Infrared Thermal Measurement System for Evaluating Model-Based Thermal Displays

A thermal measurement system was designed and fabricated to assist in the validation of a thermal model in characterizing skin temperature during hand-object interactions. An infrared measurement system was used to overcome the limitations imposed by contact thermal sensors. It is able to measure the temperature distribution across the fingerpad during contact, together with contact area and contact force. The performance of this system was evaluated with calibration tests and the results indicated that this system is capable of providing accurate temperature measurements. With this system, analyses of the changes in skin temperature as a function of contact pressure were conducted. These analyses permitted the validation of a thermal model proposed in a previous study and the results indicate that the thermal model is able to predict skin temperature during contact. The model can simulate the properties of different materials in a thermal display