Toward a Tactile Language for Human-Robot Interaction: Two Studies of Tacton Learning and Performance

    Authors

    D. J. Barber; L. E. Reinerman-Jones;G. Matthews

    Comments

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    Abbreviated Journal Title

    Hum. Factors

    Keywords

    tactons; tactile communication; human-robot interaction; multitasking; workload; VIBROTACTILE LOCALIZATION; DESIGN; PLACE; SPACE; CUES; Behavioral Sciences; Engineering, Industrial; Ergonomics; Psychology, ; Applied; Psychology

    Abstract

    Objective: Two experiments were performed to investigate the feasibility for robot-to-human communication of a tactile language using a lexicon of standardized tactons (tactile icons) within a sentence. Background: Improvements in autonomous systems technology and a growing demand within military operations are spurring interest in communication via vibrotactile displays. Tactile communication may become an important element of human-robot interaction (HRI), but it requires the development of messaging capabilities approaching the communication power of the speech and visual signals used in the military. Method: In Experiment 1 (N = 38), we trained participants to identify sets of directional, dynamic, and static tactons and tested performance and workload following training. In Experiment 2 (N = 76), we introduced an extended training procedure and tested participants' ability to correctly identify two-tacton phrases. We also investigated the impact of multitasking on performance and workload. Individual difference factors were assessed. Results: Experiment 1 showed that participants found dynamic and static tactons difficult to learn, but the enhanced training procedure in Experiment 2 produced competency in performance for all tacton categories. Participants in the latter study also performed well on two-tacton phrases and when multitasking. However, some deficits in performance and elevation of workload were observed. Spatial ability predicted some aspects of performance in both studies. Conclusions: Participants may be trained to identify both single tactons and tacton phrases, demonstrating the feasibility of developing a tactile language for HRI. Application: Tactile communication may be incorporated into multi-modal communication systems for HRI. It also has potential for human-human communication in challenging environments.

    Journal Title

    Human Factors

    Volume

    57

    Issue/Number

    3

    Publication Date

    1-1-2015

    Document Type

    Article

    Language

    English

    First Page

    471

    Last Page

    490

    WOS Identifier

    WOS:000353038600008

    ISSN

    0018-7208

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