Haptics technology is being used more and more in different applications, such as in computer games for increased immersion, in surgical simulators to create a realistic environment for training of surgeons, in surgical robotics due to safety issues and in mobile phones to provide feedback from user action. The existence of these applications highlights a clear need to understand performance metrics for haptic interfaces and their implications on device design, use and application. Performance Metrics for Haptic Interfaces aims at meeting this need by establishing standard practices for the evaluation of haptic interfaces and by identifying significant performance metrics. Towards this end, a combined physical and psychophysical experimental methodology is presented. Firstly, existing physical performance measures and device characterization techniques are investigated and described in an illustrative way. Secondly, a wide range of human psychophysical experiments are reviewed and the appropriate ones are applied to haptic interactions. The psychophysical experiments are unified as a systematic and complete evaluation method for haptic interfaces. Finally, synthesis of both evaluation methods is discussed. The metrics provided in this state-of-the-art volume will guide readers in evaluating the performance of any haptic interface. The generic methodology will enable researchers to experimentally assess the suitability of a haptic interface for a specific purpose, to characterize and compare devices quantitatively and to identify possible improvement strategies in the design of a system.

This is an open access book. In this third edition of Engineering Haptic Devices the software part was rewritten from scratch and now includes even more details on tactile and texture interaction modalities. The kinematics section was improved to extend beyond a pure knowledge explanation to a comprehensive guideline on how to actually do and implement haptic kinematic functions. The control section was reworked incorporating some hands-on experience on control implementation on haptic systems. The system, actuator and sensor design chapters were updated to allow easier access to the content. This book is written for students and engineers faced with the development of a task-specific haptic system. Now 14 years after its first edition, it is still a reference for the basics of haptic interaction and existing haptic systems and methods as well as an excellent source of information for technical questions arising in the design process of systems and components. Following a system engineering approach, it is divided into two parts with Part I containing background and reference information as a knowledge basis. Typical application areas of haptic systems and a thorough analysis of haptics as an interaction modality are introduced. The role of users in the design of haptic systems is discussed and relevant design and development stages are outlined. Part II presents all related challenges in the design of haptic systems including general system architecture and control structures, kinematics, actuator principles and all types of sensors you may encounter doing haptic device development. Beside these hardware and mechanical topics, further chapters examine state-of-the-art interfaces to operate the devices, and hardware and software development to push haptic systems to their limits.

Haptic human-computer interaction is interaction between a human computer user and the computer user interface based on the powerful human sense of touch. Haptic hardware has been discussed and exploited for some time, particularly in the context of computer games. However, so far, little attention has been paid to the general principles of haptic HCI and the systematic use of haptic devices for improving efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfaction in HCI. This book is the first one to focus on haptic human-computer interaction. It is based on a workshop held in Glasgow, UK, in August / September 2000. The 22 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 35 submissions. Besides a brief historic survey, the book offers topical sections on haptic interfaces for blind people, collaborative haptics, psychological issues and measurement, and applications of haptics.

In this greatly reworked second edition of Engineering Haptic Devices the psychophysic content has been thoroughly revised and updated. Chapters on haptic interaction, system structures and design methodology were rewritten from scratch to include further basic principles and recent findings. New chapters on the evaluation of haptic systems and the design of three exemplary haptic systems from science and industry have been added. This book was written for students and engineers that are faced with the development of a task-specific haptic system. It is a reference book for the basics of haptic interaction and existing haptic systems and methods as well as an excellent source of information for technical questions arising in the design process of systems and components. Divided into two parts, part 1 contains typical application areas of haptic systems and a thorough analysis of haptics as an interaction modality. The role of the user in the design of haptic systems is discussed and relevant design and development stages are outlined. Part II presents all relevant problems in the design of haptic systems including general system and control structures, kinematic structures, actuator principles and sensors for force and kinematic measures. Further chapters examine interfaces and software development for virtual reality simulations.

