Single-Actuator Vibrotactile Numeric Information Delivery in the Face of Distraction

Abstract

We test ActiVibe, a previously reported method for communicating numeric values between 1 and 10, to determine whether it remains optimal under conditions reflective of more challenging potential real-world use cases. We thus consider vibrotactile communication in conjunction with an audio distractor task, and when conveying not just one, but three numeric values in succession. Results of a user study comparing three different rendering methods indicate that ActiVibe maintains both accuracy and subjective preference advantages vs. two different duration-based methods when conveying a single value, but largely loses these advantages when presenting three sequential values. Under conditions similar to the most difficult ones we test, a more concise duration-only approach may be preferable for some applications, requiring less power consumption and demanding attention for less total time.