Guidelines for the Use of Vibro-Tactile Displays in Human Computer Interaction

Vibro-tactile displays convey messages by presenting vibration to the user’s skin. In recent years, the interest in and application of vibro-tactile displays is growing. Vibratory displays are introduced in mobile devices, desktop applications and even in aircraft [1]. Despite the growing interest, guidelines on the design of vibro-tactile displays are still lacking. Existing guidelines are mainly concerned with passive displays, such as Braille labels on controls, nibs on keyboards and notches on smart cards [2, 3, 4]. In this paper we focus on active displays, either consisting of a single vibrating element (used in for example mobile phones and computer mice) or numerous elements (used in for example active Braille displays and body suits [5, 6]). This paper discusses a first set of guidelines, dealing with the basic vibro-tactile parameters. The set is mainly derived from neurophysiological and psychophysical data. The guidelines indicate the relevant parameters as well as possible pitfalls. As such they can serve as a point of departure for interface designers. Important expansions of the set can come from user evaluation studies and examples of best practices.