There has been significant progress in the performance evaluation and control of low power impedance-based haptic devices. While recent research efforts have focussed in the design and development of high power haptic devices, there is a lot of potential to develop performance evaluation techniques and alternative control approaches to improve the performance and stability, specifically for high power admittance-based and hybrid actuation haptic interfaces. We present an analytical model developed to investigate the performance limitations of admittance-based haptic interfaces. The model is used to investigate the effects that position control bandwidth and outer loop delay have on the stability and rendering range of an admittance-based interface. We show that the performance, as defined by both the minimum renderable mass and the rendering frequency range, is directly related to the closed-loop bandwidth of the inner-position loop and the amount of additional delay in the outer rendering loop. Our results are validated using a one degree-of-freedom admittance-based device. Evaluating the transparency or output impedance more generally, of admittance-type haptic devices is challenging due to their inherently non-back-drivable mechanical characteristics. To address this, we describe a new, simplified evaluation approach that eliminates the need for external test fixtures. The simplified approach relies on the easily obtainable closed-loop position control response of the device in combination with a device/system dynamic model. In addition to evaluating output impedance, the approach can be used to evaluate the overall stable rendering range of the device. Finally, the limitations of the approach are discussed. Hybrid actuation approaches for haptic interfaces generally suffer from asymmetry in rendering and torque capabilities. We describe the design of a high-performance balanced hybrid haptic device, which addresses asymmetry by combining a high-power, low-impedance active compliant actuation (series-elastic actuator) with energy absorbing high-force passive actuation in parallel with a fast, low-power secondary active actuation. We describe the actuation, design and control approaches and experimentally validate the approach with a one degree-of-freedom testbed. The performance is compared with active only approach and results show significant improvements in stability and rendering range of the device.

This volume presents the latest academic research and industrial applications in the area of mechanisms, robotics and dynamics. Contributions cover such topics as biomedical applications, control issues of mechanical systems, dynamics of multi-body systems, experimental mechanics, haptic systems, history of mechanism science, industrial and non-industrial applications, linkages and cams, mechanical transmissions and gears, mechanics of robots and manipulators, theoretical kinematics. Resulting from the 7th European Conference on Mechanism Science, which was held at RWTH Aachen University on September 4-6, 2018, this works comprises an overview on current research activities across Europe. .

This book introduces state-of-the-art technologies in the field of human-robot interactions. It details advances made in this field in recent decades, including dynamics, controls, design analysis, uncertainties, and modelling. The text will appeal to graduate students, practitioners and researchers in the fields of robotics, computer and cognitive science, and mechanical engineering.

Haptics: The state-of-the-art in building touch-based interfaces for virtual environments. -- Key research issues: model acquisition, contact detection, force feedback, compression, capture, and collaboration. -- Understanding the role of human factors in haptic interfaces. -- Applications: medical training, telesurgery, biological and scientific interfaces, military applications, sign language, museum display, and more. Haptics -- "touch-based" interface design -- is the exciting new frontier in research on virtual and immersive environments. In Touch in Virtual Environments, the field's leading researchers bring together their most advanced work and applications. They identify the key challenges facing haptic interface developers, present today's best solutions, and outline a clear research agenda for the future. This book draws upon work first presented at the breakthrough haptics conference held recently at USC's Integrated Media Systems Center. The editors and contributors begins by reviewing key haptics applications and the challenges of effective haptic rendering, presenting new insights into model acquisition, contact detection, force feedback, compression, capture, collaboration, and other key issues. Next, they focus on the complex human factors associated with successful haptic interfaces, examining questions such as: How can we make haptic displays more usable for blind and visually impaired users? What are the differences between perceiving texture with the bare skin and with a probe? In the book's final section, several of today's leading haptic applications are introduced, including telesurgery and surgical simulation; scientific visualization.

The term “haptics” refers to the science of sensing and manipulation through touch. Multiple disciplines such as biomechanics, psychophysics, robotics, neuroscience, and software engineering converge to support haptics, and generally, haptic research is done by three communities: the robotics community, the human computer interface community, and the virtual reality community. This book is different from any other book that has looked at haptics. The authors treat haptics as a new medium rather than just a domain within one of the above areas. They describe human haptic perception and interfaces and present fundamentals in haptic rendering and modeling in virtual environments. Diverse software architectures for standalone and networked haptic systems are explained, and the authors demonstrate the vast application spectrum of this emerging technology along with its accompanying trends. The primary objective is to provide a comprehensive overview and a practical understanding of haptic technologies. An appreciation of the close relationship between the wide range of disciplines that constitute a haptic system is a key principle towards being able to build successful collaborative haptic environments. Structured as a reference to allow for fast accommodation of the issues concerned, this book is intended for researchers interested in studying touch and force feedback for use in technological multimedia systems in computer science, electrical engineering, or other related disciplines. With its novel approach, it paves the way for exploring research trends and challenges in such fields as interpersonal communication, games, or military applications.