Visual-haptic integration with pliers and tongs: signal "weights" take account of changes in haptic sensitivity caused by different tools.

ABSTRACT: When we hold an object while looking at it, estimates from visual and haptic cues to size are combined in a statistically optimal fashion, whereby the "weight" given to each signal reflects their relative reliabilities. This allows object properties to be estimated more precisely than would otherwise be possible. Tools such as pliers and tongs systematically perturb the mapping between object size and the hand opening. This could complicate visual-haptic integration because it may alter the reliability of the haptic signal, thereby disrupting the determination of appropriate signal weights. To investigate this we first measured the reliability of haptic size estimates made with virtual pliers-like tools (created using a stereoscopic display and force-feedback robots) with different "gains"

SUBMITTER: Takahashi C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3924038 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature