Factors Affecting Discrimination of Surface Property Using an Integrated Tactile Display;Roughness and Vibration

In this paper, we describe a study on the influence of the frequency variation of normal vibration using an integrated tactile display. It is necessary to consider this study because we want to find a method of displaying finer texture and know that the perception of fine textures is heavily influenced by temporal variation. Our tactile display system used in this experiment can simulate the micro shapes and roughness of surface textures by individual drives of a 6x8 pin array. Two experiments are performed. The first is a psychophysical experiment on the definition and range decision of roughness, and through the experiment, we clear up the meaning of roughness. The second is the main experiment about the frequency variation of normal vibration. We find the correlation between the vibration frequency and the texture and the condition for better display and perception of fine surfaces. The experimental results yielded two pieces of information. One is that lateral movement affects texture discrimination, and another is that normal vibration can make the perceived texture feel finer than real texture. That is, the vibrating stimulus is more effective for displaying a fine surface than static pressure, and it makes possible to display finer texture, exceeding the physical limit of the device.