal surgery. Using the NeuroTouch haptic simulation platform, we evaluated resident performance and assessed the effect of simulation training on performance in the operating room. First- (N=3) and second- (N=3) year residents were assessed using six measures of proficiency. Using a visual analog scale, the senior author scored subjects. After the first session, subjects with lower scores were provided with simulation training. A second simulation served as a task-learning control. Residents were evaluated in the operating room over six months by the senior author-who was blinded to the trained/untrained identities-using the same parameters. A nonparametric bootstrap testing method was used for the analysis (Matlab v. 2014a). Simulation training was associated with an increase in performance scores in the operating room averaged over all measures (p=0.0045). This is the first study to evaluate the training utility of an endoscopic endonasal surgical task using a virtual reality haptic simulator. The data suggest that haptic simulation training in endoscopic neurosurgery may contribute to improvements in operative performance. Limitations include a small number of subjects and adjudication bias-although the trained/untrained identity of subjects was blinded. Further study using the proposed methods may better describe the relationship between simulated training and operative performance in endoscopic Neurosurgery. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reducing the motor response in haptic parallel matching eliminates the typically observed gender difference.

Science.gov (United States)

van Mier, Hanneke I

2016-01-01

When making two bars haptically parallel to each other, large deviations have been observed, most likely caused by the bias of a hand-centered egocentric reference frame. A consistent finding is that women show significantly larger deviations than men when performing this task. It has been suggested that this difference might be due to the fact that women are more egocentrically oriented than men or are less efficient in overcoming the egocentric bias of the hand. If this is indeed the case, reducing the bias of the egocentric reference frame should eliminate the above-mentioned gender difference. This was investigated in the current study. Sixty participants (30 men, 30 women) were instructed to haptically match (task HP) the orientation of a test bar with the dominant hand to the orientation of a reference bar that was perceived with the non-dominant hand. In a haptic visual task (task HV), in which only the reference bar and exploring hand were out of view, no motor response was required, but participants had to "match" the perceived orientation by verbally naming the parallel orientation that was read out on a test protractor. Both females and males performed better in the HV task than in the HP task. Significant gender effects were only found in the haptic parallelity task (HP), corroborating the idea that women perform at the same level as men when the egocentric bias of the hand is reduced.

Detection of Nuclear Sources by UAV Teleoperation Using a Visuo-Haptic Augmented Reality Interface.

Science.gov (United States)

Aleotti, Jacopo; Micconi, Giorgio; Caselli, Stefano; Benassi, Giacomo; Zambelli, Nicola; Bettelli, Manuele; Zappettini, Andrea

2017-09-29

A visuo-haptic augmented reality (VHAR) interface is presented enabling an operator to teleoperate an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) equipped with a custom CdZnTe-based spectroscopic gamma-ray detector in outdoor environments. The task is to localize nuclear radiation sources, whose location is unknown to the user, without the close exposure of the operator. The developed detector also enables identification of the localized nuclear sources. The aim of the VHAR interface is to increase the situation awareness of the operator. The user teleoperates the UAV using a 3DOF haptic device that provides an attractive force feedback around the location of the most intense detected radiation source. Moreover, a fixed camera on the ground observes the environment where the UAV is flying. A 3D augmented reality scene is displayed on a computer screen accessible to the operator. Multiple types of graphical overlays are shown, including sensor data acquired by the nuclear radiation detector, a virtual cursor that tracks the UAV and geographical information, such as buildings. Experiments performed in a real environment are reported using an intense nuclear source.

Frontoparietal white matter integrity predicts haptic performance in chronic stroke

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandra L. Borstad

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Frontoparietal white matter supports information transfer between brain areas involved in complex haptic tasks such as somatosensory discrimination. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the relationship between microstructural integrity of frontoparietal network white matter and haptic performance in persons with chronic stroke and to compare frontoparietal network integrity in participants with stroke and age matched control participants. Nineteen individuals with stroke and 16 controls participated. Haptic performance was quantified using the Hand Active Sensation Test (HASTe, an 18-item match-to-sample test of weight and texture discrimination. Three tesla MRI was used to obtain diffusion-weighted and high-resolution anatomical images of the whole brain. Probabilistic tractography was used to define 10 frontoparietal tracts total; Four intrahemispheric tracts measured bilaterally 1 thalamus to primary somatosensory cortex (T–S1, 2 thalamus to primary motor cortex (T–M1, 3 primary to secondary somatosensory cortex (S1 to SII and 4 primary somatosensory cortex to middle frontal gyrus (S1 to MFG and, 2 interhemispheric tracts; S1–S1 and precuneus interhemispheric. A control tract outside the network, the cuneus interhemispheric tract, was also examined. The diffusion metrics fractional anisotropy (FA, mean diffusivity (MD, axial (AD and radial diffusivity (RD were quantified for each tract. Diminished FA and elevated MD values are associated with poorer white matter integrity in chronic stroke. Nine of 10 tracts quantified in the frontoparietal network had diminished structural integrity poststroke compared to the controls. The precuneus interhemispheric tract was not significantly different between groups. Principle component analysis across all frontoparietal white matter tract MD values indicated a single factor explained 47% and 57% of the variance in tract mean diffusivity in stroke and control groups respectively

Frontoparietal white matter integrity predicts haptic performance in chronic stroke.

Science.gov (United States)

Borstad, Alexandra L; Choi, Seongjin; Schmalbrock, Petra; Nichols-Larsen, Deborah S

2016-01-01

Frontoparietal white matter supports information transfer between brain areas involved in complex haptic tasks such as somatosensory discrimination. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the relationship between microstructural integrity of frontoparietal network white matter and haptic performance in persons with chronic stroke and to compare frontoparietal network integrity in participants with stroke and age matched control participants. Nineteen individuals with stroke and 16 controls participated. Haptic performance was quantified using the Hand Active Sensation Test (HASTe), an 18-item match-to-sample test of weight and texture discrimination. Three tesla MRI was used to obtain diffusion-weighted and high-resolution anatomical images of the whole brain. Probabilistic tractography was used to define 10 frontoparietal tracts total; Four intrahemispheric tracts measured bilaterally 1) thalamus to primary somatosensory cortex (T-S1), 2) thalamus to primary motor cortex (T-M1), 3) primary to secondary somatosensory cortex (S1 to SII) and 4) primary somatosensory cortex to middle frontal gyrus (S1 to MFG) and, 2 interhemispheric tracts; S1-S1 and precuneus interhemispheric. A control tract outside the network, the cuneus interhemispheric tract, was also examined. The diffusion metrics fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), axial (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD) were quantified for each tract. Diminished FA and elevated MD values are associated with poorer white matter integrity in chronic stroke. Nine of 10 tracts quantified in the frontoparietal network had diminished structural integrity poststroke compared to the controls. The precuneus interhemispheric tract was not significantly different between groups. Principle component analysis across all frontoparietal white matter tract MD values indicated a single factor explained 47% and 57% of the variance in tract mean diffusivity in stroke and control groups respectively. Age

Real-time solution of the forward kinematics for a parallel haptic device using a numerical approach based on neural networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Guan Yang; Zhang, Yuru; Wang, Yan; Xie, Zheng

2015-01-01

This paper proposes a neural network (NN)-based approach to solve the forward kinematics of a 3-RRR spherical parallel mechanism designed for a haptic device. The proposed algorithm aims to remarkably speed up computation to meet the requirement of high frequency rendering for haptic display. To achieve high accuracy, the workspace of the haptic device is divided into smaller subspaces. The proposed algorithm contains NNs of two different precision levels: a rough estimation NN to identify the index of the subspace and several precise estimation networks with expected accuracy to calculate the forward kinematics. For continuous motion, the algorithm structure is further simplified to save internal memory and increase computing speed, which are critical for a haptic device control system running on an embedded platform. Compared with the mostly used Newton-Raphson method, the proposed algorithm and its simplified version greatly increase the calculation speed by about four times and 10 times, respectively, while achieving the same accuracy level. The proposed approach is of great significance for solving the forward kinematics of parallel mechanism used as haptic devices when high update frequency is needed but hardware resources are limited.

An MR-Compatible Haptic Interface With Seven Degrees of Freedom

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kuhne, Markus; Eschelbach, Martin; Aghaeifar, Ali

2018-01-01

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a powerful tool for neuroscience. It allows the visualization of active areas in the human brain. Combining this method with haptic interfaces allows one to conduct human motor control studies with an opportunity for standardized experimental...

Modeling Auditory-Haptic Interface Cues from an Analog Multi-line Telephone

Science.gov (United States)

Begault, Durand R.; Anderson, Mark R.; Bittner, Rachael M.

2012-01-01

The Western Electric Company produced a multi-line telephone during the 1940s-1970s using a six-button interface design that provided robust tactile, haptic and auditory cues regarding the "state" of the communication system. This multi-line telephone was used as a model for a trade study comparison of two interfaces: a touchscreen interface (iPad)) versus a pressure-sensitive strain gauge button interface (Phidget USB interface controllers). The experiment and its results are detailed in the authors' AES 133rd convention paper " Multimodal Information Management: Evaluation of Auditory and Haptic Cues for NextGen Communication Dispays". This Engineering Brief describes how the interface logic, visual indications, and auditory cues of the original telephone were synthesized using MAX/MSP, including the logic for line selection, line hold, and priority line activation.

Differences between early-blind, late-blind, and blindfolded-sighted people in haptic spatial-configuration learning and resulting memory traces.

Science.gov (United States)

Postma, Albert; Zuidhoek, Sander; Noordzij, Matthijs L; Kappers, Astrid M L

2007-01-01

The roles of visual and haptic experience in different aspects of haptic processing of objects in peripersonal space are examined. In three trials, early-blind, late-blind, and blindfolded-sighted individuals had to match ten shapes haptically to the cut-outs in a board as fast as possible. Both blind groups were much faster than the sighted in all three trials. All three groups improved considerably from trial to trial. In particular, the sighted group showed a strong improvement from the first to the second trial. While superiority of the blind remained for speeded matching after rotation of the stimulus frame, coordinate positional-memory scores in a non-speeded free-recall trial showed no significant differences between the groups. Moreover, when assessed with a verbal response, categorical spatial-memory appeared strongest in the late-blind group. The role of haptic and visual experience thus appears to depend on the task aspect tested.

Haptic rendering foundations, algorithms, and applications

CERN Document Server

Lin, Ming C

2008-01-01

For a long time, human beings have dreamed of a virtual world where it is possible to interact with synthetic entities as if they were real. It has been shown that the ability to touch virtual objects increases the sense of presence in virtual environments. This book provides an authoritative overview of state-of-theart haptic rendering algorithms and their applications. The authors examine various approaches and techniques for designing touch-enabled interfaces for a number of applications, including medical training, model design, and maintainability analysis for virtual prototyping, scienti

Haptic seat for fuel economy feedback

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bobbitt, III, John Thomas

2016-08-30

A process of providing driver fuel economy feedback is disclosed in which vehicle sensors provide for haptic feedback on fuel usage. Such sensors may include one or more of a speed sensors, global position satellite units, vehicle pitch/roll angle sensors, suspension displacement sensors, longitudinal accelerometer sensors, throttle position in sensors, steering angle sensors, break pressure sensors, and lateral accelerometer sensors. Sensors used singlely or collectively can provide enhanced feedback as to various environmental conditions and operating conditions such that a more accurate assessment of fuel economy information can be provided to the driver.

Lack of transfer of skills after virtual reality simulator training with haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Våpenstad, Cecilie; Hofstad, Erlend Fagertun; Bø, Lars Eirik; Kuhry, Esther; Johnsen, Gjermund; Mårvik, Ronald; Langø, Thomas; Hernes, Toril Nagelhus

2017-12-01

Virtual reality (VR) simulators enrich surgical training and offer training possibilities outside of the operating room (OR). In this study, we created a criterion-based training program on a VR simulator with haptic feedback and tested it by comparing the performances of a simulator group against a control group. Medical students with no experience in laparoscopy were randomly assigned to a simulator group or a control group. In the simulator group, the candidates trained until they reached predefined criteria on the LapSim ® VR simulator (Surgical Science AB, Göteborg, Sweden) with haptic feedback (Xitact TM IHP, Mentice AB, Göteborg, Sweden). All candidates performed a cholecystectomy on a porcine organ model in a box trainer (the clinical setting). The performances were video rated by two surgeons blinded to subject training status. In total, 30 students performed the cholecystectomy and had their videos rated (N = 16 simulator group, N = 14 control group). The control group achieved better video rating scores than the simulator group (p training program did not transfer skills to the clinical setting. Poor mechanical performance of the simulated haptic feedback is believed to have resulted in a negative training effect.

Integration of soft tissue model and open haptic device for medical training simulator

Science.gov (United States)

Akasum, G. F.; Ramdhania, L. N.; Suprijanto; Widyotriatmo, A.

2016-03-01

Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) has been widely used to perform any surgical procedures nowadays. Currently, MIS has been applied in some cases in Indonesia. Needle insertion is one of simple MIS procedure that can be used for some purposes. Before the needle insertion technique used in the real situation, it essential to train this type of medical student skills. The research has developed an open platform of needle insertion simulator with haptic feedback that providing the medical student a realistic feel encountered during the actual procedures. There are three main steps in build the training simulator, which are configure hardware system, develop a program to create soft tissue model and the integration of hardware and software. For evaluating its performance, haptic simulator was tested by 24 volunteers on a scenario of soft tissue model. Each volunteer must insert the needle on simulator until rearch the target point with visual feedback that visualized on the monitor. From the result it can concluded that the soft tissue model can bring the sensation of touch through the perceived force feedback on haptic actuator by looking at the different force in accordance with different stiffness in each layer.

Slave-side devices for micromanipulation in a haptic teleoperation scenario

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Estevez Castillo, P.

2012-01-01

Haptic teleoperation is a promising approach for dealing with the manipulation of micro-objects, fabricated in small series or as prototypes, and in processes which are novel or uncertain. Human operators provide their ability to plan, understand and react when faced with unexpected situations

Audio-haptic physically-based simulation of walking on different grounds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Turchet, Luca; Nordahl, Rolf; Serafin, Stefania

2010-01-01

We describe a system which simulates in realtime the auditory and haptic sensations of walking on different surfaces. The system is based on a pair of sandals enhanced with pressure sensors and actuators. The pressure sensors detect the interaction force during walking, and control several...

The value of haptic feedback in conventional and robot-assisted minimal invasive surgery and virtual reality training: a current review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Meijden, O. A. J.; Schijven, M. P.

2009-01-01

BACKGROUND: Virtual reality (VR) as surgical training tool has become a state-of-the-art technique in training and teaching skills for minimally invasive surgery (MIS). Although intuitively appealing, the true benefits of haptic (VR training) platforms are unknown. Many questions about haptic

Visual and auditory stimuli associated with swallowing. An fMRI study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawai, Takeshi; Watanabe, Yutaka; Tonogi, Morio; Yamane, Gen-yuki; Abe, Shinichi; Yamada, Yoshiaki; Callan, Akiko

2009-01-01

We focused on brain areas activated by audiovisual stimuli related to swallowing motions. In this study, three kinds of stimuli related to human swallowing movement (auditory stimuli alone, visual stimuli alone, or audiovisual stimuli) were presented to the subjects, and activated brain areas were measured using functional MRI (fMRI) and analyzed. When auditory stimuli alone were presented, the supplementary motor area was activated. When visual stimuli alone were presented, the premotor and primary motor areas of the left and right hemispheres and prefrontal area of the left hemisphere were activated. When audiovisual stimuli were presented, the prefrontal and premotor areas of the left and right hemispheres were activated. Activation of Broca's area, which would have been characteristic of mirror neuron system activation on presentation of motion images, was not observed; however, activation of brain areas related to swallowing motion programming and performance was verified for auditory, visual and audiovisual stimuli related to swallowing motion. These results suggest that audiovisual stimuli related to swallowing motion could be applied to the treatment of patients with dysphagia. (author)

Object discrimination using optimized multi-frequency auditory cross-modal haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson, Alison; Artemiadis, Panagiotis

2014-01-01

As the field of brain-machine interfaces and neuro-prosthetics continues to grow, there is a high need for sensor and actuation mechanisms that can provide haptic feedback to the user. Current technologies employ expensive, invasive and often inefficient force feedback methods, resulting in an unrealistic solution for individuals who rely on these devices. This paper responds through the development, integration and analysis of a novel feedback architecture where haptic information during the neural control of a prosthetic hand is perceived through multi-frequency auditory signals. Through representing force magnitude with volume and force location with frequency, the feedback architecture can translate the haptic experiences of a robotic end effector into the alternative sensory modality of sound. Previous research with the proposed cross-modal feedback method confirmed its learnability, so the current work aimed to investigate which frequency map (i.e. frequency-specific locations on the hand) is optimal in helping users distinguish between hand-held objects and tasks associated with them. After short use with the cross-modal feedback during the electromyographic (EMG) control of a prosthetic hand, testing results show that users are able to use audial feedback alone to discriminate between everyday objects. While users showed adaptation to three different frequency maps, the simplest map containing only two frequencies was found to be the most useful in discriminating between objects. This outcome provides support for the feasibility and practicality of the cross-modal feedback method during the neural control of prosthetics.

Intelligent Avatar on E-Learning Using Facial Expression an Haptic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmad Hoirul Basori

2011-04-01

Full Text Available he process of introducing emotion can be improved through three-dimensional (3D tutoring system. The problem that still not solved is how to provide realistic tutor (avatar in virtual environment. This paper propose an approach to teach children on understanding emotion sensation through facial expression and sense of touch (haptic.The algorithm is created by calculating constant factor (f based on maximum value of RGB and magnitude force then magnitude force range will be associated into particular colour. The Integration process will be started from rendering the facial expression then followed by adjusting the vibration power to emotion value. The result that achieved on experiment, it show around 71% students agree with the classification of magnitude force into emotion representation. Respondents commented that high magnitude force create similar sensation when respondents feel anger, while low magnitude force is more relaxing to respondents. Respondents also said that haptic and facial expression is very interactive and realistic.

