**2. Background on haptic processing**

of industries, most notably NASA's application on solar flare data [1]. Even a layman can listen to the transmuted data and pick out the rhythms of solar activity. These modalities also suffer less from fatigue than visual displays and benefit from tolerance, which filters out unimportant steady-state data and highlights anomalies. This chapter will discuss specifically the design of haptic interfaces for the aging population, while drawing examples and inspira-

By 2050, an estimated 2 billion people will be over the age of 60, with 20% suffering from a mental or neurological disorder [2]. In Japan, a projected 25% of the population will be above 65 by 2020 [3]. In the United States, a projected \$17 trillion in Medicare expense will be necessary to cope with the rapidly growing segment of the population over 65. High costs associated to therapy for dementia, Alzheimer's, and other neurological conditions [2]. Digital technological illiteracy coupled with growing societal isolationism and sedentarism severely hamper their ability to engage socially, leading to negative impacts on mental wellbeing. Loss of income, partners and friends, mobility, and sense of purpose are risk factors to health, resulting in lowered quality of life. We hope to investigate the design of technology that enhances the lives of the elderly, specifically projects that capture the following characteristics

Effective simulation of a realistic environment, given technological limitations, to capture

Conveyance the qualities an animate being (abstract feelings, i.e., presence, intimacy, and

As technology improves, higher fidelity simulations will be available, but conscious design for extreme users is still necessary. To put it simply, if individuals are struggling to perform in the real world due to their physical and cognitive limitations, then they would be equally disadvantaged in a precise simulation of the real world. Artificial generation and selective curation of sensory information based on the needs and preferences of the user is the goal. Haptic technology is far from creating precise representation of reality. At best, it can be intuitive in its conveyance or takes advantage of pre-existing quirks of our brain. This chapter will showcase examples of haptic interfaces with novel, creative designs and/or implementations that bypass the technological limitations of the devices, with a particular focus on their potential for elderly users. The word creativity in this context implies some novelty in its design and/or application, particularly highlighting designs that exploit existing quirks in our haptic

pleasantness), on top of basic sensory information and mechanical characteristics.

Inclusive, intuitive UI design for and consistent communication of possible usage.

tion from other fields.

52 Assistive Technologies in Smart Cities

of HCI in haptic interfaces:

essential elements or within unique contexts.

**1.1. Immersion**

**1.2. Animacy**

**1.3. Affordance**

perception.

Haptic interfaces as assistive technology gained prominence in the 1960s with the discovery of neuroplasticity and became a promising modality for treating patients with disabilities. The term "Sensory Substitution" coined by Paul Bach-y-Rita to describe the method of replaces a missing or ineffective sensory input with one that is functional [4]. This requires the translation of one form of information into another; Bach-y-Rita et al. created BrainPort to investigate the translation of visual information for the blind into electro-tactile stimuli supplied to the tongue [4]. Other examples of sensory substitution as a non-invasive technique is used in projects like haptic-vest for the deaf (sound-to-touch) [13], and sonic-glasses for the blind (sight-to-sound) [5]. Progress in sensory substitution for the disabled overlap with the elderly with diminishing sensory capabilities.

We already use substitution as a treatment for age-related diseases. Age-related macular degeneration is a condition that plague predominately individuals over 60; one of its remedies is an Implantable Miniature Telescope that refocuses the light from the damaged portion of the retina to less-damaged portions originally used for peripheral vision [6]. This is substitution within the same sensory organ, swapping damaged center of vision for the better functioning peripheral vision.

Haptic interfaces facilitate the development of motor skills, [paper on training motor skills using haptic interfaces]. We investigated physical skill acquisition in sports like archery, and explored the use of haptic interfaces to establish a closed-loop system for training muscle memory [7]. Instead of requiring the visual confirmation of proper posture, the haptic feedback informs the user through vibration patterns. Our brain integrates redundant information from multiple sensory organs to accelerate learning; thus, haptic feedback is frequently supplemented onto existing modalities. Telepresence physiotherapy with mediated touch is found to be more engaging and effective than visual instructions alone [8].

Cross-modal applications are also more compelling to our sensorium; haptic perception is heightened when coupled with other sensory inputs (proprioception, vision, audition). The haptic illusion of a texture is more powerful when the vibrotactile sensations are provided and synchronized with the movement of the participant's finger [9]. The ventriloquism effect [10] is an example of cross-modal stimuli forming a compelling unified perception of disparate visual and auditory information.

