VibHand: On-Hand Vibrotactile Interface Enhancing Non-Visual Exploration of Digital Graphics

Abstract

Visual graphics are widely spread in digital media and are useful in many contexts of daily life. However, access to this type of graphical information remains a challenging task for people with visual impairments (VI). In this study, we designed and evaluated an on-hand vibrotactile interface that enables users with VI to explore digital graphics presented on tablets. We first conducted a set of exploratory tests with both people with VI and blindfolded (BF) people to investigate several design factors. We then conducted a comparative experiment to verify that on-hand vibrotactile cues (indicating direction and progression) can enhance the non-visual exploration of digital graphics. The results based on 12 participants with VI and 12 BF participants confirmed the usability of the technique and revealed that the visual status of the users does not impact graphics identification and comparison tasks.  CCS Concepts: • Human-centered computing → Accessibility; Empirical studies in accessibility; • Human-centered computing → Human computer interaction (HCI)

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Haptic Feedback Wristband for Tactile Graphics Reader

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“…Zhao et. al (2020) had identified that the back of the hand was more convenient to place four vibrating mini motor discs to deliver eight different vibrations patterns for the purpose of digital image exploration [6].…”