| Abstract: | An understanding of texture perception by robotic systems can be gained by examining human texture perception through a probe. As with texture perception in direct touch with the finger, texture perception by indirect touch by means of a probe is multidimensional, comprising rough, hard and sticky texture continua. In this study we describe variability among individual subjects in probe-mediated texture perception, and compare similarities and differences of texture perception between direct touch and indirect touch. The results show variability among subjects, as individual subjects may choose to rely on different texture dimensions, and examine the texture surface using different scanning velocities and contact forces. Despite the fact that the subjects use different scanning velocities and forces, they discriminate textures reliably and make subjective magnitude estimates consistently along a texture continuum when indirectly exploring texture surfaces with a probe. These data will be potentially useful in designing robotic sensory systems and understanding of sensory feedback, which is essential to teleoperations. |
