To touch or not to touch? Comparing Touch, mid-air gesture, mid-air haptics for public display in post COVID-19 society

We developed a mid-air touch Mixed Reality application which combined hand tracking sensing and haptic feedback on a desktop display. We evaluated three hand interaction techniques: 1) Touch, 2) Mid Air Gesture Touch, 3) Mid Air Haptic Touch through preliminary user testing with ten adults. Results suggest the user’s willingness to use self-service devices in public places increases in the post COVID-19 world, while their concerns about the possibility of getting in touch with the virus reduces. However before the large scale deployment of this technology, accuracy and user experience design need to be improved.