A Study on Rehabilitation Using a Tactile-Force Presentation System

在本研究中，我们试图开发一种复合显示器，通过两个手指和机械手来表示压力和力，以便为残疾个体提供足够的刺激，以促进灵巧技能的恢复。该复合显示器包括由一只手操作的装置，该装置被称为“主手”。主手配备了两个触觉显示器和一个作为力显示器的铰接式机械手。有一个食指触觉显示屏和一个拇指触觉显示屏。每个触觉显示屏都有一个6x4的刺激针阵列，这些针与每个指垫接触。操作员操纵主手来感受虚拟的触觉感觉。虚拟物体可以通过主手传递的触觉和位置反馈在二维中进行处理和移动。为了评估显示器的表征能力，我们进行了两个系列的实验。在实验A中，受试者掌握了虚拟的PE…更多的GS并试图判断它们的直径。在实验B中，受试者试图将不同的钉子插入洞中。在实验A中，我们根据对钉子直径的准确判断来评估显示器的表征能力。实验A的结果表明，当被试同时接受触觉反馈和力反馈时，准确识别被抓物体大小的能力更强。在“拾取和放置”任务中，操作员需要多次抓取物体，因此识别的准确性对于成功完成这样的任务非常重要。在实验B中，受试者试图将虚拟的钉子插入不同大小的孔中。随着孔洞直径的增加，可以成功插入钉子的角度范围减小。压力-力和仅力表示的最终姿态分别为-0.3°和2.5°。第二个发现是，当钉子的直径只比洞的直径略小时，操作者有时找不到洞，或者把钉子嵌入洞的壁中。我们能够测量出钉子穿过洞壁的量。如果压力和力都被表现出来，我们的复合呈现在增强被抓住物体的真实感方面是有效的。通过表示在插入虚拟钉子的过程中产生的旋转力，可以进一步提高虚拟现实的质量，我们目前正在努力开发这种方法。由于目前显示器的安全问题尚未解决，我们无法对残疾患者进行现场测试，但我们预计在满足必要的安全要求后，能够在不久的将来进行此类现场测试。较少

In the present study, we are attempting to develop a compound display to represent pressure and force via two fingers and the robotic hand in order to provide adequate stimuli to handicapped individuals in order to facilitate recovery of dexterity skills. The compound display comprises an apparatus to be manipulated by one hand, which is called the "master hand". The master hand is equipped with two tactile displays and an articulated manipulator functioning as the force display. There is one tactile display for the index finger and one for the thumb. Each tactile display has a 6-by-4 array of stimulus pins which contacts each finger pad. An operator manipulates the master hand to feel virtual tactile sensation. A virtual object can be handled and moved in two dimensions via the tactile and position feedback delivered through the master hand. To evaluate the display's representational capability, we performed two series of experiments. In Experiment A, human subjects grasped virtual pe … More gs and attempted to judge their diameters. In Experiment B, the human subjects tried to insert various pegs into a hole. In Experiment A, we evaluated the representational capability of the display on the basis of how precisely the peg's diameter can be judged. The results of Experiment A show that the ability to accurately identify grasped-object size is greater when the subject receives both tactile and force feedback. In a "pick up and place" task a human operator grasps objects many times, and so identification accuracy is important for successful completion of such a task. In Experiment B, the subject attempts to insert a virtual peg into a different size hole. As the diameter of the hole increases, the range of angles at which a peg can be successfully inserted decreases. Final attitudes of pressure-force and force-only representations are-0.3 and 2.5°, respectively. A second finding was that when the peg was only slightly smaller in diameter than the hole, the operator sometimes was unable to find the hole, or sank the peg into the wall of the hole. We were able to measure the amount by which the peg penetrated the hole wall. Our compound presentation is effective at enhancing the realism of grasped objects if pressure and force are both represented. The quality of virtual reality could be further improved by means of representing rotational force caused in the process of inserting the virtual peg, which we are currently working to develop. We could not perform a field test with handicapped patients due to unresolved safety issues of the present display, but we anticipate being able to perform such field tests in the near future after meeting the necessary safety requirements. Less