Providing haptic feedback in robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery: a direct optical force-sensing solution for haptic rendering of deformable bodies.

Science.gov (United States)

Ehrampoosh, Shervin; Dave, Mohit; Kia, Michael A; Rablau, Corneliu; Zadeh, Mehrdad H

2013-01-01

This paper presents an enhanced haptic-enabled master-slave teleoperation system which can be used to provide force feedback to surgeons in minimally invasive surgery (MIS). One of the research goals was to develop a combined-control architecture framework that included both direct force reflection (DFR) and position-error-based (PEB) control strategies. To achieve this goal, it was essential to measure accurately the direct contact forces between deformable bodies and a robotic tool tip. To measure the forces at a surgical tool tip and enhance the performance of the teleoperation system, an optical force sensor was designed, prototyped, and added to a robot manipulator. The enhanced teleoperation architecture was formulated by developing mathematical models for the optical force sensor, the extended slave robot manipulator, and the combined-control strategy. Human factor studies were also conducted to (a) examine experimentally the performance of the enhanced teleoperation system with the optical force sensor, and (b) study human haptic perception during the identification of remote object deformability. The first experiment was carried out to discriminate deformability of objects when human subjects were in direct contact with deformable objects by means of a laparoscopic tool. The control parameters were then tuned based on the results of this experiment using a gain-scheduling method. The second experiment was conducted to study the effectiveness of the force feedback provided through the enhanced teleoperation system. The results show that the force feedback increased the ability of subjects to correctly identify materials of different deformable types. In addition, the virtual force feedback provided by the teleoperation system comes close to the real force feedback experienced in direct MIS. The experimental results provide design guidelines for choosing and validating the control architecture and the optical force sensor.

Effect of Size Change and Brightness Change of Visual Stimuli on Loudness Perception and Pitch Perception of Auditory Stimuli

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Syouya Tanabe

2011-10-01

Full Text Available People obtain a lot of information from visual and auditory sensation on daily life. Regarding the effect of visual stimuli on perception of auditory stimuli, studies of phonological perception and sound localization have been made in great numbers. This study examined the effect of visual stimuli on perception in loudness and pitch of auditory stimuli. We used the image of figures whose size or brightness was changed as visual stimuli, and the sound of pure tone whose loudness or pitch was changed as auditory stimuli. Those visual and auditory stimuli were combined independently to make four types of audio-visual multisensory stimuli for psychophysical experiments. In the experiments, participants judged change in loudness or pitch of auditory stimuli, while they judged the direction of size change or the kind of a presented figure in visual stimuli. Therefore they cannot neglect visual stimuli while they judged auditory stimuli. As a result, perception in loudness and pitch were promoted significantly around their difference limen, when the image was getting bigger or brighter, compared with the case in which the image had no changes. This indicates that perception in loudness and pitch were affected by change in size and brightness of visual stimuli.

Detection of Nuclear Sources by UAV Teleoperation Using a Visuo-Haptic Augmented Reality Interface

OpenAIRE

Jacopo Aleotti; Giorgio Micconi; Stefano Caselli; Giacomo Benassi; Nicola Zambelli; Manuele Bettelli; Andrea Zappettini

2017-01-01

A visuo-haptic augmented reality (VHAR) interface is presented enabling an operator to teleoperate an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) equipped with a custom CdZnTe-based spectroscopic gamma-ray detector in outdoor environments. The task is to localize nuclear radiation sources, whose location is unknown to the user, without the close exposure of the operator. The developed detector also enables identification of the localized nuclear sources. The aim of the VHAR interface is to increase the sit...

Stimuli-Regulated Smart Polymeric Systems for Gene Therapy

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Ansuja Pulickal Mathew

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The physiological condition of the human body is a composite of different environments, each with its own parameters that may differ under normal, as well as diseased conditions. These environmental conditions include factors, such as pH, temperature and enzymes that are specific to a type of cell, tissue or organ or a pathological state, such as inflammation, cancer or infection. These conditions can act as specific triggers or stimuli for the efficient release of therapeutics at their destination by overcoming many physiological and biological barriers. The efficacy of conventional treatment modalities can be enhanced, side effects decreased and patient compliance improved by using stimuli-responsive material that respond to these triggers at the target site. These stimuli or triggers can be physical, chemical or biological and can be internal or external in nature. Many smart/intelligent stimuli-responsive therapeutic gene carriers have been developed that can respond to either internal stimuli, which may be normally present, overexpressed or present in decreased levels, owing to a disease, or to stimuli that are applied externally, such as magnetic fields. This review focuses on the effects of various internal stimuli, such as temperature, pH, redox potential, enzymes, osmotic activity and other biomolecules that are present in the body, on modulating gene expression by using stimuli-regulated smart polymeric carriers.

Haptics Application in Dentistry: Is the Time Poised Yet?

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Srinivas Sulugodu Ramachandra

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The essence of dental education is not only to impart knowledge but also to equip an aspiring clinician with all the para-phernalia to face most clinical situations if not all. What be-comes important here is the requirement that a student be not only observant but also have a precise idea of what a lesion or a surface should feel like under an instrument. No matter how far we have come in terms of pathogenesis and treatment of diseases of the oral cavity, there is still no one good way to teach a student about the tactile sense, be it while de-tecting calculus/caries or placing the incisions or detecting the smoothness of a restoration. Most often than not students learn these by a trial and error method. A not-so-recent development called Haptics may well be the answer to this predicament, at least in the near future. The concept which is extensively in use and indis-pensable in other fields like aviation, telecommunication etc is now making inroads into dentistry. It is essentially software which brings in the idea of giving the feedback response to applied force, be it simple exploration of caries or the fine pressure applied in placing an incision or an array of other areas/situations in dentistry where fine tactile sense becomes a prerequisite for intelligent diagnoses or cutting edge treatment procedures. The following write-up is an attempt to throw light on this new technology and the impact it may have on pre-clinical teaching in dentistry. The advantages, disadvantages be-tween manikin based dental simulators and haptics based dental simulators are also pre-sented.

Neurosurgical tactile discrimination training with haptic-based virtual reality simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Achal; Koshy, Nick; Ortega-Barnett, Juan; Chan, Hoi C; Kuo, Yong-Fan; Luciano, Cristian; Rizzi, Silvio; Matulyauskas, Martin; Kania, Patrick; Banerjee, Pat; Gasco, Jaime

2014-12-01

To determine if a computer-based simulation with haptic technology can help surgical trainees improve tactile discrimination using surgical instruments. Twenty junior medical students participated in the study and were randomized into two groups. Subjects in Group A participated in virtual simulation training using the ImmersiveTouch simulator (ImmersiveTouch, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) that required differentiating the firmness of virtual spheres using tactile and kinesthetic sensation via haptic technology. Subjects in Group B did not undergo any training. With their visual fields obscured, subjects in both groups were then evaluated on their ability to use the suction and bipolar instruments to find six elastothane objects with areas ranging from 1.5 to 3.5 cm2 embedded in a urethane foam brain cavity model while relying on tactile and kinesthetic sensation only. A total of 73.3% of the subjects in Group A (simulation training) were able to find the brain cavity objects in comparison to 53.3% of the subjects in Group B (no training) (P  =  0.0183). There was a statistically significant difference in the total number of Group A subjects able to find smaller brain cavity objects (size ≤ 2.5 cm2) compared to that in Group B (72.5 vs. 40%, P  =  0.0032). On the other hand, no significant difference in the number of subjects able to detect larger objects (size ≧ 3 cm2) was found between Groups A and B (75 vs. 80%, P  =  0.7747). Virtual computer-based simulators with integrated haptic technology may improve tactile discrimination required for microsurgical technique.

On the pleasantness of a haptic stimulation: how different textures can be recognized through heart rate variability nonlinear analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Nardelli, Mimma; Greco, Alberto; Bianchi, Matteo; Scilingo, Enzo Pasquale; Valenza, Gaetano

2016-08-01

The hedonic attributes of cutaneous elicitation play a crucial role in everyday life, influencing our behavior and psychophysical state. However, the correlation between such a hedonic aspect of touch and the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)-related physiological response, which is intimately connected to emotions, still needs to be deeply investigated. This study reports on caress-like stimuli conveyed to the forearm of 32 healthy subjects through different fabrics actuated by a haptic device, which can control both the strength (i.e. the normal force exerted by the fabric) and the velocity of the elicitation. The mimicked caresses were elicited with a fixed force of 6 N, two levels of velocity of 9.4 mm/sec and 65 mm/sec, and four different fabrics with different textures: burlap, hemp, velvet and silk. Participants were asked to score the caress-like stimuli in terms of arousal and valence through a self-assessment questionnaire. Heartbeat data related to the perceived most pleasant (silk) and unpleasant (burlap) fabrics were used as an input to an automatic pattern recognition procedure. Accordingly, considering gender differences, support vector machines using features extracted from linear and nonlinear heartbeat dynamics showed a recognition accuracy of 84.38% (men) and 78.13% (women) while discerning between burlap and silk elicitations at the higher velocity. Results suggest that the fabrics used for the caress-like stimulation significantly affect the nonlinear cardiovascular dynamics, also showing differences according to gender.

Figure/Ground Segmentation via a Haptic Glance: Attributing Initial Finger Contacts to Objects or Their Supporting Surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Pawluk, D; Kitada, R; Abramowicz, A; Hamilton, C; Lederman, S J

2011-01-01

The current study addresses the well-known "figure/ground" problem in human perception, a fundamental topic that has received surprisingly little attention from touch scientists to date. Our approach is grounded in, and directly guided by, current knowledge concerning the nature of haptic processing. Given inherent figure/ground ambiguity in natural scenes and limited sensory inputs from first contact (a "haptic glance"), we consider first whether people are even capable of differentiating figure from ground (Experiments 1 and 2). Participants were required to estimate the strength of their subjective impression that they were feeling an object (i.e., figure) as opposed to just the supporting structure (i.e., ground). Second, we propose a tripartite factor classification scheme to further assess the influence of kinetic, geometric (Experiments 1 and 2), and material (Experiment 2) factors on haptic figure/ground segmentation, complemented by more open-ended subjective responses obtained at the end of the experiment. Collectively, the results indicate that under certain conditions it is possible to segment figure from ground via a single haptic glance with a reasonable degree of certainty, and that all three factor classes influence the estimated likelihood that brief, spatially distributed fingertip contacts represent contact with an object and/or its background supporting structure.

A 3-DOF haptic master device for minimally invasive surgery

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Phuong-Bac; Oh, Jong-Seok; Choi, Seung-Bok

2012-04-01

This paper introduces a novel 3-DOF haptic master device for minimally invasive surgery featuring magneto-rheological (MR) fluid. It consists of three rotational motions. These motions are constituted by two bi-directional MR (BMR) plus one conventional MR brakes. The BMR brake used in the system possesses a salient advantage that its range of braking torque varies from negative to positive values. Therefore, the device is expected to be able sense in a wide environment from very soft tissues to bones. In this paper, overall of the design of the device is presented from idea, modeling, optimal design, manufacturing to control of the device. Moreover, experimental investigation is undertaken to validate the effectiveness of the device.

Attribute amnesia is greatly reduced with novel stimuli

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Weijia Chen

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Attribute amnesia is the counterintuitive phenomenon where observers are unable to report a salient aspect of a stimulus (e.g., its colour or its identity immediately after the stimulus was presented, despite both attending to and processing the stimulus. Almost all previous attribute amnesia studies used highly familiar stimuli. Our study investigated whether attribute amnesia would also occur for unfamiliar stimuli. We conducted four experiments using stimuli that were highly familiar (colours or repeated animal images or that were unfamiliar to the observers (unique animal images. Our results revealed that attribute amnesia was present for both sets of familiar stimuli, colour (p < .001 and repeated animals (p = .001; but was greatly attenuated, and possibly eliminated, when the stimuli were unique animals (p = .02. Our data shows that attribute amnesia is greatly reduced for novel stimuli.

Detection of Nuclear Sources by UAV Teleoperation Using a Visuo-Haptic Augmented Reality Interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacopo Aleotti

2017-09-01

Full Text Available A visuo-haptic augmented reality (VHAR interface is presented enabling an operator to teleoperate an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV equipped with a custom CdZnTe-based spectroscopic gamma-ray detector in outdoor environments. The task is to localize nuclear radiation sources, whose location is unknown to the user, without the close exposure of the operator. The developed detector also enables identification of the localized nuclear sources. The aim of the VHAR interface is to increase the situation awareness of the operator. The user teleoperates the UAV using a 3DOF haptic device that provides an attractive force feedback around the location of the most intense detected radiation source. Moreover, a fixed camera on the ground observes the environment where the UAV is flying. A 3D augmented reality scene is displayed on a computer screen accessible to the operator. Multiple types of graphical overlays are shown, including sensor data acquired by the nuclear radiation detector, a virtual cursor that tracks the UAV and geographical information, such as buildings. Experiments performed in a real environment are reported using an intense nuclear source.

Motor skills, haptic perception and social abilities in children with mild speech disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Müürsepp, Iti; Aibast, Herje; Gapeyeva, Helena; Pääsuke, Mati

2012-02-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate motor skills, haptic object recognition and social interaction in 5-year-old children with mild specific expressive language impairment (expressive-SLI) and articulation disorder (AD) in comparison of age- and gender matched healthy children. Twenty nine children (23 boys and 6 girls) with expressive-SLI, 27 children (20 boys and 7 girls) with AD and 30 children (23 boys and 7 girls) with typically developing language as controls participated in our study. The children were examined for manual dexterity, ball skills, static and dynamic balance by M-ABC test, haptic object recognition and for social interaction by questionnaire completed by teachers. Children with mild expressive-SLI demonstrated significantly poorer results in all subtests of motor skills (psocial interaction (p0.05) in measured parameters between children with AD and controls. Children with expressive-SLI performed considerably poorer compared to AD group in balance subtest (psocial interaction are considerably more affected than in children with AD. Although motor difficulties in speech production are prevalent in AD, it is localised and does not involve children's general motor skills, haptic perception or social interaction. Copyright © 2011 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Effect of Haptic Guidance on Learning a Hybrid Rhythmic-Discrete Motor Task.

Science.gov (United States)

Marchal-Crespo, Laura; Bannwart, Mathias; Riener, Robert; Vallery, Heike

2015-01-01

Bouncing a ball with a racket is a hybrid rhythmic-discrete motor task, combining continuous rhythmic racket movements with discrete impact events. Rhythmicity is exceptionally important in motor learning, because it underlies fundamental movements such as walking. Studies suggested that rhythmic and discrete movements are governed by different control mechanisms at different levels of the Central Nervous System. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of fixed/fading haptic guidance on learning to bounce a ball to a desired apex in virtual reality with varying gravity. Changing gravity changes dominance of rhythmic versus discrete control: The higher the value of gravity, the more rhythmic the task; lower values reduce the bouncing frequency and increase dwell times, eventually leading to a repetitive discrete task that requires initiation and termination, resembling target-oriented reaching. Although motor learning in the ball-bouncing task with varying gravity has been studied, the effect of haptic guidance on learning such a hybrid rhythmic-discrete motor task has not been addressed. We performed an experiment with thirty healthy subjects and found that the most effective training condition depended on the degree of rhythmicity: Haptic guidance seems to hamper learning of continuous rhythmic tasks, but it seems to promote learning for repetitive tasks that resemble discrete movements.

Multimodality with Eye tracking and Haptics: A New Horizon for Serious Games?

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Shujie Deng

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The goal of this review is to illustrate the emerging use of multimodal virtual reality that can benefit learning-based games. The review begins with an introduction to multimodal virtual reality in serious games and we provide a brief discussion of why cognitive processes involved in learning and training are enhanced under immersive virtual environments. We initially outline studies that have used eye tracking and haptic feedback independently in serious games, and then review some innovative applications that have already combined eye tracking and haptic devices in order to provide applicable multimodal frameworks for learning-based games. Finally, some general conclusions are identified and clarified in order to advance current understanding in multimodal serious game production as well as exploring possible areas for new applications.

Design and evaluation of a Flight Envelope Protection haptic feedback system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ellerbroek, J.; Rodriguez Martin, M.J.M.; Lombaerts, T; van Paassen, M.M.; Mulder, M.

2016-01-01

This paper describes the design and evaluation of a shared control, haptic feedback system to communicate Flight Envelope Protection System intent. The concept uses a combination of stiffness feedback and vibration to communicate proximity of the aircraft state to flight envelope boundaries. In

Switching-based Mapping and Control for Haptic Teleoperation of Aerial Robots

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mersha, A.Y.; Stramigioli, Stefano; Carloni, Raffaella

2012-01-01

This paper deals with the bilateral teleoperation of underactuated aerial robots by means of a haptic interface. In particular, we propose a switching-based state mapping and control algorithm between a rate-based passive controller, which addresses the workspace incompatibility between the master

Human-Centered Design and Evaluation of Haptic Cueing for Teleoperation of Multiple Mobile Robots.

