Message from the conference editorial board

Summary form only given. The idea of a Conference Editorial Board (CEB) for the World Haptics Conference (WHC) was conceived in 2008 by the WHC Steering Committee, to provide continuity and consistency for the WHCs by having the same people serving on the board for two meetings (3-year term). The board consists of three editors and a group of Associate Editors (AEs). Lynette Jones, Matthias Harders, and Yasuyoshi Yokokohji served as the editors for WHCs 2009 and 2011. The current editors were appointed by the Steering Committee during WHC 2011 in Istanbul, Turkey. Some of the members of the first editorial board rotated off the board, others were renewed, and new members were recruited. The current CEB consists of Miguel A. Otaduy (Haptic Applications), Hiroyuki Shinoda (Haptic Technology), Hong Z. Tan (Haptic Science), and thirty AEs. For WHC 2013, we received 212 regular paper submissions. Based on the reviewers´ and the AEs´ assessments, 125 papers (59%) were accepted. To continue with the single track format that is preferred by most attendees, a small number of papers (32) were selected for oral presentation while the rest of the accepted papers are presented as posters. Prior to the poster sessions, the authors are asked to present a 60 seconds poster teaser to highlight the key contributions. Additionally, there is a record number of 80 demos to be showcased throughout this year´s conference. Each year, some themes emerge through the submitted works. This year, there is a continued trend of increasing number of studies focusing on tactile and fingertip display technologies and human perception and performance with the displays. This trend is balanced by strong contributions in dynamic systems and control, haptic rendering, and many exciting applications including rehabilitation and HCI. We would like to take this opportunity to thank our dedicated AEs and reviewers for their hard work within a very tight review schedule and during a very busy time of the - ear. There were 382 individuals who reviewed all the regular paper submissions.