A tactile mouse capable of generating velvet-like sensation to the human palm

Creating the feeling of material in virtual reality (VR) remains a challenge. The Velvet Hand Illusion (VHI) produces a virtual smooth and soft texture sensation to the hand. In this study, we investigated whether or not a typical haptic device such as a tactile display facilitates VHI. First, as a psychophysical experiment, we employed magnitude estimation to evaluate the quality and intensity of the VHI generated on the tactile display by comparing three VHI setups and using a real velvet cloth as the reference sensation. The experimental results showed that the tactile display produces virtual smoothness in the hand. Furthermore, using the paired comparison method, our results demonstrated that the VHI strength generated by our tactile mouse can be controlled in the range of r/D = 0 to 1.5, where r and D are the stroke and distance between the virtual wires, respectively.