Science.gov (United States)

Son, Hyoung Il; Franchi, Antonio; Chuang, Lewis L; Kim, Junsuk; Bulthoff, Heinrich H; Giordano, Paolo Robuffo

2013-04-01

In this paper, we investigate the effect of haptic cueing on a human operator's performance in the field of bilateral teleoperation of multiple mobile robots, particularly multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Two aspects of human performance are deemed important in this area, namely, the maneuverability of mobile robots and the perceptual sensitivity of the remote environment. We introduce metrics that allow us to address these aspects in two psychophysical studies, which are reported here. Three fundamental haptic cue types were evaluated. The Force cue conveys information on the proximity of the commanded trajectory to obstacles in the remote environment. The Velocity cue represents the mismatch between the commanded and actual velocities of the UAVs and can implicitly provide a rich amount of information regarding the actual behavior of the UAVs. Finally, the Velocity+Force cue is a linear combination of the two. Our experimental results show that, while maneuverability is best supported by the Force cue feedback, perceptual sensitivity is best served by the Velocity cue feedback. In addition, we show that large gains in the haptic feedbacks do not always guarantee an enhancement in the teleoperator's performance.

Relative Contribution of Haptic Technology to Assessment and Training in Implantology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Joseph

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background. The teaching of implant surgery, as in other medical disciplines, is currently undergoing a particular evolution. Aim of the Study. To assess the usefulness of haptic device, a simulator for learning and training to accomplish basic acts in implant surgery. Materials and Methods. A total of 60 people including 40 third-year dental students without knowledge in implantology (divided into 2 groups: 20 beginners and 20 experiencing a simulator training course and 20 experienced practitioners (experience in implantology >15 implants participated in this study. A basic exercise drill was proposed to the three groups to assess their gestural abilities. Results. The results of the group training with the simulator tended to be significantly close to those of the experienced operators. Conclusion. Haptic simulator brings a real benefit in training for implant surgery. Long-term benefit and more complex exercises should be evaluated.

The "Haptic Finger"- a new device for monitoring skin condition.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanaka, Mami; Lévêque, Jean Luc; Tagami, Hachiro; Kikuchi, Katsuko; Chonan, Seifi

2003-05-01

Touching the skin is of great importance for the Clinician for assessing roughness, softness, firmness, etc. This type of clinical assessment is very subjective and therefore non-reproducible from one Clinician to another one or even from time to time for the same Clinician. In order to objectively monitor skin texture, we developed a new sensor, placed directly on the Clinician's finger, which generate some electric signal when slid over the skin surface. The base of this Haptic Finger sensor is a thin stainless steel plate on which sponge rubber, PVDF foil, acetate film and gauze are layered. The signal generated by the sensor was filtered and digitally stored before processing. In a first in vitro experiment, the sensor was moved over different skin models (sponge rubber covered by silicon rubber) of varying hardness and roughness. These experiments allowed the definition of two parameters characterizing textures. The first parameter is variance of the signal processed using wavelet analysis, representing an index of roughness. The second parameter is dispersion of the power spectrum density in the frequency domain, corresponding to hardness. To validate these parameters, the Haptic Finger was used to scan skin surfaces of 30 people, 14 of whom displayed a skin disorder: xerosis (n = 5), atopic dermatitis (n = 7), and psoriasis (n = 2). The results obtained by means of the sensor were compared with subjective, clinical evaluations by a Clinician who scored both roughness and hardness of the skin. Good agreement was observed between clinical assessment of the skin and the two parameters generated using the Haptic Finger. Use of this sensor could prove extremely valuable in cosmetic research where skin surface texture (in terms of tactile properties) is difficult to measure.

On the design of a miniature haptic ring for cutaneous force feedback using shape memory alloy actuators

Science.gov (United States)

Hwang, Donghyun; Lee, Jaemin; Kim, Keehoon

2017-10-01

This paper proposes a miniature haptic ring that can display touch/pressure and shearing force to the user’s fingerpad. For practical use and wider application of the device, it is developed with the aim of achieving high wearability and mobility/portability as well as cutaneous force feedback functionality. A main body of the device is designed as a ring-shaped lightweight structure with a simple driving mechanism, and thin shape memory alloy (SMA) wires having high energy density are applied as actuating elements. Also, based on a band-type wireless control unit including a wireless data communication module, the whole device could be realized as a wearable mobile haptic device system. These features enable the device to take diverse advantages on functional performances and to provide users with significant usability. In this work, the proposed miniature haptic ring is systematically designed, and its working performances are experimentally evaluated with a fabricated functional prototype. The experimental results obviously demonstrate that the proposed device exhibits higher force-to-weight ratio than conventional finger-wearable haptic devices for cutaneous force feedback. Also, it is investigated that operational performances of the device are strongly influenced by electro-thermomechanical behaviors of the SMA actuator. In addition to the experiments for performance evaluation, we conduct a preliminary user test to assess practical feasibility and usability based on user’s qualitative feedback.

Contribution to the modeling and the identification of haptic interfaces; Contribution a la modelisation et a l'identification des interfaces haptiques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Janot, A

2007-12-15

This thesis focuses on the modeling and the identification of haptic interfaces using cable drive. An haptic interface is a force feedback device, which enables its user to interact with a virtual world or a remote environment explored by a slave system. It aims at the matching between the forces and displacements given by the user and those applied to virtual world. Usually, haptic interfaces make use of a mechanical actuated structure whose distal link is equipped with a handle. When manipulating this handle to interact with explored world, the user feels the apparent mass, compliance and friction of the interface. This distortion introduced between the operator and the virtual world must be modeled and identified to enhance the design of the interface and develop appropriate control laws. The first approach has been to adapt the modeling and identification methods of rigid and localized flexibilities robots to haptic interfaces. The identification technique makes use of the inverse dynamic model and the linear least squares with the measurements of joint torques and positions. This approach is validated on a single degree of freedom and a three degree of freedom haptic devices. A new identification method needing only torque data is proposed. It is based on a closed loop simulation using the direct dynamic model. The optimal parameters minimize the 2 norms of the error between the actual torque and the simulated torque assuming the same control law and the same tracking trajectory. This non linear least squares problem dramatically is simplified using the inverse model to calculate the simulated torque. This method is validated on the single degree of freedom haptic device and the SCARA robot. (author)

Within- and cross-modal distance information disambiguate visual size-change perception.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter W Battaglia

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Perception is fundamentally underconstrained because different combinations of object properties can generate the same sensory information. To disambiguate sensory information into estimates of scene properties, our brains incorporate prior knowledge and additional "auxiliary" (i.e., not directly relevant to desired scene property sensory information to constrain perceptual interpretations. For example, knowing the distance to an object helps in perceiving its size. The literature contains few demonstrations of the use of prior knowledge and auxiliary information in combined visual and haptic disambiguation and almost no examination of haptic disambiguation of vision beyond "bistable" stimuli. Previous studies have reported humans integrate multiple unambiguous sensations to perceive single, continuous object properties, like size or position. Here we test whether humans use visual and haptic information, individually and jointly, to disambiguate size from distance. We presented participants with a ball moving in depth with a changing diameter. Because no unambiguous distance information is available under monocular viewing, participants rely on prior assumptions about the ball's distance to disambiguate their -size percept. Presenting auxiliary binocular and/or haptic distance information augments participants' prior distance assumptions and improves their size judgment accuracy-though binocular cues were trusted more than haptic. Our results suggest both visual and haptic distance information disambiguate size perception, and we interpret these results in the context of probabilistic perceptual reasoning.

Testing a Poisson Counter Model for Visual Identification of Briefly Presented, Mutually Confusable Single Stimuli in Pure Accuracy Tasks

Science.gov (United States)

Kyllingsbaek, Soren; Markussen, Bo; Bundesen, Claus

2012-01-01

The authors propose and test a simple model of the time course of visual identification of briefly presented, mutually confusable single stimuli in pure accuracy tasks. The model implies that during stimulus analysis, tentative categorizations that stimulus i belongs to category j are made at a constant Poisson rate, v(i, j). The analysis is…

78 FR 23593 - Certain Mobile Electronic Devices Incorporating Haptics; Termination of Investigation

Science.gov (United States)

2013-04-19

... INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION [Investigation No. 337-TA-834] Certain Mobile Electronic Devices... the importation, sale for importation, and sale within the United States after importation of certain mobile electronic devices incorporating haptics that infringe certain claims of six Immersion patents. 77...

Using haptic feedback to increase seat belt use of service vehicle drivers.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

This study pilot-tested a new application of a technology-based intervention to increase seat belt use. The technology was based on a : contingency in which unbelted drivers experienced sustained haptic feedback to the gas pedal when they exceeded 25...

Haptic two-dimensional shape identification in children, adolescents, and young adults

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Overvliet, Krista E.; Krampe, Ralf Th

2018-01-01

We investigated the influence of image mediation (the process that translates tactile information into a visual image) on the development of haptic two-dimensional (2D) shape identification in 78 participants from five different age groups: preschoolers (4–5 years), first graders (6–7 years), fifth

Social Touch Technology: A Survey of Haptic Technology for Social Touch

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Huisman, Gijs

2017-01-01

This survey provides an overview of work on haptic technology for social touch. Social touch has been studied extensively in psychology and neuroscience. With the development of new technologies, it is now possible to engage in social touch at a distance or engage in social touch with artificial

The Hedonic Haptics Player: A Wearable Device to Experience Vibrotactile Compositions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boer, Laurens; Vallgårda, Anna; Cahill, Ben

2017-01-01

The Hedonic Haptics player is a portable wearable device that plays back vibrotactile compositions. It consists of three domes each of which houses a vibration motor providing vibrotactile sensations to the wearer. The domes are connected to a control unit the size of a small Walkman. The Hedonic...

Cortical mechanisms underlying sensorimotor enhancement promoted by walking with haptic inputs in a virtual environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Sangani, Samir; Lamontagne, Anouk; Fung, Joyce

2015-01-01

Sensorimotor integration is a complex process in the central nervous system that produces task-specific motor output based on selective and rapid integration of sensory information from multiple sources. This chapter reviews briefly the role of haptic cues in postural control during tandem stance and locomotion, focusing on sensorimotor enhancement of locomotion post stroke. The use of mixed-reality systems incorporating both haptic cues and virtual reality technology in gait rehabilitation post stroke is discussed. Over the last decade, researchers and clinicians have shown evidence of cerebral reorganization that underlies functional recovery after stroke based on results from neuroimaging techniques such as positron emission tomography and functional magnetic resonance imaging. These imaging modalities are however limited in their capacity to measure cortical changes during extensive body motions in upright stance. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) on the other hand provides a unique opportunity to measure cortical activity associated with postural control during locomotion. Evidence of cortical changes associated with sensorimotor enhancement induced by haptic touch during locomotion is revealed through fNIRS in a pilot study involving healthy individuals and a case study involving a chronic stroke patient. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Time-interval for integration of stabilizing haptic and visual information in subjects balancing under static and dynamic conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jean-Louis eHoneine

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Maintaining equilibrium is basically a sensorimotor integration task. The central nervous system continually and selectively weights and rapidly integrates sensory inputs from multiple sources, and coordinates multiple outputs. The weighting process is based on the availability and accuracy of afferent signals at a given instant, on the time-period required to process each input, and possibly on the plasticity of the relevant pathways. The likelihood that sensory inflow changes while balancing under static or dynamic conditions is high, because subjects can pass from a dark to a well-lit environment or from a tactile-guided stabilization to loss of haptic inflow. This review article presents recent data on the temporal events accompanying sensory transition, on which basic information is fragmentary. The processing time from sensory shift to reaching a new steady state includes the time to (a subtract or integrate sensory inputs, (b move from allocentric to egocentric reference or vice versa, and (c adjust the calibration of motor activity in time and amplitude to the new sensory set. We present examples of processes of integration of posture-stabilizing information, and of the respective sensorimotor time-intervals while allowing or occluding vision or adding or subtracting tactile information. These intervals are short, in the order of 1-2 s for different postural conditions, modalities and deliberate or passive shift. They are just longer for haptic than visual shift, just shorter on withdrawal than on addition of stabilizing input, and on deliberate than unexpected mode. The delays are the shortest (for haptic shift in blind subjects. Since automatic balance stabilization may be vulnerable to sensory-integration delays and to interference from concurrent cognitive tasks in patients with sensorimotor problems, insight into the processing time for balance control represents a critical step in the design of new balance- and locomotion training

Time-interval for integration of stabilizing haptic and visual information in subjects balancing under static and dynamic conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Honeine, Jean-Louis; Schieppati, Marco

2014-01-01

Maintaining equilibrium is basically a sensorimotor integration task. The central nervous system (CNS) continually and selectively weights and rapidly integrates sensory inputs from multiple sources, and coordinates multiple outputs. The weighting process is based on the availability and accuracy of afferent signals at a given instant, on the time-period required to process each input, and possibly on the plasticity of the relevant pathways. The likelihood that sensory inflow changes while balancing under static or dynamic conditions is high, because subjects can pass from a dark to a well-lit environment or from a tactile-guided stabilization to loss of haptic inflow. This review article presents recent data on the temporal events accompanying sensory transition, on which basic information is fragmentary. The processing time from sensory shift to reaching a new steady state includes the time to (a) subtract or integrate sensory inputs; (b) move from allocentric to egocentric reference or vice versa; and (c) adjust the calibration of motor activity in time and amplitude to the new sensory set. We present examples of processes of integration of posture-stabilizing information, and of the respective sensorimotor time-intervals while allowing or occluding vision or adding or subtracting tactile information. These intervals are short, in the order of 1–2 s for different postural conditions, modalities and deliberate or passive shift. They are just longer for haptic than visual shift, just shorter on withdrawal than on addition of stabilizing input, and on deliberate than unexpected mode. The delays are the shortest (for haptic shift) in blind subjects. Since automatic balance stabilization may be vulnerable to sensory-integration delays and to interference from concurrent cognitive tasks in patients with sensorimotor problems, insight into the processing time for balance control represents a critical step in the design of new balance- and locomotion training devices

Characterization of Ferrofluid-based Stimuli-responsive Elastomers

OpenAIRE

Sandra dePedro; Xavier Munoz-Berbel; Rosalia Rodríguez-Rodríguez; Jordi Sort; Jose Antonio Plaza; Juergen Brugger; Andreu Llobera; Victor J Cadarso

2016-01-01

Stimuli-responsive materials undergo physicochemical and/or structural changes when a specific actuation is applied. They are heterogeneous composites, consisting of a non-responsive matrix where functionality is provided by the filler. Surprisingly, the synthesis of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based stimuli-responsive elastomers (SRE) has seldomly been presented. Here, we present the structural, biological, optical, magnetic, and mechanical properties of several magnetic SRE (M-SRE) obtained...

Binocular Combination of Second-Order Stimuli

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Jiawei; Liu, Rong; Zhou, Yifeng; Hess, Robert F.

2014-01-01

Phase information is a fundamental aspect of visual stimuli. However, the nature of the binocular combination of stimuli defined by modulations in contrast, so-called second-order stimuli, is presently not clear. To address this issue, we measured binocular combination for first- (luminance modulated) and second-order (contrast modulated) stimuli using a binocular phase combination paradigm in seven normal adults. We found that the binocular perceived phase of second-order gratings depends on the interocular signal ratio as has been previously shown for their first order counterparts; the interocular signal ratios when the two eyes were balanced was close to 1 in both first- and second-order phase combinations. However, second-order combination is more linear than previously found for first-order combination. Furthermore, binocular combination of second-order stimuli was similar regardless of whether the carriers in the two eyes were correlated, anti-correlated, or uncorrelated. This suggests that, in normal adults, the binocular phase combination of second-order stimuli occurs after the monocular extracting of the second-order modulations. The sensory balance associated with this second-order combination can be obtained from binocular phase combination measurements. PMID:24404180

Contribution to the modeling and the identification of haptic interfaces; Contribution a la modelisation et a l'identification des interfaces haptiques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Janot, A

2007-12-15

This thesis focuses on the modeling and the identification of haptic interfaces using cable drive. An haptic interface is a force feedback device, which enables its user to interact with a virtual world or a remote environment explored by a slave system. It aims at the matching between the forces and displacements given by the user and those applied to virtual world. Usually, haptic interfaces make use of a mechanical actuated structure whose distal link is equipped with a handle. When manipulating this handle to interact with explored world, the user feels the apparent mass, compliance and friction of the interface. This distortion introduced between the operator and the virtual world must be modeled and identified to enhance the design of the interface and develop appropriate control laws. The first approach has been to adapt the modeling and identification methods of rigid and localized flexibilities robots to haptic interfaces. The identification technique makes use of the inverse dynamic model and the linear least squares with the measurements of joint torques and positions. This approach is validated on a single degree of freedom and a three degree of freedom haptic devices. A new identification method needing only torque data is proposed. It is based on a closed loop simulation using the direct dynamic model. The optimal parameters minimize the 2 norms of the error between the actual torque and the simulated torque assuming the same control law and the same tracking trajectory. This non linear least squares problem dramatically is simplified using the inverse model to calculate the simulated torque. This method is validated on the single degree of freedom haptic device and the SCARA robot. (author)

[Methods of resolution for haptic assistance during catheterization].

