Tap Arduino: An Arduino microcontroller for low-latency auditory feedback in sensorimotor synchronization experiments

Abstract

Timing abilities are often measured by having participants tap their finger along with a metronome and presenting tap-triggered auditory feedback. These experiments predominantly use electronic percussion pads combined with software (e.g., FTAP or Max/MSP) that records responses and delivers auditory feedback. However, these setups involve unknown latencies between tap onset and auditory feedback and can sometimes miss responses or record multiple, superfluous responses for a single tap. These issues may distort measurements of tapping performance or affect the performance of the individual. We present an alternative setup using an Arduino microcontroller that addresses these issues and delivers low-latency auditory feedback. We validated our setup by having participants (N = 6) tap on a force-sensitive resistor pad connected to the Arduino and on an electronic percussion pad with various levels of force and tempi. The Arduino delivered auditory feedback through a pulse-width modulation (PWM) pin connected to a headphone jack or a wave shield component. The Arduino's PWM (M = 0.6 ms, SD = 0.3) and wave shield (M = 2.6 ms, SD = 0.3) demonstrated significantly lower auditory feedback latencies than the percussion pad (M = 9.1 ms, SD = 2.0), FTAP (M = 14.6 ms, SD = 2.8), and Max/MSP (M = 15.8 ms, SD = 3.4). The PWM and wave shield latencies were also significantly less variable than those from FTAP and Max/MSP. The Arduino missed significantly fewer taps, and recorded fewer superfluous responses, than the percussion pad. The Arduino captured all responses, whereas at lower tapping forces, the percussion pad missed more taps. Regardless of tapping force, the Arduino outperformed the percussion pad. Overall, the Arduino is a high-precision, low-latency, portable, and affordable tool for auditory experiments. Keywords Auditory feedback . Sensorimotor synchronization . Motor timing . Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) . MicrocontrollersHumans show a remarkable capacity to align motor output with sensory input. For example, most individuals can effortlessly synchronize movements with the beat of music or the sound productions of a partner. In order to understand how synchrony is achieved, participants are asked to tap their finger along with metronomic stimuli and receive tap-triggered sounds (auditory feedback; cf. Repp, 2005;Repp & Su, 2013). These sensorimotor synchronization experiments present important methodological challenges: how can auditory feedback be presented at minimal latencies (ideally, within a few of milliseconds of the tap; see Aschersleben & Prinz, 1997), and how can tap times be collected reliably (i.e., without missing taps and with accurate millisecond timing information)? We compare standard methodologies to a novel solution using an Arduino microcontroller for use in sensorimotor synchronization experiments that require recording tapping responses and presenting auditory feedback.Currently, several options exist for implementing sensorimotor synchronization experiments. Predom...

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