A method to evaluate haptic interfaces for working dogs

Working dogs perform a variety of essential services for their human partners, from assisting people with disabilities, to Search and Rescue, police, and military work. Recent interest in the nascent field of Animal-Computer Interaction has prompted research in computer-mediated technology for communication between working dogs and their handlers. Haptic (touch) interfaces in the form of vibrating motors are a promising approach for handler-to-dog communication. Haptic interfaces can provide a silent, long-range method of sending commands to a dog, when voice or hand signals are inappropriate or impossible. However, evaluating haptic interfaces for dogs, who cannot self-report sensations, creates interesting challenges. This study draws on human-computer interaction concepts, such as Just Noticeable Difference, to explore methods and issues in evaluating haptic interfaces for working dogs. We created a haptic system and developed an evaluation method, reporting results for ten dogs of widely varying breeds, sizes, and coat types. Provides a new method to evaluate haptic interfaces, solving the inability of dogs to self-report.Addresses how to mitigate the "Clever Hans" effect through double blind and randomized studies.Stresses the importance of training "reporting" behavior to reliable haptic cues.

[1]  Thad Starner,et al.  FIDO—Facilitating interactions for dogs with occupations: wearable communication interfaces for working dogs , 2014, Personal and Ubiquitous Computing.

[2]  G. Berns,et al.  Functional MRI in Awake Unrestrained Dogs , 2012, PloS one.

[3]  Lucy E. Dunne,et al.  Psychophysical elements of wearability , 2007, CHI.

[4]  J. Blascovich,et al.  The value of service dogs for people with severe ambulatory disabilities. A randomized controlled trial. , 1996, JAMA.

[5]  Gail Jenkins,et al.  Molecular mechanisms of skin ageing , 2002, Mechanisms of Ageing and Development.

[6]  Joseph Terkel,et al.  The role of context specificity in learning: the effects of training context on explosives detection in dogs , 2005, Animal Cognition.

[7]  William Montagna,et al.  The Structure and Function of Skin , 1956, The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine.

[8]  Paul S. Martin,et al.  Measuring Behaviour: An Introductory Guide , 1986 .

[9]  B. Skinner,et al.  The Behavior of Organisms: An Experimental Analysis , 2016 .

[10]  Andrew Stuart,et al.  Exploring interspecies sensemaking: dog tracking semiotics and multispecies ethnography , 2012, UbiComp.

[11]  Vincent Martin,et al.  FIDO - facilitating interactions for dogs with occupations: wearable dog-activated interfaces , 2013, ISWC '13.

[12]  B. Keene,et al.  Evaluation of an accelerometer for at-home monitoring of spontaneous activity in dogs. , 2007, American journal of veterinary research.

[13]  Eric Gilbert,et al.  Leveraging Mobile Technology to Increase the Permanent Adoption of Shelter Dogs , 2015, MobileHCI.

[14]  Ryan M. Traylor,et al.  A Haptic Back Display for Attentional and Directional Cueing , 2003 .

[15]  John A. Hamilton,et al.  An embedded system for real-time navigation and remote command of a trained canine , 2010, Personal and Ubiquitous Computing.

[16]  Benjamin Ishak Resner,et al.  Rover@Home : computer mediated remote interaction between humans and dogs , 2001 .

[17]  Thad Starner,et al.  FIDO - facilitating interactions for dogs with occupations , 2013 .

[18]  E. Carstens,et al.  Recognizing pain and distress in laboratory animals. , 2000, ILAR journal.

[19]  Wendy E. Mackay,et al.  CHI '13 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems , 2013, CHI 2013.

[20]  W. Osten,et al.  Digital recording and numerical reconstruction of lensless fourier holograms in optical metrology. , 1999, Applied optics.

[21]  Thad Starner,et al.  BuzzWear: alert perception in wearable tactile displays on the wrist , 2010, CHI.

[22]  S. Bolanowski,et al.  Four channels mediate the mechanical aspects of touch. , 1988, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

[23]  Thad Starner,et al.  Buzzwear: supporting multitasking with wearable tactile displays on the wrist , 2010 .

[24]  Clara Mancini,et al.  Canine-centered interface design: supporting the work of diabetes alert dogs , 2014, CHI.

[25]  Daniel P. Siewiorek,et al.  Design of a wearable tactile display , 2001, Proceedings Fifth International Symposium on Wearable Computers.

[26]  Oskar Juhlin,et al.  Understanding people and animals: the use of a positioning system in ordinary human-canine interaction , 2011, CHI.

[27]  Bonne Beerda,et al.  Behavioural, saliva cortisol and heart rate responses to different types of stimuli in dogs , 1998 .

[28]  David L. Roberts,et al.  Toward Cyber-Enhanced Working Dogs for Search and Rescue , 2014, IEEE Intelligent Systems.

[29]  Catherine André,et al.  Coat Variation in the Domestic Dog Is Governed by Variants in Three Genes , 2009, Science.

[30]  J. Moran,et al.  Sensation and perception , 1980 .

[31]  W M Baum,et al.  On two types of deviation from the matching law: bias and undermatching. , 1974, Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior.

[32]  M. Davison,et al.  The matching law: A research review. , 1988 .

[33]  H. Kowarzyk.  Structure and Function. , 1910, Nature.

[34]  Heini K.P. Hediger,et al.  The Clever Hans Phenomenon from an Animal Psychologist's Point of View , 1981 .