ENTROPiA: Towards Infinite Surface Haptic Displays in Virtual Reality Using Encountered-Type Rotating Props

In this article, we propose an approach towards an infinite surface haptic display. Our approach, named ENcountered-Type ROtating Prop Approach (ENTROPiA) is based on a cylindrical spinning prop attached to a robot's end-effector serving as an encountered-type haptic display (ETHD). This type of haptic display permits the users to have an unconstrained, free-hand contact with a surface being provided by a robotic device for the users' to encounter a surface to be touched. In our approach, the sensation of touching a virtual surface is given by an interaction technique that couples with the sliding movement of the prop under the users' finger by tracking their hand location and establishing a path to be explored. This approach enables large motion for a larger surface rendering, permits to render multi-textured haptic feedback, and leverages the ETHD approach introducing large motion and sliding/friction sensations. As a part of our contribution, a proof of concept was designed for illustrating our approach. A user study was conducted to assess the perception of our approach showing a significant performance for rendering the sensation of touching a large flat surface. Our approach could be used to render large haptic surfaces in applications such as rapid prototyping for automobile design.

Automated summary

The article proposes an approach for an infinite surface haptic display, utilizing a cylindrical spinning prop to allow users free-hand contact with a surface and simulate touching a virtual surface by coupling with the sliding movement of the prop under users' fingers.