FlowZen: Using Hybrid-Haptic and Particle for Enhancing Immersive Experience via Continuous Illusion of Wind

With the advancement of haptic technology, we can enable a haptic experience to simulate environmental changes seamlessly, even as the user moves around in the immersive virtual reality world. For instance, stationary non-contact tactile devices, such as electric fans or heat lights, can be utilized to replicate wind and heat sensations in the virtual environment. While these stationary devices can effectively provide a full-body experience, the impact diminishes quickly with distance. Conversely, portable devices can provide better experience, but the haptic feedback might affect only partial body areas and the direction of source is limited. Therefore, taking advantage of both portable and stationary devices to provide a complementary effect is a potential approach. We present FlowZen, a hybrid-haptic system with particle effect that enhances wind and thermal sensations through tactile illusion, integrating handheld haptic devices with contact haptic feedback and a stationary device with non-contact feedback. In our approach, visual particle effects are employed to connect the feedback from both haptic devices.