Science.gov (United States)

Kern, T A; Herrmann, J; Klages, S; Meiss, T; Werthschützky, R

2005-01-01

During catheterization navigation within the patient is mainly dependent on a live x-ray image on the screen. Although methods for 3D visualisation and remote navigation of the catheter are discussed and tested still precise positioning is merely the result of intense training and a high skill and level of training of the performing surgeon. This article refers to a system which can be considered as an add-on for existing procedures of catheterization. It compromises of a miniaturised force sensor located at the tip of guide-wires whose prototype is shown here. The measured forces will be presented to the surgeon amplified by an external actuator described in this article. As a result a haptic perception of the forces between the tip of the guide-wire and the vessels walls will be available and enable the surgeon to gain an impression which is comparable to palpation of living vessels from the inside

Subliminal presentation of emotionally negative vs positive primes increases the perceived beauty of target stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Era, Vanessa; Candidi, Matteo; Aglioti, Salvatore Maria

2015-11-01

Emotions have a profound influence on aesthetic experiences. Studies using affective priming procedures demonstrate, for example, that inducing a conscious negative emotional state biases the perception of abstract stimuli towards the sublime (Eskine et al. Emotion 12:1071-1074, 2012. doi: 10.1037/a0027200). Moreover, subliminal happy facial expressions have a positive impact on the aesthetic evaluation of abstract art (Flexas et al. PLoS ONE 8:e80154, 2013). Little is known about how emotion influences aesthetic perception of non-abstract, representational stimuli, especially those that are particularly relevant for social behaviour, like human bodies. Here, we explore whether the subliminal presentation of emotionally charged visual primes modulates the explicit subjective aesthetic judgment of body images. Using a forward/backward masking procedure, we presented subliminally positive and negative, arousal-matched, emotional or neutral primes and measured their effect on the explicit evaluation of perceived beauty (high vs low) and emotion (positive vs negative) evoked by abstract and body images. We found that negative primes increased subjective aesthetic evaluations of target bodies or abstract images in comparison with positive primes. No influence of primes on the emotional dimension of the targets was found, thus ruling out an unspecific arousal effect and strengthening the link between emotional valence and aesthetic appreciation. More specifically, that subliminal negative primes increase beauty ratings compared to subliminal positive primes indicates a clear link between negative emotions and positive aesthetic evaluations and vice versa, suggesting a possible link between negative emotion and the experience of sublime in art. The study expands previous research by showing the effect of subliminal negative emotions on the subjective aesthetic evaluation not only of abstract but also of body images.

Input and output for surgical simulation: devices to measure tissue properties in vivo and a haptic interface for laparoscopy simulators.

Science.gov (United States)

Ottensmeyer, M P; Ben-Ur, E; Salisbury, J K

2000-01-01

Current efforts in surgical simulation very often focus on creating realistic graphical feedback, but neglect some or all tactile and force (haptic) feedback that a surgeon would normally receive. Simulations that do include haptic feedback do not typically use real tissue compliance properties, favoring estimates and user feedback to determine realism. When tissue compliance data are used, there are virtually no in vivo property measurements to draw upon. Together with the Center for Innovative Minimally Invasive Therapy at the Massachusetts General Hospital, the Haptics Group is developing tools to introduce more comprehensive haptic feedback in laparoscopy simulators and to provide biological tissue material property data for our software simulation. The platform for providing haptic feedback is a PHANToM Haptic Interface, produced by SensAble Technologies, Inc. Our devices supplement the PHANToM to provide for grasping and optionally, for the roll axis of the tool. Together with feedback from the PHANToM, which provides the pitch, yaw and thrust axes of a typical laparoscopy tool, we can recreate all of the haptic sensations experienced during laparoscopy. The devices integrate real laparoscopy toolhandles and a compliant torso model to complete the set of visual and tactile sensations. Biological tissues are known to exhibit non-linear mechanical properties, and change their properties dramatically when removed from a living organism. To measure the properties in vivo, two devices are being developed. The first is a small displacement, 1-D indenter. It will measure the linear tissue compliance (stiffness and damping) over a wide range of frequencies. These data will be used as inputs to a finite element or other model. The second device will be able to deflect tissues in 3-D over a larger range, so that the non-linearities due to changes in the tissue geometry will be measured. This will allow us to validate the performance of the model on large tissue

Design of a Magnetic Resonance-Safe Haptic Wrist Manipulator for Movement Disorder Diagnostics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bode, Dyon; Mugge, Winfred; Schouten, Alfred C.; van Rootselaar, Anne-Fleur; Bour, Lo J.; van der Helm, Frans C. T.; Lammertse, Piet

2017-01-01

Tremor, characterized by involuntary and rhythmical movements, is the most common movement disorder. Tremor can have peripheral and central oscillatory components which properly assessed may improve diagnostics. A magnetic resonance (MR)-safe haptic wrist manipulator enables simultaneous measurement

77 FR 15390 - Certain Mobile Electronic Devices Incorporating Haptics; Receipt of Amended Complaint...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-15

... INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION [DN 2875] Certain Mobile Electronic Devices Incorporating Haptics.... International Trade Commission. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the U.S. International Trade Commission has received an amended complaint entitled Certain Mobile Electronic Devices...

Wearable Vibrotactile Haptic Device for Stiffness Discrimination during Virtual Interactions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andualem Tadesse Maereg

2017-09-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we discuss the development of cost effective, wireless, and wearable vibrotactile haptic device for stiffness perception during an interaction with virtual objects. Our experimental setup consists of haptic device with five vibrotactile actuators, virtual reality environment tailored in Unity 3D integrating the Oculus Rift Head Mounted Display (HMD and the Leap Motion controller. The virtual environment is able to capture touch inputs from users. Interaction forces are then rendered at 500 Hz and fed back to the wearable setup stimulating fingertips with ERM vibrotactile actuators. Amplitude and frequency of vibrations are modulated proportionally to the interaction force to simulate the stiffness of a virtual object. A quantitative and qualitative study is done to compare the discrimination of stiffness on virtual linear spring in three sensory modalities: visual only feedback, tactile only feedback, and their combination. A common psychophysics method called the Two Alternative Forced Choice (2AFC approach is used for quantitative analysis using Just Noticeable Difference (JND and Weber Fractions (WF. According to the psychometric experiment result, average Weber fraction values of 0.39 for visual only feedback was improved to 0.25 by adding the tactile feedback.

Stimuli-Adaptable Materials

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frankær, Sarah Maria Grundahl

The work presented in this Thesis deals with the development of a stimuli-adaptable polymer material based on the UV-induced dimerisation of cinnamic acid and its derivatives. It is in the nature of an adhesive to adhere very well to its substrate and therefore problems can arise upon removal...

Human-Multi-Robot Teleoperation for Cooperative Manipulation Tasks using Wearable Haptic Devices

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chinello, Francesco

2017-01-01

. Control inputs for both subtasks are provided by the human. The inputs are projected onto the space of subtasks using a forward mapping strategy. Measured wrenches are projected onto the feedback signals provided to the human via wearable fingertip haptic devices through a feedback mapping strategy...

a New ER Fluid Based Haptic Actuator System for Virtual Reality

Science.gov (United States)

Böse, H.; Baumann, M.; Monkman, G. J.; Egersdörfer, S.; Tunayar, A.; Freimuth, H.; Ermert, H.; Khaled, W.

The concept and some steps in the development of a new actuator system which enables the haptic perception of mechanically inhomogeneous virtual objects are introduced. The system consists of a two-dimensional planar array of actuator elements containing an electrorheological (ER) fluid. When a user presses his fingers onto the surface of the actuator array, he perceives locally variable resistance forces generated by vertical pistons which slide in the ER fluid through the gaps between electrode pairs. The voltage in each actuator element can be individually controlled by a novel sophisticated switching technology based on optoelectric gallium arsenide elements. The haptic information which is represented at the actuator array can be transferred from a corresponding sensor system based on ultrasonic elastography. The combined sensor-actuator system may serve as a technology platform for various applications in virtual reality, like telemedicine where the information on the consistency of tissue of a real patient is detected by the sensor part and recorded by the actuator part at a remote location.

Haptic cues for orientation and postural control in sighted and blind individuals

Science.gov (United States)

Jeka, J. J.; Easton, R. D.; Bentzen, B. L.; Lackner, J. R.

1996-01-01

Haptic cues from fingertip contact with a stable surface attenuate body sway in subjects even when the contact forces are too small to provide physical support of the body. We investigated how haptic cues derived from contact of a cane with a stationary surface at low force levels aids postural control in sighted and congenitally blind individuals. Five sighted (eyes closed) and five congenitally blind subjects maintained a tandem Romberg stance in five conditions: (1) no cane; (2,3) touch contact (postural sway in all subjects, compared to the no-cane condition. A slanted cane was far more effective in reducing postural sway than was a perpendicular cane. Cane use also decreased head displacement of sighted subjects far more than that of blind subjects. These results suggest that head movement control is linked to postural control through gaze stabilization reflexes in sighted subjects; such reflexes are absent in congenitally blind individuals and may account for their higher levels of head displacement.

Early visual experience and the recognition of basic facial expressions: involvement of the middle temporal and inferior frontal gyri during haptic identification by the early blind.

Science.gov (United States)

Kitada, Ryo; Okamoto, Yuko; Sasaki, Akihiro T; Kochiyama, Takanori; Miyahara, Motohide; Lederman, Susan J; Sadato, Norihiro

2013-01-01

Face perception is critical for social communication. Given its fundamental importance in the course of evolution, the innate neural mechanisms can anticipate the computations necessary for representing faces. However, the effect of visual deprivation on the formation of neural mechanisms that underlie face perception is largely unknown. We previously showed that sighted individuals can recognize basic facial expressions by haptics surprisingly well. Moreover, the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) in the sighted subjects are involved in haptic and visual recognition of facial expressions. Here, we conducted both psychophysical and functional magnetic-resonance imaging (fMRI) experiments to determine the nature of the neural representation that subserves the recognition of basic facial expressions in early blind individuals. In a psychophysical experiment, both early blind and sighted subjects haptically identified basic facial expressions at levels well above chance. In the subsequent fMRI experiment, both groups haptically identified facial expressions and shoe types (control). The sighted subjects then completed the same task visually. Within brain regions activated by the visual and haptic identification of facial expressions (relative to that of shoes) in the sighted group, corresponding haptic identification in the early blind activated regions in the inferior frontal and middle temporal gyri. These results suggest that the neural system that underlies the recognition of basic facial expressions develops supramodally even in the absence of early visual experience.

Auditory Memory Distortion for Spoken Prose

Science.gov (United States)

Hutchison, Joanna L.; Hubbard, Timothy L.; Ferrandino, Blaise; Brigante, Ryan; Wright, Jamie M.; Rypma, Bart

2012-01-01

Observers often remember a scene as containing information that was not presented but that would have likely been located just beyond the observed boundaries of the scene. This effect is called "boundary extension" (BE; e.g., Intraub & Richardson, 1989). Previous studies have observed BE in memory for visual and haptic stimuli, and…

Haptic-based neurorehabilitation in poststroke patients: a feasibility prospective multicentre trial for robotics hand rehabilitation.

Science.gov (United States)

Turolla, Andrea; Daud Albasini, Omar A; Oboe, Roberto; Agostini, Michela; Tonin, Paolo; Paolucci, Stefano; Sandrini, Giorgio; Venneri, Annalena; Piron, Lamberto

2013-01-01

Background. Haptic robots allow the exploitation of known motor learning mechanisms, representing a valuable option for motor treatment after stroke. The aim of this feasibility multicentre study was to test the clinical efficacy of a haptic prototype, for the recovery of hand function after stroke. Methods. A prospective pilot clinical trial was planned on 15 consecutive patients enrolled in 3 rehabilitation centre in Italy. All the framework features of the haptic robot (e.g., control loop, external communication, and graphic rendering for virtual reality) were implemented into a real-time MATLAB/Simulink environment, controlling a five-bar linkage able to provide forces up to 20 [N] at the end effector, used for finger and hand rehabilitation therapies. Clinical (i.e., Fugl-Meyer upper extremity scale; nine hold pegboard test) and kinematics (i.e., time; velocity; jerk metric; normalized jerk of standard movements) outcomes were assessed before and after treatment to detect changes in patients' motor performance. Reorganization of cortical activation was detected in one patient by fMRI. Results and Conclusions. All patients showed significant improvements in both clinical and kinematic outcomes. Additionally, fMRI results suggest that the proposed approach may promote a better cortical activation in the brain.

Haptic-Based Neurorehabilitation in Poststroke Patients: A Feasibility Prospective Multicentre Trial for Robotics Hand Rehabilitation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Turolla

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Haptic robots allow the exploitation of known motorlearning mechanisms, representing a valuable option for motor treatment after stroke. The aim of this feasibility multicentre study was to test the clinical efficacy of a haptic prototype, for the recovery of hand function after stroke. Methods. A prospective pilot clinical trial was planned on 15 consecutive patients enrolled in 3 rehabilitation centre in Italy. All the framework features of the haptic robot (e.g., control loop, external communication, and graphic rendering for virtual reality were implemented into a real-time MATLAB/Simulink environment, controlling a five-bar linkage able to provide forces up to 20 [N] at the end effector, used for finger and hand rehabilitation therapies. Clinical (i.e., Fugl-Meyer upper extremity scale; nine hold pegboard test and kinematics (i.e., time; velocity; jerk metric; normalized jerk of standard movements outcomes were assessed before and after treatment to detect changes in patients' motor performance. Reorganization of cortical activation was detected in one patient by fMRI. Results and Conclusions. All patients showed significant improvements in both clinical and kinematic outcomes. Additionally, fMRI results suggest that the proposed approach may promote a better cortical activation in the brain.

Faster acquisition of laparoscopic skills in virtual reality with haptic feedback and 3D vision.

Science.gov (United States)

Hagelsteen, Kristine; Langegård, Anders; Lantz, Adam; Ekelund, Mikael; Anderberg, Magnus; Bergenfelz, Anders

2017-10-01

The study investigated whether 3D vision and haptic feedback in combination in a virtual reality environment leads to more efficient learning of laparoscopic skills in novices. Twenty novices were allocated to two groups. All completed a training course in the LapSim ® virtual reality trainer consisting of four tasks: 'instrument navigation', 'grasping', 'fine dissection' and 'suturing'. The study group performed with haptic feedback and 3D vision and the control group without. Before and after the LapSim ® course, the participants' metrics were recorded when tying a laparoscopic knot in the 2D video box trainer Simball ® Box. The study group completed the training course in 146 (100-291) minutes compared to 215 (175-489) minutes in the control group (p = .002). The number of attempts to reach proficiency was significantly lower. The study group had significantly faster learning of skills in three out of four individual tasks; instrument navigation, grasping and suturing. Using the Simball ® Box, no difference in laparoscopic knot tying after the LapSim ® course was noted when comparing the groups. Laparoscopic training in virtual reality with 3D vision and haptic feedback made training more time efficient and did not negatively affect later video box-performance in 2D. [Formula: see text].

Finite Element Methods for real-time Haptic Feedback of Soft-Tissue Models in Virtual Reality Simulators

Science.gov (United States)

Frank, Andreas O.; Twombly, I. Alexander; Barth, Timothy J.; Smith, Jeffrey D.; Dalton, Bonnie P. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

We have applied the linear elastic finite element method to compute haptic force feedback and domain deformations of soft tissue models for use in virtual reality simulators. Our results show that, for virtual object models of high-resolution 3D data (>10,000 nodes), haptic real time computations (>500 Hz) are not currently possible using traditional methods. Current research efforts are focused in the following areas: 1) efficient implementation of fully adaptive multi-resolution methods and 2) multi-resolution methods with specialized basis functions to capture the singularity at the haptic interface (point loading). To achieve real time computations, we propose parallel processing of a Jacobi preconditioned conjugate gradient method applied to a reduced system of equations resulting from surface domain decomposition. This can effectively be achieved using reconfigurable computing systems such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), thereby providing a flexible solution that allows for new FPGA implementations as improved algorithms become available. The resulting soft tissue simulation system would meet NASA Virtual Glovebox requirements and, at the same time, provide a generalized simulation engine for any immersive environment application, such as biomedical/surgical procedures or interactive scientific applications.

Proximity: representations of fragile space through hapticity and vision

OpenAIRE

Garrett, Stephen Francis

2017-01-01

This research paper investigates the phenomenology of touch and its relationship to my sculptural practice. My studio research has been engaged in site-responsive interventions developed as a series of ephemeral artworks. Core to this is the relationship between vision and touch. My paper charts the evolution of this and how I consider these factors when making art. My process stems from my engagement with the notion of hapticity-how we understand the tactile experience of space and place ...

Augmented communication with haptic I/O in mobile devices

OpenAIRE

Haverinen, Laura

2012-01-01

Nonverbal communication is a very important part of face to face communication. Both explicit and implicit additions to verbal communication augment the information content of communication. Before telephones did not provide any means for adding nonverbal information to the communication, but now, as the technology has advanced, it is possible to start augmenting also the communication on the phone. Adding a haptic I/O device to a regular mobile phone opens possibilities to add value to commu...

Spatial asymmetry in tactile sensor skin deformation aids perception of edge orientation during haptic exploration.

Science.gov (United States)

Ponce Wong, Ruben D; Hellman, Randall B; Santos, Veronica J

2014-01-01

Upper-limb amputees rely primarily on visual feedback when using their prostheses to interact with others or objects in their environment. A constant reliance upon visual feedback can be mentally exhausting and does not suffice for many activities when line-of-sight is unavailable. Upper-limb amputees could greatly benefit from the ability to perceive edges, one of the most salient features of 3D shape, through touch alone. We present an approach for estimating edge orientation with respect to an artificial fingertip through haptic exploration using a multimodal tactile sensor on a robot hand. Key parameters from the tactile signals for each of four exploratory procedures were used as inputs to a support vector regression model. Edge orientation angles ranging from -90 to 90 degrees were estimated with an 85-input model having an R (2) of 0.99 and RMS error of 5.08 degrees. Electrode impedance signals provided the most useful inputs by encoding spatially asymmetric skin deformation across the entire fingertip. Interestingly, sensor regions that were not in direct contact with the stimulus provided particularly useful information. Methods described here could pave the way for semi-autonomous capabilities in prosthetic or robotic hands during haptic exploration, especially when visual feedback is unavailable.

