IIR Filter Models of Haptic Vibration Textures

Haptic tactile feedback is a widely used and effective technique in virtual reality applications. When an object's surface is explored by stroking it using fingers, finger nails, or a tool, a vibration response is sensed. The vibrations convey information about the surface finish and patterns in the surface structure, and they may help identify the surface. We study characteristics of real-world physical objects that are based on actual measurements. We propose novel techniques for modeling haptic vibration textures using digital filters that can simulate both stochastic and patterned textures of objects. Modeling is based on a spatial distribution of infinite-impulse-response filters that operate in the time domain. We match the impulse response of the filters to acceleration profiles that are obtained from scanning of real-world objects. The results show that our modeling is efficient in representing varying roughness characteristics of both regular-patterned and stochastic surfaces unlike prior methods that are based on a parametric decaying sinusoidal model. Our experiments employ an existing handheld mobile scanning setup with a visually tracked probe, which provides acceleration and force profiles. Our simple capturing devices also remove any need for a robotic manipulator.