BASIC AND APPLIED STUDIES OF TACTILE PERCEPTION

拟议的研究结合了基础和应用实验室研究， 临床和教育方法，以提供有关 触觉系统的基本能力和设计和评价 聋人语言感知的触觉辅助工具。 在基础研究中，触觉系统的时间特性是 使用调幅刺激和掩蔽范例概述， 振动刺激呈现。 了解这些时间能力， 除了他们的基本研究兴趣，应该证明有用的 设计有效的触觉辅助工具。 在应用实验室、临床和教育试验中， 将对实验性触觉辅助设备的类型进行评估。 首先，研究将 继续使用单通道振动触觉辅助设备， 年轻的聋哑儿童，以确定是否援助将改善他们的 注意并发出声音的能力。 第二，双耳双声道 耳模振动刺激器将在成年人身上测试其潜力 作为单独的和作为混合触觉辅助的一部分的言语辅助。 最后，多通道（16个或更多）振动辅助设备在 提高对语言的理解和孩子自己的准确性 将对在CID学校就读的聋哑儿童进行口语评估。 这些研究的信息应确定 每种类型的援助都可能是有用的，并指出需要改进的地方， 各种援助的设计。

The proposed research combines basic and applied laboratory studies with clinical and educational approaches to provide new information about the basic abilities of the tactile system and the design and evaluation of tactile aids for speech perception by deaf persons. In basic studies, the temporal properties of the tactile system are outlined using amplitude-modulated stimuli and masking paradigms with vibratory stimulus presentation. Knowledge of these temporal abilities, in addition to their basic research interest, should prove useful for the design of effective tactile aids. In applied laboratory, clinical and educational trials, three different types of experimental tactile aids will be evaluated. First, studies will continue with a single-channel vibrotactile aid worn on the chest by very young deaf children, to determine whether the aid will improve their ability to attend to and produce sounds. Second, a binaural two-channel earmold vibratory stimulator will be tested with adults for its potential as a speech aid, both alone and as part of a hybrid auditory-tactile aid. Finally, the effectiveness of multichannel (16 or more) vibratory aids in improving the understanding of speech and the accuracy of a child's own speaking will be evaluated with deaf children enrolled in the CID school. Information from these studies should determine the situations in which each type of aid might be useful, and also point out needed improvements in the design of each kind of aid.