Effects of Auditory Stimuli on Visual Velocity Perception

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michiaki Shibata

2011-10-01

Full Text Available We investigated the effects of auditory stimuli on the perceived velocity of a moving visual stimulus. Previous studies have reported that the duration of visual events is perceived as being longer for events filled with auditory stimuli than for events not filled with auditory stimuli, ie, the so-called “filled-duration illusion.” In this study, we have shown that auditory stimuli also affect the perceived velocity of a moving visual stimulus. In Experiment 1, a moving comparison stimulus (4.2∼5.8 deg/s was presented together with filled (or unfilled white-noise bursts or with no sound. The standard stimulus was a moving visual stimulus (5 deg/s presented before or after the comparison stimulus. The participants had to judge which stimulus was moving faster. The results showed that the perceived velocity in the auditory-filled condition was lower than that in the auditory-unfilled and no-sound conditions. In Experiment 2, we investigated the effects of auditory stimuli on velocity adaptation. The results showed that the effects of velocity adaptation in the auditory-filled condition were weaker than those in the no-sound condition. These results indicate that auditory stimuli tend to decrease the perceived velocity of a moving visual stimulus.

GPU-based real-time soft tissue deformation with cutting and haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Courtecuisse, Hadrien; Jung, Hoeryong; Allard, Jérémie; Duriez, Christian; Lee, Doo Yong; Cotin, Stéphane

2010-12-01

This article describes a series of contributions in the field of real-time simulation of soft tissue biomechanics. These contributions address various requirements for interactive simulation of complex surgical procedures. In particular, this article presents results in the areas of soft tissue deformation, contact modelling, simulation of cutting, and haptic rendering, which are all relevant to a variety of medical interventions. The contributions described in this article share a common underlying model of deformation and rely on GPU implementations to significantly improve computation times. This consistency in the modelling technique and computational approach ensures coherent results as well as efficient, robust and flexible solutions. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adaptation of a haptic robot in a 3T fMRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Snider, Joseph; Plank, Markus; May, Larry; Liu, Thomas T; Poizner, Howard

2011-10-04

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) provides excellent functional brain imaging via the BOLD signal with advantages including non-ionizing radiation, millimeter spatial accuracy of anatomical and functional data, and nearly real-time analyses. Haptic robots provide precise measurement and control of position and force of a cursor in a reasonably confined space. Here we combine these two technologies to allow precision experiments involving motor control with haptic/tactile environment interaction such as reaching or grasping. The basic idea is to attach an 8 foot end effecter supported in the center to the robot allowing the subject to use the robot, but shielding it and keeping it out of the most extreme part of the magnetic field from the fMRI machine (Figure 1). The Phantom Premium 3.0, 6DoF, high-force robot (SensAble Technologies, Inc.) is an excellent choice for providing force-feedback in virtual reality experiments, but it is inherently non-MR safe, introduces significant noise to the sensitive fMRI equipment, and its electric motors may be affected by the fMRI's strongly varying magnetic field. We have constructed a table and shielding system that allows the robot to be safely introduced into the fMRI environment and limits both the degradation of the fMRI signal by the electrically noisy motors and the degradation of the electric motor performance by the strongly varying magnetic field of the fMRI. With the shield, the signal to noise ratio (SNR: mean signal/noise standard deviation) of the fMRI goes from a baseline of ~380 to ~330, and ~250 without the shielding. The remaining noise appears to be uncorrelated and does not add artifacts to the fMRI of a test sphere (Figure 2). The long, stiff handle allows placement of the robot out of range of the most strongly varying parts of the magnetic field so there is no significant effect of the fMRI on the robot. The effect of the handle on the robot's kinematics is minimal since it is lightweight (~2

Integration of Haptics in Agricultural Robotics

Science.gov (United States)

Kannan Megalingam, Rajesh; Sreekanth, M. M.; Sivanantham, Vinu; Sai Kumar, K.; Ghanta, Sriharsha; Surya Teja, P.; Reddy, Rajesh G.

2017-08-01

Robots can differentiate with open loop system and closed loop system robots. We face many problems when we do not have a feedback from robots. In this research paper, we are discussing all possibilities to achieve complete closed loop system for Multiple-DOF Robotic Arm, which is used in a coconut tree climbing and cutting robot by introducing a Haptic device. We are working on various sensors like tactile, vibration, force and proximity sensors for getting feedback. For monitoring the robotic arm achieved by graphical user interference software which simulates the working of the robotic arm, send the feedback of all the real time analog values which are produced by various sensors and provide real-time graphs for estimate the efficiency of the Robot.

Force Control and Nonlinear Master-Slave Force Profile to Manage an Admittance Type Multi-Fingered Haptic User Interface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anthony L. Crawford

2012-08-01

Natural movements and force feedback are important elements in using teleoperated equipment if complex and speedy manipulation tasks are to be accomplished in remote and/or hazardous environments, such as hot cells, glove boxes, decommissioning, explosives disarmament, and space to name a few. In order to achieve this end the research presented in this paper has developed an admittance type exoskeleton like multi-fingered haptic hand user interface that secures the user’s palm and provides 3-dimensional force feedback to the user’s fingertips. Atypical to conventional haptic hand user interfaces that limit themselves to integrating the human hand’s characteristics just into the system’s mechanical design this system also perpetuates that inspiration into the designed user interface’s controller. This is achieved by manifesting the property differences of manipulation and grasping activities as they pertain to the human hand into a nonlinear master-slave force relationship. The results presented in this paper show that the admittance-type system has sufficient bandwidth that it appears nearly transparent to the user when the user is in free motion and when the system is subjected to a manipulation task, increased performance is achieved using the nonlinear force relationship compared to the traditional linear scaling techniques implemented in the vast majority of systems.

Design and simulation of a new bidirectional actuator for haptic systems featuring MR fluid

Science.gov (United States)

Hung, Nguyen Quoc; Tri, Diep Bao; Cuong, Vo Van; Choi, Seung-Bok

2017-04-01

In this research, a new configuration of bidirectional actuator featuring MR fluid (BMRA) is proposed for haptic application. The proposed BMRA consists of a driving disc, a driving housing and a driven disc. The driving disc is placed inside the driving housing and rotates counter to each other by a servo DC motor and a bevel gear system. The driven shaft is also placed inside the housing and next to the driving disc. The gap between the two disc and the gap between the discs and the housing are filled with MR fluid. On the driven disc, two mutual magnetic coils are placed. By applying currents to the two coils mutually, the torque at the output shaft, which is fixed to the driven disc, can be controlled with positive, zero or negative value. This make the actuator be suitable for haptic application. After a review of MR fluid and its application, configuration of the proposed BMRA is presented. The modeling of the actuator is then derived based on Bingham rheological model of MRF and magnetic finite element analysis (FEA). The optimal design of the actuator is then performed to minimize the mass of the BMRA. From the optimal design result, performance characteristics of the actuator is simulated and detailed design of a prototype actuator is conducted.

Development of a new haptic perception instrument: a pilot study

OpenAIRE

Nascimento, Leonardo Penteado; Martini, Joyce; Voos, Mariana Callil; Chien, Hsin Fen; Caromano, Fátima Aparecida

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT Objective Hand sensory tests do not consider distinct physiological receptors, nor detect normal range variations concerning developmental or pathological changes. We developed an instrument with a set of tests with timing and scoring for assessing haptic perception, which is the interaction between sensory and motor systems, in surfaces exploration, by moving hands. Method Firstly, group meetings were set for test/manual conception and materials testing. The test/manual were sub...

Early visual experience and the recognition of basic facial expressions: involvement of the middle temporal and inferior frontal gyri during haptic identification by the early blind

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Kitada, Ryo; Okamoto, Yuko; Sasaki, Akihiro T.; Kochiyama, Takanori; Miyahara, Motohide; Lederman, Susan J.; Sadato, Norihiro

2012-01-01

Face perception is critical for social communication. Given its fundamental importance in the course of evolution, the innate neural mechanisms can anticipate the computations necessary for representing faces. However, the effect of visual deprivation on the formation of neural mechanisms that underlie face perception is largely unknown. We previously showed that sighted individuals can recognize basic facial expressions by haptics surprisingly well. Moreover, the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) in the sighted subjects are involved in haptic and visual recognition of facial expressions. Here, we conducted both psychophysical and functional magnetic-resonance imaging (fMRI) experiments to determine the nature of the neural representation that subserves the recognition of basic facial expressions in early blind individuals. In a psychophysical experiment, both early blind and sighted subjects haptically identified basic facial expressions at levels well above chance. In the subsequent fMRI experiment, both groups haptically identified facial expressions and shoe types (control). The sighted subjects then completed the same task visually. Within brain regions activated by the visual and haptic identification of facial expressions (relative to that of shoes) in the sighted group, corresponding haptic identification in the early blind activated regions in the inferior frontal and middle temporal gyri. These results suggest that the neural system that underlies the recognition of basic facial expressions develops supramodally even in the absence of early visual experience. PMID:23372547

Mediating Haptic Exploratory Strategies in Children Who Have Visual Impairment and Intellectual Disabilities

Science.gov (United States)

McLinden, M.

2012-01-01

This article provides a synthesis of literature pertaining to the development of haptic exploratory strategies in children who have visual impairment and intellectual disabilities. The information received through such strategies assumes particular significance for these children, given the restricted information available through their visual…

Theoretical Investigation by Quantum Mechanics on the Tunnel Diode Effect of Electric Conductive Characteristics and Haptic Sensing in MCF Rubber

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kunio Shimada

2010-01-01

Full Text Available By applying our developed intelligent fluid, magnetic compound fluid (MCF, to silicon oil rubber, we have made the MCF rubber highly sensitive to temperature and electric conduction. MCF is useful as the element material in haptic robot sensors and other related devices. In the present paper, we clarified the relationship between the electric current and the voltage under a tensile strain by utilizing the quantum mechanics theory on the multibarrier potential problem. The experimental results could be qualitatively explained by our proposed theory. The electrons can be moved between the solid materials by the tunnel effect. The relation between voltage and electric current is affected by the formation of the clusters, and it is changed by the application of heat. We also clarified experimentally the present MCF rubber useful in haptic sensors. Because the motions of humans and robots are different, the sensing of the rubber is different, depending on the placement. However, as for both motions of human and robot, there is no quantitative difference in the electric resistance among kinetic energy, momentum, and force. The sensing is also different based on the stiffness of the surface to which the sensor is adhered.

Haptic device for telerobotic surgery

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Salisbury, Curt; Salisbury, Jr., J. Kenneth

2014-12-30

A haptic device for telerobotic surgery, including a base; a linkage system having first and second linkage members coupled to the base; a motor that provides a motor force; a transmission including first and second driving pulleys arranged such that their faces form an angle and their axes form a plane, first and second idler pulleys offset from the plane and arranged between the first and second driving pulleys such that their axes divide the angle between the first and second driving pulleys, and a cable that traverses the first and second driving pulleys and the set of idler pulleys and transfers the motor force to the linkage system; an end effector coupled to distal ends of the first and second linkage members and maneuverable relative to the base; and a controller that modulates the motor force to simulate a body part at a point portion of the end effector.

Haptic feedback can provide an objective assessment of arthroscopic skills.

Science.gov (United States)

Chami, George; Ward, James W; Phillips, Roger; Sherman, Kevin P

2008-04-01

The outcome of arthroscopic procedures is related to the surgeon's skills in arthroscopy. Currently, evaluation of such skills relies on direct observation by a surgeon trainer. This type of assessment, by its nature, is subjective and time-consuming. The aim of our study was to identify whether haptic information generated from arthroscopic tools could distinguish between skilled and less skilled surgeons. A standard arthroscopic probe was fitted with a force/torque sensor. The probe was used by five surgeons with different levels of experience in knee arthroscopy performing 11 different tasks in 10 standard knee arthroscopies. The force/torque data from the hand and tool interface were recorded and synchronized with a video recording of the procedure. The torque magnitude and patterns generated were analyzed and compared. A computerized system was used to analyze the force/torque signature based on general principles for quality of performance using such measures as economy in movement, time efficiency, and consistency in performance. The results showed a considerable correlation between three haptic parameters and the surgeon's experience, which could be used in an automated objective assessment system for arthroscopic surgery. Level II, diagnostic study. See the Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Pigment dispersion glaucoma induced by the chafing effect of intraocular lens haptics in Asian eyes.

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Hong, Ying; Sun, Yan-Xiu; Qi, Hong; Zhou, Ji-Chao; Hao, Yan-Sheng

2013-03-01

To study the possible mechanism and treatment for pigment dispersion glaucoma (PDG) caused by single-piece acrylic (SPA) intraocular lens (IOL) ciliary sulcus fixation in Asian eyes. Patients referred for PDG caused by SPA IOL ciliary sulcus fixation to our hospital from April 2005 to June 2011 were included. The patients' general information, IOL type, interval between initial surgery and PDG occurrence, examination findings, antiglaucoma medicine regimen and surgical interventions were recorded. In total, six eyes from five Chinese patients were included in this study. The intraocular pressure (IOP) increased 19-30 days after cataract surgery and was not satisfactorily controlled with antiglaucoma medication. Dense pigmentation was deposited on the IOLs and on the anterior chamber angle. IOL haptic chafing was noted on the rear iris surface. IOL repositioning in the capsular bag was performed in three eyes and was combined with trabeculectomy in two eyes with progressive glaucoma. An IOL exchange with three-piece IOL ciliary sulcus fixation was performed in the other three eyes. Scanning electron microscopy of the explanted IOLs demonstrated a rough edge on the IOL haptics. SPA IOLs were not suitable for ciliary sulcus fixation. The chafing effect of the IOL haptics on the posterior iris pigment epithelium could induce PDG in Asian eyes. IOLs should be positioned in the capsular bag or a three-piece IOL should be used instead.

Augmented kinematic feedback from haptic virtual reality for dental skill acquisition.

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Suebnukarn, Siriwan; Haddawy, Peter; Rhienmora, Phattanapon; Jittimanee, Pannapa; Viratket, Piyanuch

2010-12-01

We have developed a haptic virtual reality system for dental skill training. In this study we examined several kinds of kinematic information about the movement provided by the system supplement knowledge of results (KR) in dental skill acquisition. The kinematic variables examined involved force utilization (F) and mirror view (M). This created three experimental conditions that received augmented kinematic feedback (F, M, FM) and one control condition that did not (KR-only). Thirty-two dental students were randomly assigned to four groups. Their task was to perform access opening on the upper first molar with the haptic virtual reality system. An acquisition session consisted of two days of ten trials of practice in which augmented kinematic feedback was provided for the appropriate experimental conditions after each trial. One week after, a retention test consisting of two trials without augmented feedback was completed. The results showed that the augmented kinematic feedback groups had larger mean performance scores than the KR-only group in Day 1 of the acquisition and retention sessions (ANOVA, p0.05). The trends in acquisition and retention sessions suggest that the augmented kinematic feedback can enhance the performance earlier in the skill acquisition and retention sessions.

Virtual haptic system for intuitive planning of bone fixation plate placement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kup-Sze Choi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Placement of pre-contoured fixation plate is a common treatment for bone fracture. Fitting of fixation plates on fractured bone can be preoperatively planned and evaluated in 3D virtual environment using virtual reality technology. However, conventional systems usually employ 2D mouse and virtual trackball as the user interface, which makes the process inconvenient and inefficient. In the paper, a preoperative planning system equipped with 3D haptic user interface is proposed to allow users to manipulate the virtual fixation plate intuitively to determine the optimal position for placement on distal medial tibia. The system provides interactive feedback forces and visual guidance based on the geometric requirements. Creation of 3D models from medical imaging data, collision detection, dynamics simulation and haptic rendering are discussed. The system was evaluated by 22 subjects. Results show that the time to achieve optimal placement using the proposed system was shorter than that by using 2D mouse and virtual trackball, and the satisfaction rating was also higher. The system shows potential to facilitate the process of fitting fixation plates on fractured bones as well as interactive fixation plate design.

Portable haptic interface with omni-directional movement and force capability.

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Avizzano, Carlo Alberto; Satler, Massimo; Ruffaldi, Emanuele

2014-01-01

We describe the design of a new mobile haptic interface that employs wheels for force rendering. The interface, consisting of an omni-directional Killough type platform, provides 2DOF force feedback with different control modalities. The system autonomously performs sensor fusion for localization and force rendering. This paper explains the relevant choices concerning the functional aspects, the control design, the mechanical and electronic solution. Experimental results for force feedback characterization are reported.

Auditory-visual aversive stimuli modulate the conscious experience of fear.

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Taffou, Marine; Guerchouche, Rachid; Drettakis, George; Viaud-Delmon, Isabelle

2013-01-01

In a natural environment, affective information is perceived via multiple senses, mostly audition and vision. However, the impact of multisensory information on affect remains relatively undiscovered. In this study, we investigated whether the auditory-visual presentation of aversive stimuli influences the experience of fear. We used the advantages of virtual reality to manipulate multisensory presentation and to display potentially fearful dog stimuli embedded in a natural context. We manipulated the affective reactions evoked by the dog stimuli by recruiting two groups of participants: dog-fearful and non-fearful participants. The sensitivity to dog fear was assessed psychometrically by a questionnaire and also at behavioral and subjective levels using a Behavioral Avoidance Test (BAT). Participants navigated in virtual environments, in which they encountered virtual dog stimuli presented through the auditory channel, the visual channel or both. They were asked to report their fear using Subjective Units of Distress. We compared the fear for unimodal (visual or auditory) and bimodal (auditory-visual) dog stimuli. Dog-fearful participants as well as non-fearful participants reported more fear in response to bimodal audiovisual compared to unimodal presentation of dog stimuli. These results suggest that fear is more intense when the affective information is processed via multiple sensory pathways, which might be due to a cross-modal potentiation. Our findings have implications for the field of virtual reality-based therapy of phobias. Therapies could be refined and improved by implicating and manipulating the multisensory presentation of the feared situations.

