Exploiting directional dependencies of force perception for lossy haptic data reduction

Packet-switched communication of haptic data in real-time telemanipulation systems is characterized by high packet rates on the communication channel. Perceptual data reduction techniques for haptic signals successfully address this challenge. By applying a mathematical model of human haptic perception, the transmission of imperceptible signal changes over the network can be avoided. When extending existing haptic data reduction schemes from a single degree of freedom (DoF) to multi-DoFs, the spatial orientation of force feedback vectors acts as an additional perceptual dimension. In this paper, we investigate directional dependencies of haptic data reduction artifacts. Experimental studies reveal that the performance of perceptual data reduction can be significantly improved by adapting the perception thresholds to the spatial direction of force feedback.