Professor Hong Tan
Department of Electrical Engineering
Haptic Interface Research Laboratory
Purdue University
The haptic sense is often regarded as the inferior sense for its low
spatial resolution (as compared to vision) and low temporal resolution
(as compared to audition). However, research in the early eighties
demonstrated that some deaf-and-blind individuals can receive
conversational English at almost normal rates using the Tadoma method,
in which the user places a hand on the face and neck of a talker and, in
the absence of any visual or auditory stimulation, monitors the
mechanical actions associated with speech production. Inspired by the
Tadoma method, my research activities have focused on the underlying
principles for the design, development, and evaluation of haptic
(touch-based) human-computer interfaces. In this talk, I will describe
three projects: The Tactuator, A Sensing Chair, and A Haptic Directional
Display. In each instance, I will describe the design principles, main
results, research issues, and applications. These examples are used to
introduce the concept of "distinctive features" for interface design,
and an information-based framework for evaluating human-computer
interfaces. I will argue that now is the time to develop human-computer
interfaces with "touchy feelings".