Simulating Affective Touch: Using a Vibrotactile Array to Generate Pleasant Stroking Sensations

Abstract

Gentle stroking touches are rated most pleasant when applied at a velocity of between 1-10 cm/s. Such touches are considered highly relevant in social interactions. Here, we investigate whether stroking sensations generated by a vibrotactile array can produce similar pleasantness responses, with the ultimate goal of using this type of haptic display in technology mediated social touch. A study was conducted in which participants received vibrotactile stroking stimuli of different velocities and intensities, applied to their lower arm. Results showed that the stimuli were perceived as continuous stroking sensations in a straight line. Furthermore, pleasantness ratings for low intensity vibrotactile stroking followed an inverted U-curve, similar to that found in research into actual stroking touches. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Assessment of experimental orofacial pain, pleasantness and unpleasantness via standardized psychophysical testing

“…This was based on CT afferent properties discovered from microneurography studies (Nordin, ; Vallbo et al, ). Furthermore, the velocities selected were also those established from investigations of CT afferents in the forearm (Ackerley, Carlsson, et al, ; Croy et al, ; Hielscher & Mahar, ; Huisman, Frederiks, vanErp, & Heylen, ; Jönsson et al, ; Kass‐Iliyya et al, ) and face (Ackerley, Carlsson, et al, ). The findings from the present study complement CT afferent research.…”

Saving Face: Shared Experience and Dialogue on Social Touch, in Playful Smart Public Space

“…1 Emerging research includes remote, prosthetic and multi-modal interfaces for touch practices between humans, virtual agents, robots (Van Erp and Toet 2015, Huisman 2017). 2 Research on experience of affective touch using vibro-tactile technologies showed that telematic, haptic experiences of slow (1-10 cm/s) gentle stroking of the body, such as caressing, are associated by participants with experiences of affection (Huisman et al 2016). 3 These works can be related to the facial illusion experiment, in which acts of touching a participant's face are mirrored real-time in acts of touching other peoples' faces, visible on a monitor in front of the participant.…”

Internet of touch

“…We demonstrate the use of tactile interactions across different devices, by detecting static and dynamic touches on a touch-screen based mobile device and a novel wearable touch-sensor. These touches are synthesized on a linear array of vibration motors using phantom haptic sensations [1,12,11]. Our method demonstrates that different input methods can be used for generating similar vibrotactile sensations.…”

“…In this demo we introduce a method for the detection and generation of touches, including stroking touches. An optimized method for rendering vibrotactile stroking touches based on the work of [1,12,11,13] is used as output. A linear array of four Precision Microdrives PicoVibe 306-117 vibration motors is worn on the forearm to apply vibrotactile stimulation (see Figure 1).…”