DualPanto: A Haptic Device that Enables Blind Users to Continuously Interact with Virtual Worlds

Title: DualPanto: A Haptic Device that Enables Blind Users to Continuously Interact with Virtual Worlds

Teams: Hasso Plattner Institute

Writers: Oliver Schneider; Jotaro Shigeyama; Robert Kovacs; Thijs Jan Roumen; Sebastian Marwecki; Nico Boeckhoff; Daniel Amadeus Gloeckner; Jonas Bounama; Patrick Baudisch

Publication date: October 2018

Abstract

We present a new haptic device that enables blind users to continuously interact with spatial virtual environments that contain moving objects, as is the case in sports or shooter games. Users interact with DualPanto by operating the me handle with one hand and by holding on to the it handle with the other hand. Each handle is connected to a pantograph haptic input/output device. The key feature is that the two handles are spatially registered with respect to each other. When guiding their avatar through a virtual world using the me handle, spatial registration enables users to track moving objects by having the device guide the output hand. This allows blind players of a 1-on-1 soccer game to race for the ball or evade an opponent; it allows blind players of a shooter game to aim at an opponent and dodge shots. In our user study, blind participants reported very high enjoyment when using the device to play (6.5/7).