Exploring the Applications of Haptic Feedback in Virtual Reality based Vision Rehabilitation Tasks

Supervisors: Simon Ruffieux, Yong Joon Thoo, Denis Lalanne

Contact person: Simon Ruffieux

Student: Kimmy Costa

Project status: Finished

Year: 2024

People with visual impairment (PVI) often participate in vision rehabilitation programs to adapt to their loss of vision. Conventional rehabilitation methods, particularly in activities of daily living (AoDL) like cooking, are limited by the inherent risks of real-world practice, which can induce anxiety and reduce patient confidence. Recently, Virtual Reality (VR) has emerged as a promising tool for rehabilitation, offering a safe and controlled environment. However, the potential of haptic feedback in VR-based rehabilitation, particularly for AoDL tasks involving hazardous scenarios, remains underexplored.

This study explores the impact of haptic feedback in a VR-based AoDL rehabilitation task for PVI, specifically focusing on cooking—a topic identified as crucial through interviews with ergotherapists. The devices used include the SenseGlove Nova haptic gloves and the Quest 2 VR headset. The research followed an iterative design process, beginning with an exploratory phase that identified how participants assess physical characteristics through haptic feedback and revealed limitations in tracking accuracy and force-feedback. The second phase refined these elements, applying them to cooking tasks within the VR environment. The final evaluation, realized with 24 sighted participants and 3 people with moderate to severe visual impairment, revealed no significant difference in task performance—measured by time completion and error rates—between the haptic and non-haptic versions. However, participants perceived the haptic version as more realistic and immersive. The study notably highlights that while haptic feedback has potential, current technological limitations hinder its effectiveness in significantly improving VR rehabilitation outcomes. Future research should focus on refining haptic technologies, particularly in tracking and manipulation accuracy, to fully realize their benefits in VR rehabilitation for PVI.

Keywords: augmented reality, people with visual impairment, activity of daily living, rehabilitation, haptics, gamification.

Document: report.pdf