Multihaptics: A novel multipurpose haptic unit to accelerate haptic integration

Research Project

Project/Area Number	20K19838
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Review Section	Basic Section 61020:Human interface and interaction-related
Research Institution	Tohoku University
Principal Investigator	サラザルホセ東北大学, 工学研究科, 助教 (90838054)
Project Period (FY)	2020-04-01 – 2024-03-31
Project Status	Granted (Fiscal Year 2022)
Budget Amount *help	¥4,160,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥960,000) Fiscal Year 2023: ¥520,000 (Direct Cost: ¥400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥120,000) Fiscal Year 2022: ¥1,430,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥330,000) Fiscal Year 2021: ¥780,000 (Direct Cost: ¥600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥180,000) Fiscal Year 2020: ¥1,430,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,100,000、Indirect Cost: ¥330,000)
Keywords	ハプティクス / HCI / 触覚 / 運動誘導
Outline of Research at the Start	In this project, we will develop wireless devices that can be placed on the skin to produce different tactile interactions, such as vibration, squeezing, pressure, skin dragging and so on, in order to convey information to the user. The units will have interchangeable tips, so a single unit can provide different interactions. We will also develop the necessary software to develop these interactions visually, in an intuitive manner. This will allow researchers to easily introduce advanced haptic feedback in their applications, such as rehabilitation, VR, entertainment or sports training.
Outline of Annual Research Achievements	Throughout the fiscal year 2022-2023, we have made continued advancements in the implementation of the three primary components of the project: the Haptic Unit, Haptic Tips, and Software. In regard to the Haptic Unit, we have repositioned the gearbox to the haptic tips to allow for the production of haptic feedback at different motor speeds. Through preliminary evaluations, we have assessed the perceived tactile feedback and studied user understanding of the tactons generated by each different tip. However, the current iteration of the haptic unit presents a gap between the skin and the haptic tip due to its attachment to the skin, which has resulted in less-than-desired accuracy rates for identifying produced tactons. As a solution, we are currently in the process of redesigning the device to attach via the tip instead. Regarding the Haptic Tips, we have enhanced the design of the four different haptic tips based on user studies. Every haptic tip has a custom gearbox depending on the requirements to produce the haptic feedback (e.g., vibration requires higher motor speeds while squeezing or dragging require higher torque). For the Software component, we have further improved the GUI to enable users to create tactons with greater precision. Currently, we are measuring different parameters of each tip, such as vibration intensity for the vibration tip and applied pressure for the squeezing tip, in order to provide more accurate control of haptic interactions within the GUI.
Current Status of Research Progress	Current Status of Research Progress 3: Progress in research has been slightly delayed. Reason The progress is advancing smoothly, but dissemination has been difficult because of COVID19 and other research efforts.
Strategy for Future Research Activity	In the upcoming final year of the project, we plan to address issues related to the developed haptic tips. Specifically, we intend to redesign them based on experimental feedback to achieve recognition levels exceeding 90% from users. Furthermore, we will disseminate the project through various journals and conferences, while also identifying key players who would benefit from the developed device. We will work collaboratively with these players to explore different applications where the proposed device could be of use. In addition, we will develop an alternative architecture using readily available off-the-shelf components, allowing users the flexibility to either use our specific devices or build their own with existing components.