A body odyssey: exploring the human body as digested food

Abstract

We developed a full-body telepresence system through which users can crawl to travel through the human body, and gain insight into the structures of digestive organs through visual, tactile, and auditory sensations. Digestive organs (esophagus, stomach, duodenum, small intestine, large intestine, rectum) are created in detail with 3-D images so that users can view them using a head-mounted display, and an appropriate feeling of touch is presented to the abdomens and thighs of users by vibrotactile devices. Pressure sensors detect the crawling action of users so that they can travel in the digestive organs while hearing realistic 3-D sounds. Participants feel as if their own body becomes smaller while moving inside of another person's body. Thus, this system gives users the sensation of a reduced body size and provides a telepresence at improbable locations such as the stomach. This system can serve as an interactive, educational experience by simulating the contents of the human digestive system.