Human sensory feedback research in the armstrong laboratory

The Human Sensory Feedback Laboratory, park of the Armstrong Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is involved in the development and evaluation of systems that provide sensory feedback to the human operator in telerobotic and virtual environment applications. Specific projects underway in the laboratory are primarily concerned with the information provided by force and vibrotactile feedback to the operator in dextrous manipulation tasks. Four specific research projects are described in the present report. These include : 1) experiments evaluating a 30-element fingertip display, which employs a titanium-nickel shape memory alloy actuator design to provide vibrotactile feedback about object shape and surface texture ; 2) of a fingertip force-feedback display for 3-dimensional information about object shape and suface texture ; 3) use of a force- feedback joystic to provide "force tunnel" information in pilot pursuit tracking tasks ; and 4) evaluations of a 7 degree-of-freedom exoskeleton used to control a robotic arm. Both basic and applied research questions are discussed.