Closing the sensorimotor loop: haptic feedback facilitates decoding of motor imagery

Science.gov (United States)

Gomez-Rodriguez, M.; Peters, J.; Hill, J.; Schölkopf, B.; Gharabaghi, A.; Grosse-Wentrup, M.

2011-06-01

The combination of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) with robot-assisted physical therapy constitutes a promising approach to neurorehabilitation of patients with severe hemiparetic syndromes caused by cerebrovascular brain damage (e.g. stroke) and other neurological conditions. In such a scenario, a key aspect is how to reestablish the disrupted sensorimotor feedback loop. However, to date it is an open question how artificially closing the sensorimotor feedback loop influences the decoding performance of a BCI. In this paper, we answer this issue by studying six healthy subjects and two stroke patients. We present empirical evidence that haptic feedback, provided by a seven degrees of freedom robotic arm, facilitates online decoding of arm movement intention. The results support the feasibility of future rehabilitative treatments based on the combination of robot-assisted physical therapy with BCIs.

Recall and recognition hypermnesia for Socratic stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Kazén, Miguel; Solís-Macías, Víctor M

2016-01-01

In two experiments, we investigate hypermnesia, net memory improvements with repeated testing of the same material after a single study trial. In the first experiment, we found hypermnesia across three trials for the recall of word solutions to Socratic stimuli (dictionary-like definitions of concepts) replicating Erdelyi, Buschke, and Finkelstein and, for the first time using these materials, for their recognition. In the second experiment, we had two "yes/no" recognition groups, a Socratic stimuli group presented with concrete and abstract verbal materials and a word-only control group. Using signal detection measures, we found hypermnesia for concrete Socratic stimuli-and stable performance for abstract stimuli across three recognition tests. The control group showed memory decrements across tests. We interpret these findings with the alternative retrieval pathways (ARP) hypothesis, contrasting it with alternative theories of hypermnesia, such as depth of processing, generation and retrieve-recognise. We conclude that recognition hypermnesia for concrete Socratic stimuli is a reliable phenomenon, which we found in two experiments involving both forced-choice and yes/no recognition procedures.

Facilitation of responses by task-irrelevant complex deviant stimuli.

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Schomaker, J; Meeter, M

2014-05-01

Novel stimuli reliably attract attention, suggesting that novelty may disrupt performance when it is task-irrelevant. However, under certain circumstances novel stimuli can also elicit a general alerting response having beneficial effects on performance. In a series of experiments we investigated whether different aspects of novelty--stimulus novelty, contextual novelty, surprise, deviance, and relative complexity--lead to distraction or facilitation. We used a version of the visual oddball paradigm in which participants responded to an occasional auditory target. Participants responded faster to this auditory target when it occurred during the presentation of novel visual stimuli than of standard stimuli, especially at SOAs of 0 and 200 ms (Experiment 1). Facilitation was absent for both infrequent simple deviants and frequent complex images (Experiment 2). However, repeated complex deviant images did facilitate responses to the auditory target at the 200 ms SOA (Experiment 3). These findings suggest that task-irrelevant deviant visual stimuli can facilitate responses to an unrelated auditory target in a short 0-200 millisecond time-window after presentation. This only occurs when the deviant stimuli are complex relative to standard stimuli. We link our findings to the novelty P3, which is generated under the same circumstances, and to the adaptive gain theory of the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system (Aston-Jones and Cohen, 2005), which may explain the timing of the effects. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Can a Soft Robotic Probe Use Stiffness Control Like a Human Finger to Improve Efficacy of Haptic Perception?

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Sornkarn, Nantachai; Nanayakkara, Thrishantha

2017-01-01

When humans are asked to palpate a soft tissue to locate a hard nodule, they regulate the stiffness, speed, and force of the finger during examination. If we understand the relationship between these behavioral variables and haptic information gain (transfer entropy) during manual probing, we can improve the efficacy of soft robotic probes for soft tissue palpation, such as in tumor localization in minimally invasive surgery. Here, we recorded the muscle co-contraction activity of the finger using EMG sensors to address the question as to whether joint stiffness control during manual palpation plays an important role in the haptic information gain. To address this question, we used a soft robotic probe with a controllable stiffness joint and a force sensor mounted at the base to represent the function of the tendon in a biological finger. Then, we trained a Markov chain using muscle co-contraction patterns of human subjects, and used it to control the stiffness of the soft robotic probe in the same soft tissue palpation task. The soft robotic experiments showed that haptic information gain about the depth of the hard nodule can be maximized by varying the internal stiffness of the soft probe.

A function-behavior-structure framework for quantification and reproduction of emotional haptic experience in using an electronic device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bae, Il Ju; Lee, Soo Hong; Ok, Hyung Seok; Lee, Jae In

2013-01-01

A user's haptic experience in using an electronic device is related to the continuous and dynamic variances of the structural state of the device. Since the changes of the structural component cause complex changes of the dynamics, it is difficult to predict the user's experience. We propose a function-behavior-structure framework to predict and improve the user's experience. The framework consists of the function layer model, the behavior layer model, and the structure layer model. Especially, the independent behavior model to the device is based on a physical phenomenon. Finally, an optimized structure which produces an ideal haptic experience for a cell phone is suggested.

Grounded Learning Experience: Helping Students Learn Physics through Visuo-Haptic Priming and Instruction

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Shih-Chieh Douglas

2013-01-01

In this dissertation, I investigate the effects of a grounded learning experience on college students' mental models of physics systems. The grounded learning experience consisted of a priming stage and an instruction stage, and within each stage, one of two different types of visuo-haptic representation was applied: visuo-gestural simulation…

Effects of auditory stimuli in the horizontal plane on audiovisual integration: an event-related potential study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Weiping; Li, Qi; Ochi, Tatsuya; Yang, Jingjing; Gao, Yulin; Tang, Xiaoyu; Takahashi, Satoshi; Wu, Jinglong

2013-01-01

This article aims to investigate whether auditory stimuli in the horizontal plane, particularly originating from behind the participant, affect audiovisual integration by using behavioral and event-related potential (ERP) measurements. In this study, visual stimuli were presented directly in front of the participants, auditory stimuli were presented at one location in an equidistant horizontal plane at the front (0°, the fixation point), right (90°), back (180°), or left (270°) of the participants, and audiovisual stimuli that include both visual stimuli and auditory stimuli originating from one of the four locations were simultaneously presented. These stimuli were presented randomly with equal probability; during this time, participants were asked to attend to the visual stimulus and respond promptly only to visual target stimuli (a unimodal visual target stimulus and the visual target of the audiovisual stimulus). A significant facilitation of reaction times and hit rates was obtained following audiovisual stimulation, irrespective of whether the auditory stimuli were presented in the front or back of the participant. However, no significant interactions were found between visual stimuli and auditory stimuli from the right or left. Two main ERP components related to audiovisual integration were found: first, auditory stimuli from the front location produced an ERP reaction over the right temporal area and right occipital area at approximately 160-200 milliseconds; second, auditory stimuli from the back produced a reaction over the parietal and occipital areas at approximately 360-400 milliseconds. Our results confirmed that audiovisual integration was also elicited, even though auditory stimuli were presented behind the participant, but no integration occurred when auditory stimuli were presented in the right or left spaces, suggesting that the human brain might be particularly sensitive to information received from behind than both sides.

77 FR 20847 - Certain Mobile Electronic Devices Incorporating Haptics; Institution of Investigation Pursuant to...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-06

... INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION [Investigation No. 337-TA-834] Certain Mobile Electronic Devices Incorporating Haptics; Institution of Investigation Pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1337 AGENCY: U.S. International Trade.... International Trade Commission on February 7, 2012, and an amended complaint was filed with the U.S...

The effects of curvature on haptic judgments of extent in sighted and blind people

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heller, Morton A.; Kappers, Astrid M L; McCarthy, Melissa; Clark, Ashley; Riddle, Tara; Fulkerson, Erin; Wemple, Lindsay; Walk, Anne McClure; Basso, Andreana; Wanek, Crystal; Russler, Kristen

2008-01-01

A series of experiments was carried out to examine the effect of curvature on haptic judgments of extent in sighted and blind individuals. Experiment 1 showed that diameters connecting the endpoints of semicircular lines were underestimated with respect to straight lines, but failed to show an

A Virtual Reality System for PTCD Simulation Using Direct Visuo-Haptic Rendering of Partially Segmented Image Data.

Science.gov (United States)

Fortmeier, Dirk; Mastmeyer, Andre; Schröder, Julian; Handels, Heinz

2016-01-01

This study presents a new visuo-haptic virtual reality (VR) training and planning system for percutaneous transhepatic cholangio-drainage (PTCD) based on partially segmented virtual patient models. We only use partially segmented image data instead of a full segmentation and circumvent the necessity of surface or volume mesh models. Haptic interaction with the virtual patient during virtual palpation, ultrasound probing and needle insertion is provided. Furthermore, the VR simulator includes X-ray and ultrasound simulation for image-guided training. The visualization techniques are GPU-accelerated by implementation in Cuda and include real-time volume deformations computed on the grid of the image data. Computation on the image grid enables straightforward integration of the deformed image data into the visualization components. To provide shorter rendering times, the performance of the volume deformation algorithm is improved by a multigrid approach. To evaluate the VR training system, a user evaluation has been performed and deformation algorithms are analyzed in terms of convergence speed with respect to a fully converged solution. The user evaluation shows positive results with increased user confidence after a training session. It is shown that using partially segmented patient data and direct volume rendering is suitable for the simulation of needle insertion procedures such as PTCD.

Development of a virtual reality haptic Veress needle insertion simulator for surgical skills training.

Science.gov (United States)

Okrainec, A; Farcas, M; Henao, O; Choy, I; Green, J; Fotoohi, M; Leslie, R; Wight, D; Karam, P; Gonzalez, N; Apkarian, J

2009-01-01

The Veress needle is the most commonly used technique for creating the pneumoperitoneum at the start of a laparoscopic surgical procedure. Inserting the Veress needle correctly is crucial since errors can cause significant harm to patients. Unfortunately, this technique can be difficult to teach since surgeons rely heavily on tactile feedback while advancing the needle through the various layers of the abdominal wall. This critical step in laparoscopy, therefore, can be challenging for novice trainees to learn without adequate opportunities to practice in a safe environment with no risk of injury to patients. To address this issue, we have successfully developed a prototype of a virtual reality haptic needle insertion simulator using the tactile feedback of 22 surgeons to set realistic haptic parameters. A survey of these surgeons concluded that our device appeared and felt realistic, and could potentially be a useful tool for teaching the proper technique of Veress needle insertion.

Sex-related memory recall and talkativeness for emotional stimuli

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Benedetto eArnone

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Recent studies have evidenced an increasing interest in sex-related brain mechanisms and cerebral lateralization subserving emotional memory, language processing, and conversational behavior. We used event related potentials (ERP to examine the influence of sex and hemisphere on brain responses to emotional stimuli. Given that the P300 component of ERP is considered a cognitive neuroelectric phenomenon, we compared left and right hemisphere P300 responses to emotional stimuli in men and women. As indexed by both amplitude and latency measures, emotional stimuli elicited more robust P300 effects in the left hemisphere in women than in men, while a stronger P300 component was elicited in the right hemisphere in men compared to women. Our findings show that the variables of sex and hemisphere interacted significantly to influence the strength of the P300 component to the emotional stimuli. Emotional stimuli were also best recalled when given a long-term, incidental memory test, a fact potentially related to the differential P300 waves at encoding. Moreover, taking into account the sex-related differences in language processing and conversational behaviour, in the present study we evaluated possible talkativeness differences between the two genders in the recollection of emotional stimuli. Our data showed that women used a higher number of words, compared to men, to describe both arousal and neutral stories. Moreover, the present results support the view that sex differences in lateralization may not be a general feature of language processing but may be related to the specific condition, such as the emotional content of stimuli.

Prototype of haptic device for sole of foot using magnetic field sensitive elastomer

Science.gov (United States)

Kikuchi, T.; Masuda, Y.; Sugiyama, M.; Mitsumata, T.; Ohori, S.

2013-02-01

Walking is one of the most popular activities and a healthy aerobic exercise for the elderly. However, if they have physical and / or cognitive disabilities, sometimes it is challenging to go somewhere they don't know well. The final goal of this study is to develop a virtual reality walking system that allows users to walk in virtual worlds fabricated with computer graphics. We focus on a haptic device that can perform various plantar pressures on users' soles of feet as an additional sense in the virtual reality walking. In this study, we discuss a use of a magnetic field sensitive elastomer (MSE) as a working material for the haptic interface on the sole. The first prototype with MSE was developed and evaluated in this work. According to the measurement of planter pressures, it was found that this device can perform different pressures on the sole of a light-weight user by applying magnetic field on the MSE. The result also implied necessities of the improvement of the magnetic circuit and the basic structure of the mechanism of the device.

Emotional attention for erotic stimuli: Cognitive and brain mechanisms.

Science.gov (United States)

Sennwald, Vanessa; Pool, Eva; Brosch, Tobias; Delplanque, Sylvain; Bianchi-Demicheli, Francesco; Sander, David

2016-06-01

It has long been posited that among emotional stimuli, only negative threatening information modulates early shifts of attention. However, in the last few decades there has been an increase in research showing that attention is also involuntarily oriented toward positive rewarding stimuli such as babies, food, and erotic information. Because reproduction-related stimuli have some of the largest effects among positive stimuli on emotional attention, the present work reviews recent literature and proposes that the cognitive and cerebral mechanisms underlying the involuntarily attentional orientation toward threat-related information are also sensitive to erotic information. More specifically, the recent research suggests that both types of information involuntarily orient attention due to their concern relevance and that the amygdala plays an important role in detecting concern-relevant stimuli, thereby enhancing perceptual processing and influencing emotional attentional processes. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A remote instruction system empowered by tightly shared haptic sensation

Science.gov (United States)

Nishino, Hiroaki; Yamaguchi, Akira; Kagawa, Tsuneo; Utsumiya, Kouichi

2007-09-01

We present a system to realize an on-line instruction environment among physically separated participants based on a multi-modal communication strategy. In addition to visual and acoustic information, commonly used communication modalities in network environments, our system provides a haptic channel to intuitively conveying partners' sense of touch. The human touch sensation, however, is very sensitive for delays and jitters in the networked virtual reality (NVR) systems. Therefore, a method to compensate for such negative factors needs to be provided. We show an NVR architecture to implement a basic framework that can be shared by various applications and effectively deals with the problems. We take a hybrid approach to implement both data consistency by client-server and scalability by peer-to-peer models. As an application system built on the proposed architecture, a remote instruction system targeted at teaching handwritten characters and line patterns on a Korea-Japan high-speed research network also is mentioned.

A Semi-automated Approach to Improve the Efficiency of Medical Imaging Segmentation for Haptic Rendering.

Science.gov (United States)

Banerjee, Pat; Hu, Mengqi; Kannan, Rahul; Krishnaswamy, Srinivasan

2017-08-01

The Sensimmer platform represents our ongoing research on simultaneous haptics and graphics rendering of 3D models. For simulation of medical and surgical procedures using Sensimmer, 3D models must be obtained from medical imaging data, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT). Image segmentation techniques are used to determine the anatomies of interest from the images. 3D models are obtained from segmentation and their triangle reduction is required for graphics and haptics rendering. This paper focuses on creating 3D models by automating the segmentation of CT images based on the pixel contrast for integrating the interface between Sensimmer and medical imaging devices, using the volumetric approach, Hough transform method, and manual centering method. Hence, automating the process has reduced the segmentation time by 56.35% while maintaining the same accuracy of the output at ±2 voxels.

