IEEE Trans Haptics. 2021 Apr-Jun;14(2):285-290. doi: 10.1109/TOH.2021.3076501. Epub 2021 Jun 17.
Contractures are generally assessed by a physician or physical therapist through palpation. However, contracture palpation requires skill and experience. The frictional vibration, which has a pulse-like vibration due to sliding disturbances around the affected area during palpation, is important in assessing the degree of contracture progression. This paper aims to enhance the perceptual sensitivity of frictional vibration for contracture palpation using a vibrotactile feedback system. We previously proposed an evaluation system for palpation with a wearable skin vibration sensor that detects skin-propagated vibration, allowing touch with a bare fingertip. In this paper, we propose the vibrotactile feedback system that presents the tactile information of the fingertip detected by the wearable tactile sensor to the temples with a vibrotactile display. A stimulator that gives vibrations similar to those during the palpation, which include pulse-like vibration and small vibration, was assembled. Then, psychophysical experiments on the vibrotactile feedback system were conducted using this stimulator. The results showed that the detection sensitivity of the pulse-like vibration was significantly enhanced with the feedback.
挛缩通常由医生或物理治疗师通过触诊来评估。然而，挛缩触诊需要技巧和经验。在触诊过程中，由于受影响区域周围的滑动干扰，摩擦振动会产生类似于脉搏的振动，这对于评估挛缩进展程度非常重要。本文旨在通过使用振动触觉反馈系统来增强对挛缩触诊中摩擦振动的感知灵敏度。我们之前提出了一种使用可穿戴皮肤振动传感器的触诊评估系统，该系统可以检测皮肤传播的振动，允许用裸露的指尖进行触摸。在本文中，我们提出了一种振动触觉反馈系统，该系统使用振动触觉显示器将可穿戴触觉传感器检测到的指尖触觉信息呈现给太阳穴。组装了一个刺激器，该刺激器产生类似于触诊时的振动，包括脉冲样振动和小振动。然后，使用该刺激器进行了振动触觉反馈系统的心理物理实验。结果表明，反馈显著提高了对脉冲样振动的检测灵敏度。
