The effects of simultaneous multi-point vibratory stimulation on kinesthetic illusion

Abstract

Kinesthetic sensation is important for improving presence and immersion in VR environments. However, presenting kinesthetic sensation usually requires a large space so as to avoid users colliding with objects or other users. One of the ways to tackle this issue is to use kinesthetic illusion, which is a way of presenting kinesthetic sensation without physical motion. However, realizing dynamic motion and fast movement remains difficult. Considering that multiple synergist muscles are usually involved in a movement such as walking or even simple arm movement, stimulating multiple synergist muscles might enhance the illusion. Thus, we investigated whether multi-point vibratory stimulation to multiple synergist muscles enhances induced kinesthetic illusions. We found that stimulating multiple synergist muscles created more vivid illusions. Additionally, we found that our method was effective for inducing steady illusions. We also calculated the contribution of each proposed stimulation point to the illusion.