Roughness based perceptual analysis towards digital skin imaging system with haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, K

2016-08-01

To examine psoriasis or atopic eczema, analyzing skin roughness by palpation is essential to precisely diagnose skin diseases. However, optical sensor based skin imaging systems do not allow dermatologists to touch skin images. To solve the problem, a new haptic rendering technology that can accurately display skin roughness must be developed. In addition, the rendering algorithm must be able to filter spatial noises created during 2D to 3D image conversion without losing the original roughness on the skin image. In this study, a perceptual way to design a noise filter that will remove spatial noises and in the meantime recover maximized roughness is introduced by understanding human sensitivity on surface roughness. A visuohaptic rendering system that can provide a user with seeing and touching digital skin surface roughness has been developed including a geometric roughness estimation method from a meshed surface. In following, a psychophysical experiment was designed and conducted with 12 human subjects to measure human perception with the developed visual and haptic interfaces to examine surface roughness. From the psychophysical experiment, it was found that touch is more sensitive at lower surface roughness, and vice versa. Human perception with both senses, vision and touch, becomes less sensitive to surface distortions as roughness increases. When interact with both channels, visual and haptic interfaces, the performance to detect abnormalities on roughness is greatly improved by sensory integration with the developed visuohaptic rendering system. The result can be used as a guideline to design a noise filter that can perceptually remove spatial noises while recover maximized roughness values from a digital skin image obtained by optical sensors. In addition, the result also confirms that the developed visuohaptic rendering system can help dermatologists or skin care professionals examine skin conditions by using vision and touch at the same time. © 2015

Interacting with the biomolecular solvent accessible surface via a haptic feedback device

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hayward Steven

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background From the 1950s computer based renderings of molecules have been produced to aid researchers in their understanding of biomolecular structure and function. A major consideration for any molecular graphics software is the ability to visualise the three dimensional structure of the molecule. Traditionally, this was accomplished via stereoscopic pairs of images and later realised with three dimensional display technologies. Using a haptic feedback device in combination with molecular graphics has the potential to enhance three dimensional visualisation. Although haptic feedback devices have been used to feel the interaction forces during molecular docking they have not been used explicitly as an aid to visualisation. Results A haptic rendering application for biomolecular visualisation has been developed that allows the user to gain three-dimensional awareness of the shape of a biomolecule. By using a water molecule as the probe, modelled as an oxygen atom having hard-sphere interactions with the biomolecule, the process of exploration has the further benefit of being able to determine regions on the molecular surface that are accessible to the solvent. This gives insight into how awkward it is for a water molecule to gain access to or escape from channels and cavities, indicating possible entropic bottlenecks. In the case of liver alcohol dehydrogenase bound to the inhibitor SAD, it was found that there is a channel just wide enough for a single water molecule to pass through. Placing the probe coincident with crystallographic water molecules suggests that they are sometimes located within small pockets that provide a sterically stable environment irrespective of hydrogen bonding considerations. Conclusion By using the software, named HaptiMol ISAS (available from http://www.haptimol.co.uk, one can explore the accessible surface of biomolecules using a three-dimensional input device to gain insights into the shape and water

Evaluation of Subjective and Objective Performance Metrics for Haptically Controlled Robotic Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cong Dung Pham

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper studies in detail how different evaluation methods perform when it comes to describing the performance of haptically controlled mobile manipulators. Particularly, we investigate how well subjective metrics perform compared to objective metrics. To find the best metrics to describe the performance of a control scheme is challenging when human operators are involved; how the user perceives the performance of the controller does not necessarily correspond to the directly measurable metrics normally used in controller evaluation. It is therefore important to study whether there is any correspondence between how the user perceives the performance of a controller, and how it performs in terms of directly measurable metrics such as the time used to perform a task, number of errors, accuracy, and so on. To perform these tests we choose a system that consists of a mobile manipulator that is controlled by an operator through a haptic device. This is a good system for studying different performance metrics as the performance can be determined by subjective metrics based on feedback from the users, and also as objective and directly measurable metrics. The system consists of a robotic arm which provides for interaction and manipulation, which is mounted on a mobile base which extends the workspace of the arm. The operator thus needs to perform both interaction and locomotion using a single haptic device. While the position of the on-board camera is determined by the base motion, the principal control objective is the motion of the manipulator arm. This calls for intelligent control allocation between the base and the manipulator arm in order to obtain intuitive control of both the camera and the arm. We implement three different approaches to the control allocation problem, i.e., whether the vehicle or manipulator arm actuation is applied to generate the desired motion. The performance of the different control schemes is evaluated, and our

Archaeologies of touch interfacing with haptics from electricity to computing

CERN Document Server

Parisi, David

2018-01-01

David Parisi offers the first full history of new computing technologies known as haptic interfaces--which use electricity, vibration, and force feedback to stimulate the sense of touch--showing how the efforts of scientists and engineers over the past 300 years have gradually remade and redefined our sense of touch. Archaeologies of Touch offers a timely and provocative engagement with the long history of touch technology that helps us confront and question the power relations underpinning the project of giving touch its own set of technical media.

A function-behavior-structure framework for quantification and reproduction of emotional haptic experience in using an electronic device

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bae, Il Ju; Lee, Soo Hong [Yonsei University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Ok, Hyung Seok; Lee, Jae In [LG Electronics Inc, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2013-08-15

A user's haptic experience in using an electronic device is related to the continuous and dynamic variances of the structural state of the device. Since the changes of the structural component cause complex changes of the dynamics, it is difficult to predict the user's experience. We propose a function-behavior-structure framework to predict and improve the user's experience. The framework consists of the function layer model, the behavior layer model, and the structure layer model. Especially, the independent behavior model to the device is based on a physical phenomenon. Finally, an optimized structure which produces an ideal haptic experience for a cell phone is suggested.

Virtual reality in neurosurgical education: part-task ventriculostomy simulation with dynamic visual and haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Lemole, G Michael; Banerjee, P Pat; Luciano, Cristian; Neckrysh, Sergey; Charbel, Fady T

2007-07-01

Mastery of the neurosurgical skill set involves many hours of supervised intraoperative training. Convergence of political, economic, and social forces has limited neurosurgical resident operative exposure. There is need to develop realistic neurosurgical simulations that reproduce the operative experience, unrestricted by time and patient safety constraints. Computer-based, virtual reality platforms offer just such a possibility. The combination of virtual reality with dynamic, three-dimensional stereoscopic visualization, and haptic feedback technologies makes realistic procedural simulation possible. Most neurosurgical procedures can be conceptualized and segmented into critical task components, which can be simulated independently or in conjunction with other modules to recreate the experience of a complex neurosurgical procedure. We use the ImmersiveTouch (ImmersiveTouch, Inc., Chicago, IL) virtual reality platform, developed at the University of Illinois at Chicago, to simulate the task of ventriculostomy catheter placement as a proof-of-concept. Computed tomographic data are used to create a virtual anatomic volume. Haptic feedback offers simulated resistance and relaxation with passage of a virtual three-dimensional ventriculostomy catheter through the brain parenchyma into the ventricle. A dynamic three-dimensional graphical interface renders changing visual perspective as the user's head moves. The simulation platform was found to have realistic visual, tactile, and handling characteristics, as assessed by neurosurgical faculty, residents, and medical students. We have developed a realistic, haptics-based virtual reality simulator for neurosurgical education. Our first module recreates a critical component of the ventriculostomy placement task. This approach to task simulation can be assembled in a modular manner to reproduce entire neurosurgical procedures.

Real-time surgery simulation of intracranial aneurysm clipping with patient-specific geometries and haptic feedback

Science.gov (United States)

Fenz, Wolfgang; Dirnberger, Johannes

2015-03-01

Providing suitable training for aspiring neurosurgeons is becoming more and more problematic. The increasing popularity of the endovascular treatment of intracranial aneurysms leads to a lack of simple surgical situations for clipping operations, leaving mainly the complex cases, which present even experienced surgeons with a challenge. To alleviate this situation, we have developed a training simulator with haptic interaction allowing trainees to practice virtual clipping surgeries on real patient-specific vessel geometries. By using specialized finite element (FEM) algorithms (fast finite element method, matrix condensation) combined with GPU acceleration, we can achieve the necessary frame rate for smooth real-time interaction with the detailed models needed for a realistic simulation of the vessel wall deformation caused by the clamping with surgical clips. Vessel wall geometries for typical training scenarios were obtained from 3D-reconstructed medical image data, while for the instruments (clipping forceps, various types of clips, suction tubes) we use models provided by manufacturer Aesculap AG. Collisions between vessel and instruments have to be continuously detected and transformed into corresponding boundary conditions and feedback forces, calculated using a contact plane method. After a training, the achieved result can be assessed based on various criteria, including a simulation of the residual blood flow into the aneurysm. Rigid models of the surgical access and surrounding brain tissue, plus coupling a real forceps to the haptic input device further increase the realism of the simulation.

The virtual haptic back: A simulation for training in palpatory diagnosis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eland David C

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Models and simulations are finding increased roles in medical education. The Virtual Haptic Back (VHB is a virtual reality simulation of the mechanical properties of the human back designed as an aid to teaching clinical palpatory diagnosis. Methods Eighty-nine first year medical students of the Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine carried out six, 15-minute practice sessions with the VHB, plus tests before and after the sessions in order to monitor progress in identifying regions of simulated abnormal tissue compliance. Students palpated with two digits, fingers or thumbs, by placing them in gimbaled thimbles at the ends of PHANToM 3.0® haptic interface arms. The interface simulated the contours and compliance of the back surface by the action of electric motors. The motors limited the compression of the virtual tissues induced by the palpating fingers, by generating counterforces. Users could see the position of their fingers with respect to the back on a video monitor just behind the plane of the haptic back. The abnormal region varied randomly among 12 locations between trials. During the practice sessions student users received immediate feedback following each trial, indicating either a correct choice or the actual location of the abnormality if an incorrect choice had been made. This allowed the user to feel the actual abnormality before going on to the next trial. Changes in accuracy, speed and Weber fraction across practice sessions were analyzed using a repeated measures analysis of variance. Results Students improved in accuracy and speed of diagnosis with practice. The smallest difference in simulated tissue compliance users were able to detect improved from 28% (SD = 9.5% to 14% (SD = 4.4% during the practice sessions while average detection time decreased from 39 (SD = 19.8 to 17 (SD = 11.7 seconds. When asked in anonymous evaluation questionnaires if they judged the VHB practice to be helpful to

Haptic Edge Detection Through Shear

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Platkiewicz, Jonathan; Lipson, Hod; Hayward, Vincent

2016-03-01

Most tactile sensors are based on the assumption that touch depends on measuring pressure. However, the pressure distribution at the surface of a tactile sensor cannot be acquired directly and must be inferred from the deformation field induced by the touched object in the sensor medium. Currently, there is no consensus as to which components of strain are most informative for tactile sensing. Here, we propose that shape-related tactile information is more suitably recovered from shear strain than normal strain. Based on a contact mechanics analysis, we demonstrate that the elastic behavior of a haptic probe provides a robust edge detection mechanism when shear strain is sensed. We used a jamming-based robot gripper as a tactile sensor to empirically validate that shear strain processing gives accurate edge information that is invariant to changes in pressure, as predicted by the contact mechanics study. This result has implications for the design of effective tactile sensors as well as for the understanding of the early somatosensory processing in mammals.

Attentional bias for positive emotional stimuli: A meta-analytic investigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Pool, Eva; Brosch, Tobias; Delplanque, Sylvain; Sander, David

2016-01-01

Despite an initial focus on negative threatening stimuli, researchers have more recently expanded the investigation of attentional biases toward positive rewarding stimuli. The present meta-analysis systematically compared attentional bias for positive compared with neutral visual stimuli across 243 studies (N = 9,120 healthy participants) that used different types of attentional paradigms and positive stimuli. Factors were tested that, as postulated by several attentional models derived from theories of emotion, might modulate this bias. Overall, results showed a significant, albeit modest (Hedges' g = .258), attentional bias for positive as compared with neutral stimuli. Moderator analyses revealed that the magnitude of this attentional bias varied as a function of arousal and that this bias was significantly larger when the emotional stimulus was relevant to specific concerns (e.g., hunger) of the participants compared with other positive stimuli that were less relevant to the participants' concerns. Moreover, the moderator analyses showed that attentional bias for positive stimuli was larger in paradigms that measure early, rather than late, attentional processing, suggesting that attentional bias for positive stimuli occurs rapidly and involuntarily. Implications for theories of emotion and attention are discussed. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Heightened attentional capture by visual food stimuli in anorexia nervosa.

Science.gov (United States)

Neimeijer, Renate A M; Roefs, Anne; de Jong, Peter J

2017-08-01

The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that anorexia nervosa (AN) patients are relatively insensitive to the attentional capture of visual food stimuli. Attentional avoidance of food might help AN patients to prevent more elaborate processing of food stimuli and the subsequent generation of craving, which might enable AN patients to maintain their strict diet. Participants were 66 restrictive AN spectrum patients and 55 healthy controls. A single-target rapid serial visual presentation task was used with food and disorder-neutral cues as critical distracter stimuli and disorder-neutral pictures as target stimuli. AN spectrum patients showed diminished task performance when visual food cues were presented in close temporal proximity of the to-be-identified target. In contrast to our hypothesis, results indicate that food cues automatically capture AN spectrum patients' attention. One explanation could be that the enhanced attentional capture of food cues in AN is driven by the relatively high threat value of food items in AN. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Haptic-Multimodal Flight Control System Update

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Goodrich, Kenneth H.; Schutte, Paul C.; Williams, Ralph A.

2011-01-01

The rapidly advancing capabilities of autonomous aircraft suggest a future where many of the responsibilities of today s pilot transition to the vehicle, transforming the pilot s job into something akin to driving a car or simply being a passenger. Notionally, this transition will reduce the specialized skills, training, and attention required of the human user while improving safety and performance. However, our experience with highly automated aircraft highlights many challenges to this transition including: lack of automation resilience; adverse human-automation interaction under stress; and the difficulty of developing certification standards and methods of compliance for complex systems performing critical functions traditionally performed by the pilot (e.g., sense and avoid vs. see and avoid). Recognizing these opportunities and realities, researchers at NASA Langley are developing a haptic-multimodal flight control (HFC) system concept that can serve as a bridge between today s state of the art aircraft that are highly automated but have little autonomy and can only be operated safely by highly trained experts (i.e., pilots) to a future in which non-experts (e.g., drivers) can safely and reliably use autonomous aircraft to perform a variety of missions. This paper reviews the motivation and theoretical basis of the HFC system, describes its current state of development, and presents results from two pilot-in-the-loop simulation studies. These preliminary studies suggest the HFC reshapes human-automation interaction in a way well-suited to revolutionary ease-of-use.

Investigating Deviance Distraction and the Impact of the Modality of the To-Be-Ignored Stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Marsja, Erik; Neely, Gregory; Ljungberg, Jessica K

2018-03-01

It has been suggested that deviance distraction is caused by unexpected sensory events in the to-be-ignored stimuli violating the cognitive system's predictions of incoming stimuli. The majority of research has used methods where the to-be-ignored expected (standards) and the unexpected (deviants) stimuli are presented within the same modality. Less is known about the behavioral impact of deviance distraction when the to-be-ignored stimuli are presented in different modalities (e.g., standard and deviants presented in different modalities). In three experiments using cross-modal oddball tasks with mixed-modality to-be-ignored stimuli, we examined the distractive role of unexpected auditory deviants presented in a continuous stream of expected standard vibrations. The results showed that deviance distraction seems to be dependent upon the to-be-ignored stimuli being presented within the same modality, and that the simplest omission of something expected; in this case, a standard vibration may be enough to capture attention and distract performance.

Analyzing the user behavior towards Electronic Commerce stimuli

OpenAIRE

Carlota Lorenzo-Romero; María-del-Carmen Alarcón-del-Amo

2016-01-01

Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response paradigm this research analyzes the main differences between the effects of two types of web technologies: Verbal web technology (i.e. navigational structure as utilitarian stimulus) versus nonverbal web technology (music and presentation of products as hedonic stimuli). Specific webmosphere stimuli have not been examined yet as separate variables and their impact on internal and behavioral responses seems unknown. Therefore, the objective of this resea...

Optimum design of 6-DOF parallel manipulator with translational/rotational workspaces for haptic device application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoon, Jung Won; Hwang, Yoon Kwon [Gyeongsang National University, Jinju (Korea, Republic of); Ryu, Je Ha [Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju (Korea, Republic of)

2010-05-15

This paper proposes an optimum design method that satisfies the desired orientation workspace at the boundary of the translation workspace while maximizing the mechanism isotropy for parallel manipulators. A simple genetic algorithm is used to obtain the optimal linkage parameters of a six-degree-of-freedom parallel manipulator that can be used as a haptic device. The objective function is composed of a desired spherical shape translation workspace and a desired orientation workspace located on the boundaries of the desired translation workspace, along with a global conditioning index based on a homogeneous Jacobian matrix. The objective function was optimized to satisfy the desired orientation workspace at the boundary positions as translated from a neutral position of the increased entropy mechanism. An optimization result with desired translation and orientation workspaces for a haptic device was obtained to show the effectiveness of the suggested scheme, and the kinematic performances of the proposed model were compared with those of a preexisting base model

Optimum design of 6-DOF parallel manipulator with translational/rotational workspaces for haptic device application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Jung Won; Hwang, Yoon Kwon; Ryu, Je Ha

2010-01-01

This paper proposes an optimum design method that satisfies the desired orientation workspace at the boundary of the translation workspace while maximizing the mechanism isotropy for parallel manipulators. A simple genetic algorithm is used to obtain the optimal linkage parameters of a six-degree-of-freedom parallel manipulator that can be used as a haptic device. The objective function is composed of a desired spherical shape translation workspace and a desired orientation workspace located on the boundaries of the desired translation workspace, along with a global conditioning index based on a homogeneous Jacobian matrix. The objective function was optimized to satisfy the desired orientation workspace at the boundary positions as translated from a neutral position of the increased entropy mechanism. An optimization result with desired translation and orientation workspaces for a haptic device was obtained to show the effectiveness of the suggested scheme, and the kinematic performances of the proposed model were compared with those of a preexisting base model

Force modeling for incisions into various tissues with MRF haptic master

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Pyunghwa; Kim, Soomin; Park, Young-Dai; Choi, Seung-Bok

2016-03-01

This study proposes a new model to predict the reaction force that occurs in incisions during robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery. The reaction force is fed back to the manipulator by a magneto-rheological fluid (MRF) haptic master, which is featured by a bi-directional clutch actuator. The reaction force feedback provides similar sensations to laparotomy that cannot be provided by a conventional master for surgery. This advantage shortens the training period for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery and can improve the accuracy of operations. The reaction force modeling of incisions can be utilized in a surgical simulator that provides a virtual reaction force. In this work, in order to model the reaction force during incisions, the energy aspect of the incision process is adopted and analyzed. Each mode of the incision process is classified by the tendency of the energy change, and modeled for realistic real-time application. The reaction force model uses actual reaction force information with three types of actual tissues: hard tissue, medium tissue, and soft tissue. This modeled force is realized by the MRF haptic master through an algorithm based on the position and velocity of a scalpel using two different control methods: an open-loop algorithm and a closed-loop algorithm. The reaction forces obtained from the proposed model are compared with a desired force in time domain.

