Route selection and obstacle avoidance with a short-range haptic sensory substitution device✰
(2019) In International Journal of Human Computer Studies 132. p.25-33- Abstract
The design of Sensory Substitution Devices (SSDs) often relies on the belief that the information supplied by the devices should allow the construction of spatial mental representations on the basis of which routes are planned. This study, in contrast, illustrates that navigation using an SSD can be conceived as an on-line, dynamic process, without the need for establishing a predefined plan or model of the task prior to its execution. We analyzed route selection performed with a vibrotactile SSD that could detect environmental surfaces only within a short spatial range, limiting the availability of information about remote parts of the environment to be navigated. Sixty sighted participants performed a navigation task that involved the... (More)
The design of Sensory Substitution Devices (SSDs) often relies on the belief that the information supplied by the devices should allow the construction of spatial mental representations on the basis of which routes are planned. This study, in contrast, illustrates that navigation using an SSD can be conceived as an on-line, dynamic process, without the need for establishing a predefined plan or model of the task prior to its execution. We analyzed route selection performed with a vibrotactile SSD that could detect environmental surfaces only within a short spatial range, limiting the availability of information about remote parts of the environment to be navigated. Sixty sighted participants performed a navigation task that involved the goal of reaching a target destination while avoiding five obstacles (placed in randomly predetermined configurations). Three groups of participants differed in the sensory modality used (restricted visual, acoustic + vibrotactile, and restricted visual + vibrotactile). While participants in the visual condition had fewer obstacle collisions and reached the target location sooner, the groups coincided to a large extent in terms of the routes that they followed. Furthermore, the routes selected by participants in all groups conformed well to routes predicted by a dynamic model of visually-guided locomotion (Fajen and Warren, 2003). These findings show that local, limited information about environmental layout can support route selection equivalent to that seen when information about the full environmental layout is available.
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- author
- Lobo, Lorena ; Nordbeck, Patric C. LU ; Raja, Vicente ; Chemero, Anthony ; Riley, Michael A. ; Jacobs, David M. and Travieso, D.
- publishing date
- 2019-12
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Enactive torch, Information-based model, Route selection, Sensory substitution, Vibrotactile stimulation, Visual impairment
- in
- International Journal of Human Computer Studies
- volume
- 132
- pages
- 9 pages
- publisher
- Elsevier
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85069720966
- ISSN
- 1071-5819
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.ijhcs.2019.03.004
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- additional info
- Funding Information: This research was supported in part by funds from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (grant number PSI2013-43742 ). The funders had no role in the preparation of the article and in the decision to publish it. Funding Information: We thank Nathen Morris for his help in running participants and Joubert Lucas and Michael Richardson for the code to reproduce the visually-guided model. This research was supported in part by funds from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (grant number PSI2013-43742). The funders had no role in the preparation of the article and in the decision to publish it. Publisher Copyright: © 2019 Elsevier Ltd
- id
- cce2388f-b25c-477c-ba96-1a71cfa0792c
- date added to LUP
- 2023-06-07 12:03:44
- date last changed
- 2023-06-09 11:27:19
@article{cce2388f-b25c-477c-ba96-1a71cfa0792c,
abstract = {{<p>The design of Sensory Substitution Devices (SSDs) often relies on the belief that the information supplied by the devices should allow the construction of spatial mental representations on the basis of which routes are planned. This study, in contrast, illustrates that navigation using an SSD can be conceived as an on-line, dynamic process, without the need for establishing a predefined plan or model of the task prior to its execution. We analyzed route selection performed with a vibrotactile SSD that could detect environmental surfaces only within a short spatial range, limiting the availability of information about remote parts of the environment to be navigated. Sixty sighted participants performed a navigation task that involved the goal of reaching a target destination while avoiding five obstacles (placed in randomly predetermined configurations). Three groups of participants differed in the sensory modality used (restricted visual, acoustic + vibrotactile, and restricted visual + vibrotactile). While participants in the visual condition had fewer obstacle collisions and reached the target location sooner, the groups coincided to a large extent in terms of the routes that they followed. Furthermore, the routes selected by participants in all groups conformed well to routes predicted by a dynamic model of visually-guided locomotion (Fajen and Warren, 2003). These findings show that local, limited information about environmental layout can support route selection equivalent to that seen when information about the full environmental layout is available.</p>}},
author = {{Lobo, Lorena and Nordbeck, Patric C. and Raja, Vicente and Chemero, Anthony and Riley, Michael A. and Jacobs, David M. and Travieso, D.}},
issn = {{1071-5819}},
keywords = {{Enactive torch; Information-based model; Route selection; Sensory substitution; Vibrotactile stimulation; Visual impairment}},
language = {{eng}},
pages = {{25--33}},
publisher = {{Elsevier}},
series = {{International Journal of Human Computer Studies}},
title = {{Route selection and obstacle avoidance with a short-range haptic sensory substitution device<sup>✰</sup>}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhcs.2019.03.004}},
doi = {{10.1016/j.ijhcs.2019.03.004}},
volume = {{132}},
year = {{2019}},
}