Haptic User interface : Affective Haptics and Current

Research

1: SULEMAN ERIC 2:ABDUL REHMAN

Student of Software Engineering Student of Software Engineering
At SZABIST University At SZABIST University
 Haptic User interface : Affective Haptics and Current
Research

Enhancing User Experience through Haptic User interfaces: A

Comprehensive Review and Future Directions

Abstract:
The evolution of user interfaces has been a continuous journey, aiming to create
more immersive and intuitive interactions between humans and technology.
Haptic user interfaces (HUIs) have emerged as a promising paradigm, offering
user the ability to perceive and manipulate digital content via the tactile sense.
That research document provides a thorough examination of HUIs, encompassing
their historical development, current state-of-art technologies, applications
across various domains, and potential future directions. Through a
comprehensive literature review and analysis, we aim to shed light on the
significance of haptic feedback in user experience, addressing challenges and
opportunities for further advancement in this field.
1. Introduction: shifting from Affective Computing to Affective Haptics

2. From the time early contemporary era, significant strides have been
made within the realm of information technology by researchers.
Nevertheless , the development of systems capable of intelligently
recognizing human emotions and experiencing sentiments has
remained elusive. Over the past decade, endeavors have been underway
to create systems proficient in detecting, displaying, eliciting, and
communicating affects, collectively known as "Affective Computing."
This interdisciplinary field amalgamates principles drawing from
psychology, cognitive science, and computer science.
3. Detecting affects involves a computer's capacity to delineate aspects of
the emotional state of its user. Affect display concerns the computer's
emulation of emotions by modulating information presented to the
user, encompassing text mood, speech temperament, and facial or
gestural cues of an avatar, among other methods. Similarly, affect
elicitation involves a computer generating stimuli to evoke user
emotions. Ultimately, affect communication pertains to conveying
affective information between entities, be they humans or computers.
4. A recent trend in affective computing explores the integration of haptic
technology into the processes of detecting, displaying, and
communicating affects. In the subsequent sections, we will define haptic
technology, delve into the benefits of incorporating the tactile sense
into affective computing systems, and present the central focus of this
paper: emotional haptics.
2: Haptic Technology

Haptics, originating from the Greek verb "haptesthai," meaning "to touch,"
encompasses the study of sensing and manipulating via the sense of touch.
Coined in the early twentieth century by experimental psychology researchers,
the term initially referred to humans actively touching real objects. In the late
eighties, its definition expanded to encompass all facets of pertaining of
machine touch and interactions between human and machines, evolving into a
multidisciplinary field that bridges fields such as biomechanics, psychology,
neurophysiology, engineering, and computer science. This interdisciplinary
approach characterizes haptics as the study of human touch and force
feedback, serving as a contemporary human-computer interaction paradigm.

Early haptic research predominantly concentrated on applications aiding

individuals with visual impairments. However, subsequent developments
broadened its scope to include diverse applications such as entertainment,
gaming, mobile and touchscreen interaction, emotional and interpersonal
communication, healthcare (including physical rehabilitation and tele-surgery),
tele-robotics, tele-operation, education and training, and e-commerce.

As haptic technologies have emerged, coupled with the growing interest in

affective computing, researchers now leverage haptics to convey emotions to
users and detect their emotions, addressing aspects that audio-visual
modalities alone cannot capture. A haptic device, categorized as force
feedback (kinesthetic) or tactile, serves as a mechanical apparatus facilitating
force exchange between a computer and a user. Kinesthetic devices convey
forces or motions through robotic interfaces, predominantly employed to
replicate substantial forces simulating weight or collision forces in virtual
environments. Tactile haptic devices stimulate the skin to convey object
textures, typically achieved through the generation of vibrations.

3: Touch and Affective Computing

The heightened interest in affective computing stems from its potential

applications in various fields, including virtual reality, smart surveillance,
natural interfaces, improved human-robot interaction, gaming and
entertainment, and online social interaction. Existing affective communication
methods primarily rely on text, speech, gesture, and facial expressions for
information transfer, often employing multimodal approaches. However, these
techniques predominantly engage only two human senses: visual and
auditory. Consequently, the crucial next phase involves integrating the sense
of touch into computer-mediated emotional communication.

Despite touch playing a pivotal role in human communication, research has

largely overlooked its utilization in conveying affection. The sense of touch
offers a potent means of eliciting and modulating human emotion. We
employ touch to express our feelings, amplifying the significance of visual or
verbal communication. Different cues can easily evoke human emotions, and
touch emerges as one of the most emotionally charged channels.

REFRENCES:
Mohamad A. Eid, Hussein Al Osman. "Affective Haptics: Current Research and Future Directions" , IEEE
Access, 2016

beta.thegazelle.org

Abdulmotaleb El Saddik. "Haptics: General Principles" , Springer Series on Touch and Haptic Systems,
2011