Force modeling for incisions into various tissues with MRF haptic master

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Pyunghwa; Kim, Soomin; Park, Young-Dai; Choi, Seung-Bok

2016-01-01

This study proposes a new model to predict the reaction force that occurs in incisions during robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery. The reaction force is fed back to the manipulator by a magneto-rheological fluid (MRF) haptic master, which is featured by a bi-directional clutch actuator. The reaction force feedback provides similar sensations to laparotomy that cannot be provided by a conventional master for surgery. This advantage shortens the training period for robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery and can improve the accuracy of operations. The reaction force modeling of incisions can be utilized in a surgical simulator that provides a virtual reaction force. In this work, in order to model the reaction force during incisions, the energy aspect of the incision process is adopted and analyzed. Each mode of the incision process is classified by the tendency of the energy change, and modeled for realistic real-time application. The reaction force model uses actual reaction force information with three types of actual tissues: hard tissue, medium tissue, and soft tissue. This modeled force is realized by the MRF haptic master through an algorithm based on the position and velocity of a scalpel using two different control methods: an open-loop algorithm and a closed-loop algorithm. The reaction forces obtained from the proposed model are compared with a desired force in time domain. (paper)

Dopamine modulates reward system activity during subconscious processing of sexual stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Oei, Nicole Y L; Rombouts, Serge Arb; Soeter, Roelof P; van Gerven, Joop M; Both, Stephanie

2012-06-01

Dopaminergic medication influences conscious processing of rewarding stimuli, and is associated with impulsive-compulsive behaviors, such as hypersexuality. Previous studies have shown that subconscious subliminal presentation of sexual stimuli activates brain areas known to be part of the 'reward system'. In this study, it was hypothesized that dopamine modulates activation in key areas of the reward system, such as the nucleus accumbens, during subconscious processing of sexual stimuli. Young healthy males (n=53) were randomly assigned to two experimental groups or a control group, and were administered a dopamine antagonist (haloperidol), a dopamine agonist (levodopa), or placebo. Brain activation was assessed during a backward-masking task with subliminally presented sexual stimuli. Results showed that levodopa significantly enhanced the activation in the nucleus accumbens and dorsal anterior cingulate when subliminal sexual stimuli were shown, whereas haloperidol decreased activations in those areas. Dopamine thus enhances activations in regions thought to regulate 'wanting' in response to potentially rewarding sexual stimuli that are not consciously perceived. This running start of the reward system might explain the pull of rewards in individuals with compulsive reward-seeking behaviors such as hypersexuality and patients who receive dopaminergic medication.

Investigation of Virtual Digital Human and Robotic Device Technology Merger Complimented by Haptics and Autostereoscopic Displays, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — As expected, the STTR Phase I investigation confirmed that the Digital Virtual Human (DVH) and Robonaut technologies can be merged, and that haptic and...

Heightened attentional capture by visual food stimuli in Anorexia Nervosa

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Neimeijer, Renate A.M.; Roefs, Anne; de Jong, Peter J.

The present study was designed to test the hypothesis that anorexia nervosa (AN) patients are relatively insensitive to the attentional capture of visual food stimuli. Attentional avoidance of food might help AN patients to prevent more elaborate processing of food stimuli and the subsequent

Computer-aided trauma simulation system with haptic feedback is easy and fast for oral-maxillofacial surgeons to learn and use.

Science.gov (United States)

Schvartzman, Sara C; Silva, Rebeka; Salisbury, Ken; Gaudilliere, Dyani; Girod, Sabine

2014-10-01

Computer-assisted surgical (CAS) planning tools have become widely available in craniomaxillofacial surgery, but are time consuming and often require professional technical assistance to simulate a case. An initial oral and maxillofacial (OM) surgical user experience was evaluated with a newly developed CAS system featuring a bimanual sense of touch (haptic). Three volunteer OM surgeons received a 5-minute verbal introduction to the use of a newly developed haptic-enabled planning system. The surgeons were instructed to simulate mandibular fracture reductions of 3 clinical cases, within a 15-minute time limit and without a time limit, and complete a questionnaire to assess their subjective experience with the system. Standard landmarks and linear and angular measurements between the simulated results and the actual surgical outcome were compared. After the 5-minute instruction, all 3 surgeons were able to use the system independently. The analysis of standardized anatomic measurements showed that the simulation results within a 15-minute time limit were not significantly different from those without a time limit. Mean differences between measurements of surgical and simulated fracture reductions were within current resolution limitations in collision detection, segmentation of computed tomographic scans, and haptic devices. All 3 surgeons reported that the system was easy to learn and use and that they would be comfortable integrating it into their daily clinical practice for trauma cases. A CAS system with a haptic interface that capitalizes on touch and force feedback experience similar to operative procedures is fast and easy for OM surgeons to learn and use. Copyright © 2014 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. All rights reserved.

Evaluating User Response to In-Car Haptic Feedback Touchscreens Using the Lane Change Test

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew J. Pitts

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Touchscreen interfaces are widely used in modern technology, from mobile devices to in-car infotainment systems. However, touchscreens impose significant visual workload demands on the user which have safety implications for use in cars. Previous studies indicate that the application of haptic feedback can improve both performance of and affective response to user interfaces. This paper reports on and extends the findings of a 2009 study conducted to evaluate the effects of different combinations of touchscreen visual, audible, and haptic feedback on driving and task performance, affective response, and subjective workload; the initial findings of which were originally published in (M. J. Pitts et al., 2009. A total of 48 non-expert users completed the study. A dual-task approach was applied, using the Lane Change Test as the driving task and realistic automotive use case touchscreen tasks. Results indicated that, while feedback type had no effect on driving or task performance, preference was expressed for multimodal feedback over visual alone. Issues relating to workload and cross-modal interaction were also identified.

An exploration of grip force regulation with a low-impedance myoelectric prosthesis featuring referred haptic feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Jeremy D; Paek, Andrew; Syed, Mashaal; O'Malley, Marcia K; Shewokis, Patricia A; Contreras-Vidal, Jose L; Davis, Alicia J; Gillespie, R Brent

2015-11-25

Haptic display technologies are well suited to relay proprioceptive, force, and contact cues from a prosthetic terminal device back to the residual limb and thereby reduce reliance on visual feedback. The ease with which an amputee interprets these haptic cues, however, likely depends on whether their dynamic signal behavior corresponds to expected behaviors-behaviors consonant with a natural limb coupled to the environment. A highly geared motor in a terminal device along with the associated high back-drive impedance influences dynamic interactions with the environment, creating effects not encountered with a natural limb. Here we explore grasp and lift performance with a backdrivable (low backdrive impedance) terminal device placed under proportional myoelectric position control that features referred haptic feedback. We fabricated a back-drivable terminal device that could be used by amputees and non-amputees alike and drove aperture (or grip force, when a stiff object was in its grasp) in proportion to a myoelectric signal drawn from a single muscle site in the forearm. In randomly ordered trials, we assessed the performance of N=10 participants (7 non-amputee, 3 amputee) attempting to grasp and lift an object using the terminal device under three feedback conditions (no feedback, vibrotactile feedback, and joint torque feedback), and two object weights that were indiscernible by vision. Both non-amputee and amputee participants scaled their grip force according to the object weight. Our results showed only minor differences in grip force, grip/load force coordination, and slip as a function of sensory feedback condition, though the grip force at the point of lift-off for the heavier object was significantly greater for amputee participants in the presence of joint torque feedback. An examination of grip/load force phase plots revealed that our amputee participants used larger safety margins and demonstrated less coordination than our non-amputee participants

The Haptic Sublime and the ‘cold stony reality’ of Mountaineering

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan McNee

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This article looks at how the Victorian sport of mountaineering, and the new genre of literature associated with it, mirrored the wider societal preoccupation with physicality and tactility. It traces the various ways in which developments in physiology, psychophysiology, and aesthetics in the late nineteenth century were reflected in the accounts of mountaineers, and suggests that a new aesthetic of mountain appreciation - the ‘haptic sublime’ - emerged in this period, as an expression of this new emphasis on physical engagement.

Stimuli-Responsive Polymeric Nanoparticles.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Xiaolin; Yang, Ying; Urban, Marek W

2017-07-01

There is increasing evidence that stimuli-responsive nanomaterials have become significantly critical components of modern materials design and technological developments. Recent advances in synthesis and fabrication of stimuli-responsive polymeric nanoparticles with built-in stimuli-responsive components (Part A) and surface modifications of functional nanoparticles that facilitate responsiveness (Part B) are outlined here. The synthesis and construction of stimuli-responsive spherical, core-shell, concentric, hollow, Janus, gibbous/inverse gibbous, and cocklebur morphologies are discussed in Part A, with the focus on shape, color, or size changes resulting from external stimuli. Although inorganic/metallic nanoparticles exhibit many useful properties, including thermal or electrical conductivity, catalytic activity, or magnetic properties, their assemblies and formation of higher order constructs are often enhanced by surface modifications. Section B focuses on selected surface reactions that lead to responsiveness achieved by decorating nanoparticles with stimuli-responsive polymers. Although grafting-to and grafting-from dominate these synthetic efforts, there are opportunities for developing novel synthetic approaches facilitating controllable recognition, signaling, or sequential responses. Many nanotechnologies utilize a combination of organic and inorganic phases to produce ceramic or metallic nanoparticles. One can envision the development of new properties by combining inorganic (metals, metal oxides) and organic (polymer) phases into one nanoparticle designated as "ceramers" (inorganics) and "metamers" (metallic). © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Attentional Capture by Emotional Stimuli Is Modulated by Semantic Processing

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yang-Ming; Baddeley, Alan; Young, Andrew W.

2008-01-01

The attentional blink paradigm was used to examine whether emotional stimuli always capture attention. The processing requirement for emotional stimuli in a rapid sequential visual presentation stream was manipulated to investigate the circumstances under which emotional distractors capture attention, as reflected in an enhanced attentional blink…

Perceptual load modifies processing of unattended stimuli both in the presence and absence of attended stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Couperus, J W

2010-11-26

This study explored effects of perceptual load on stimulus processing in the presence and absence of an attended stimulus. Participants were presented with a bilateral or unilateral display and asked to perform a discrimination task at either low or high perceptual load. Electrophysiological responses to stimuli were then compared at the P100 and N100. As in previous studies, perceptual load modified processing of attended and unattended stimuli seen at occipital scalp sites. Moreover, perceptual load modulated attention effects when the attended stimulus was presented at high perceptual load for unilateral displays. However, this was not true when the attended and unattended stimulus appeared simultaneously in bilateral displays. Instead, only a main effect of perceptual load was found. Reductions in processing contralateral to the unattended stimulus at the N100 provide support for Lavie's (1995) theory of selective attention. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

77 FR 49458 - Certain Mobile Electronic Devices Incorporating Haptics; Amendment of the Complaint and Notice of...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-08-16

... INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION [Investigation No. 337-TA-834] Certain Mobile Electronic Devices.... 1337 in the importation, sale for importation, and sale within the United States after importation of certain mobile electronic devices incorporating haptics, by reason of the infringement of claims of six...

Gender differences in identifying emotions from auditory and visual stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Waaramaa, Teija

2017-12-01

The present study focused on gender differences in emotion identification from auditory and visual stimuli produced by two male and two female actors. Differences in emotion identification from nonsense samples, language samples and prolonged vowels were investigated. It was also studied whether auditory stimuli can convey the emotional content of speech without visual stimuli, and whether visual stimuli can convey the emotional content of speech without auditory stimuli. The aim was to get a better knowledge of vocal attributes and a more holistic understanding of the nonverbal communication of emotion. Females tended to be more accurate in emotion identification than males. Voice quality parameters played a role in emotion identification in both genders. The emotional content of the samples was best conveyed by nonsense sentences, better than by prolonged vowels or shared native language of the speakers and participants. Thus, vocal non-verbal communication tends to affect the interpretation of emotion even in the absence of language. The emotional stimuli were better recognized from visual stimuli than auditory stimuli by both genders. Visual information about speech may not be connected to the language; instead, it may be based on the human ability to understand the kinetic movements in speech production more readily than the characteristics of the acoustic cues.

Analyzing the User Behavior toward Electronic Commerce Stimuli

OpenAIRE

Lorenzo-Romero, Carlota; Alarcón-del-Amo, María-del-Carmen; Gómez-Borja, Miguel-Ángel

2016-01-01

Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response paradigm this research analyzes the main differences between the effects of two types of web technologies: Verbal web technology (i.e., navigational structure as utilitarian stimulus) versus non-verbal web technology (music and presentation of products as hedonic stimuli). Specific webmosphere stimuli have not been examined yet as separate variables and their impact on internal and behavioral responses seems unknown. Therefore, the objective of this res...

Influence of material and haptic design on the mechanical stability of intraocular lenses by means of finite-element modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Remón, Laura; Siedlecki, Damian; Cabeza-Gil, Iulen; Calvo, Begoña

2018-03-01

Intraocular lenses (IOLs) are used in the cataract treatment for surgical replacement of the opacified crystalline lens. Before being implanted they have to pass the strict quality control to guarantee a good biomechanical stability inside the capsular bag, avoiding the rotation, and to provide a good optical quality. The goal of this study was to investigate the influence of the material and haptic design on the behavior of the IOLs under dynamic compression condition. For this purpose, the strain-stress characteristics of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials were estimated experimentally. Next, these data were used as the input for a finite-element model (FEM) to analyze the stability of different IOL haptic designs, according to the procedure described by the ISO standards. Finally, the simulations of the effect of IOL tilt and decentration on the optical performance were performed in an eye model using a ray-tracing software. The results suggest the major importance of the haptic design rather than the material on the postoperative behavior of an IOL. FEM appears to be a powerful tool for numerical studies of the biomechanical properties of IOLs and it allows one to help in the design phase to the manufacturers. (2018) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

IMPROVING MEDICAL EDUCATION: SIMULATING CHANGES IN PATIENT ANATOMY USING DYNAMIC HAPTIC FEEDBACK

OpenAIRE

Yovanoff, Mary; Pepley, David; Mirkin, Katelin; Moore, Jason; Han, David; Miller, Scarlett

2016-01-01

Virtual simulation is an emerging field in medical education. Research suggests that simulation reduces complication rates and improves learning gains for medical residents. One benefit of simulators is their allowance for more realistic and dynamic patient anatomies. While potentially useful throughout medical education, few studies have explored the impact of dynamic haptic simulators on medical training. In light of this research void, this study was developed to examine how a Dynamic-Hapt...

Auditory stimulus timing influences perceived duration of co-occurring visual stimuli

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vincenzo eRomei

2011-09-01

Full Text Available There is increasing interest in multisensory influences upon sensory-specific judgements, such as when auditory stimuli affect visual perception. Here we studied whether the duration of an auditory event can objectively affect the perceived duration of a co-occurring visual event. On each trial, participants were presented with a pair of successive flashes and had to judge whether the first or second was longer. Two beeps were presented with the flashes. The order of short and long stimuli could be the same across audition and vision (audiovisual congruent or reversed, so that the longer flash was accompanied by the shorter beep and vice versa (audiovisual incongruent; or the two beeps could have the same duration as each other. Beeps and flashes could onset synchronously or asynchronously. In a further control experiment, the beep durations were much longer (tripled than the flashes. Results showed that visual duration-discrimination sensitivity (d' was significantly higher for congruent (and significantly lower for incongruent audiovisual synchronous combinations, relative to the visual only presentation. This effect was abolished when auditory and visual stimuli were presented asynchronously, or when sound durations tripled those of flashes. We conclude that the temporal properties of co-occurring auditory stimuli influence the perceived duration of visual stimuli and that this can reflect genuine changes in visual sensitivity rather than mere response bias.

Multisensory interaction in vibrotactile detection and discrimination of amplitude modulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Teodorescu, Kinneret; Bouchigny, Sylvain; Hoffmann, Pablo F.

2011-01-01

Perception of vibration during drilling demands integration of haptic and auditory information with force information. In this study we explored the ability to detect and discriminate changes in vibrotactile stimuli amplitude based either on purely haptic feedback or together with congruent...... skill of maxilla-facial surgery strongly relies on enhanced touch perception, as measured in reaction times and discrimination ability in bi-modal vibro-auditory conditions. These observations suggest that acquisition of mandibular surgery skill has brought to an enhanced representation of vibro......-tactile modulations in relevant stimuli ranges. Altogether, our results provide basis to assume that during acquisition of mandibular drilling skill, trainees may benefit from training of relevant basic aspects of touch perception - sensitivity to vibration and accompanying modulations of sound....

Parametric model of the scala tympani for haptic-rendered cochlear implantation.

Science.gov (United States)

Todd, Catherine; Naghdy, Fazel

2005-01-01

A parametric model of the human scala tympani has been designed for use in a haptic-rendered computer simulation of cochlear implant surgery. It will be the first surgical simulator of this kind. A geometric model of the Scala Tympani has been derived from measured data for this purpose. The model is compared with two existing descriptions of the cochlear spiral. A first approximation of the basilar membrane is also produced. The structures are imported into a force-rendering software application for system development.

Perceptual multistability in figure-ground segregation using motion stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Gori, Simone; Giora, Enrico; Pedersini, Riccardo

2008-11-01

In a series of experiments using ambiguous stimuli, we investigate the effects of displaying ordered, discrete series of images on the dynamics of figure-ground segregation. For low frame presentation speeds, the series were perceived as a sequence of discontinuous, static images, while for high speeds they were perceived as continuous. We conclude that using stimuli varying continuously along one parameter results in stronger hysteresis and reduces spontaneous switching compared to matched static stimuli with discontinuous parameter changes. The additional evidence that the size of the hysteresis effects depended on trial duration is consistent with the stochastic nature of the dynamics governing figure-ground segregation. The results showed that for continuously changing stimuli, alternative figure-ground organizations are resolved via low-level, dynamical competition. A second series of experiments confirmed these results with an ambiguous stimulus based on Petter's effect.