Researchers have been steadily improving the qualities of haptic actuators, which fall into several major categories, from most commonly used to least: (1) vibrotactile actuators, (2) electrotactile actuators, (3) compressive/deformation (air-sacs, solenoids, etc.), (4) fluid mediums. Despite a steeper familiarity curve than other senses, haptic interfaces have several advantages. Specifically in application for the elderly with diminishing cognitive functions, the clutter of visual and auditory information become overwhelming and cause fatigue over time. Evaluation of visual, auditory, and multi-modal displays for elderly drivers (mean age 68) show that additional visual information led to less safe driving due apparently to higher demand on attention, with multi-modal being reportedly the most comfortable and useful [11].

We believe that the only limitation to immersive simulations are the quality of actuators. Mimicking reality is therefore not the focus of this chapter. Instead, we will discuss creative applications of haptic interfaces in terms of the types of experiences they allow for, given the technological constraints. Most of these fall under "haptic illusions" that our sensorium constructs. As a researcher, creating these powerful haptic experiences is most often a process of discovering an existing neurological phenomenon.

[21]. An evolution of the illusion, the "/ed" (slashed) project by Watanabe et al. creates the illusion of being sliced in half with haptic feedback coupled with seeing a fake sword slash [22]. Speakers in front of the subject triggers, followed by those on the back, giving the subject

Creative Haptic Interface Design for the Aging Population

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The gaming industry makes use of haptic illusions to supplement their gameplay. REZ's Synesthesia suit uses vibrotactile feedback to enhance the psychedelic visual and auditory gaming experience [23]. The overload of multi-modal stimulation is suitable in the context of the game. The KOR-FX haptic vest recreates a reduced version of bullet impact [24]. Disney Research's haptic chair does not reproduce the sensation of driving, but its vibrotactile actuators can influence and possibly supplement the spatial awareness of the

The elderly are found to be more receptive toward haptic than visual interfaces [26]. Since the first graphic user interface appeared, the windows, icons, menus, and pointing device (WIMP) design has not changed. All current GUIs are derivatives of the original concept and build off of users' prior experience with them. It is possible that as the part of the population that grew up with technology and are familiar computing esthetics age, this will change. For the currently and imminently senior population, metaphorical UI and association with tangible objects from real life are much more approachable [27]. Immersive simulations can offer a new life for those with reduced mobility. "Second-life" platforms are making a comeback as a result of VR technology [28]. Through design and improvements in technology, immersion can be powerful enough to trigger our body image plasticity that allows for remapping of motor controls and development of new habits. From remapping of existing nerves to operate a prosthetic arm [29], to EEG-enabled direct brain-computer interaction by a monkey [30], the brain demonstrates profound adaptivity in reaction to the

Neuroplasticity and increase in brain matter have been observed in elderly subjects tasked with learning a new motor skill for 90 days (juggling & navigation games) [31], with apparent delay of Alzheimer's [32]. These improvements, however, were seen to disappear after 90 days of inactivity, implying the need for continued intervention [31]. Therefore, the design of interfaces that accompany the elderly need to be engaging enough for continued usage, or risk atrophy and difficulties in relearning. In the following sections, we will present some key characteristics to designing haptic interfaces for the elderly with diminishing cognitive and

Animacy is a subcategory of Immersion that deserves highlighting. If Immersion can be seen as providing enough information to make a simulation compelling, then Animacy is conveying enough information to make sentient elements believable or imbue traits of sentience. Tactile information is crucial to the expression of emotion in humans and animals [34], and to the formation of social bonds [35]. We can even form these intimate bonds with inanimate objects when the right stimuli are present; symphonic musicians respond emotionally to the

a sensation of object passing through the body.

player [25].

new interfaces.

motor functions.

haptic feedback from their instruments [36].

**3.1. Animacy**

Our experience of haptic information in the real world is almost always coupled with other senses, predominantly vision and proprioception. Haptic sensation itself is also vibration [12], same as audition. By connecting spatial information and haptic sensation, the tactile nature of the target is generated internally. The discovery of frequency nature of haptic stimuli, we are able to create better simulations drawn from reality. Recording and playing back textures for example has a wide range of applications from more immersive telepresence and VR experiences to very specialized utility tools for designers [9]. However, in designing tactile displays, the goal need not be to reproduce known phenomenon; the brain can learn and adapt to new interfaces with new intentions. Simplest forms of haptic interfaces of binary activation (ON or OFF) is easiest to learn. By augmenting this information temporally and/or spatially, much more complicated information can be sent to the brain. In the case of sensory substitution, Eagleman Lab showed that the deaf can make use of temporal–spatial, vibrotactile stimuli to decipher auditory input of spoken words [13]. Similar methodology applied on abstract datasets, such as stock market [14], further supports the power of neuroplasticity to adapt.
