VIREO: Web-based Graphical Authoring of Vibrotactile Feedback for Interactions with Mobile and Wearable Devices

We introduce VIREO, a web-based software tool for graphical authoring of vibrotactile feedback for mobile and wearable applications. VIREO enables flexible specification of vibrotactile patterns with model-based and free-draw input, and is compatible with devices that run JavaScript, either natively or in a web browser. We demonstrate VIREO with applications developed for smartphones, smartwatches, armbands, and smartglasses, and we present the results of a usability evaluation study with sixteen participants represented by coders with various programming experience. We discuss our contributions in the context of the results of a Systematic Literature Review conducted on the topic of software tools, editors, and platforms developed in the scientific community for authoring vibrotactile feedback. Given that one finding of our review is the little availability of such contributions, we release VIREO as a free resource on the web for researchers and practitioners to author and integrate vibrotactile feedback in mobile and wearable applications.

Automated summary

We introduce VIREO, a web-based software tool for graphical authoring of vibrotactile feedback for mobile and wearable applications. VIREO enables flexible specification of vibrotactile patterns with model-based and free-draw input, and is compatible with devices that run JavaScript. We demonstrate the capabilities of VIREO with applications developed for various mobile and wearable devices and present the results of a usability evaluation study. Additionally, we discuss the current state of software tools and platforms for authoring vibrotactile feedback in the scientific community.