Tactile Glove for Computer Graphics for Blind

University Of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison WI

Investigators

Abstract

The PI and his team will explore solutions to the problem of access to computer graphics for blind users by combining a limited number of sensors and stimulators with the very high human capacity for fine movement control and spatial localization. He will conduct experiments to determine performance with a large number of skin stimulation points (by means of linked photosensor-to-vibratory stimulator units) on the hand, thus permitting individual finger motion (e.g., finger spreading) as well as total hand motion. Both the PI's own prior work and sensorimotor studies by others, along with concepts of the role of motor outflow brain signals in determining precise spatial localization, have led him to the hypothesis that a haptic system - as opposed to one which is strictly tactile, because the fingertips actively scan the display - can convey important spatial concepts from 2D and 3D images on a computer monitor. The PI's approach is based on concepts of brain plasticity underlying his prior sensory substitution studies, which have demonstrated that blind persons can obtain complex visual information in real-time through TV cameras leading to tactile interfaces. The current project will result in a tool for perceptual, electrophysiological and brain imaging (e.g., transcranial electromagnetic stimulation) studies on sensory substitution and late brain plasticity, and to practical applications for science education of blind students as well as for increasing their vocational opportunities in information technology.