TY - GEN
T1 - Experimental Internet haptic collaboration using virtual coupling schemes
AU - Sankaranarayanan, Ganesh
AU - Hannaford, Blake
PY - 2008
Y1 - 2008
N2 - In this paper we present the results from several global-scale haptic collaboration experiments that were performed using the Internet. These experiments consist of three virtual coupling schemes proposed to maintain position coherency in a networked haptic virtual environment (NHVE). We compared two of our virtual coupling schemes - which represent a peer-to-peer architecture - to the third - with a client-server architecture. We set up a packet reflector network at our collaborator servers (Italy, Canada and North Carolina, USA) to perform the experiments with subjects located within the same laboratory. Our largest one-way latency was in the order of 200 ms for the packet reflector situated in Italy. The virtual coupling parameters were chosen so that it resulted in stable operation for all the delay values that were tested. User Datagram Protocol (UDP) was used for haptic data communication because of the high transmission rate requirement for NHVEs. There were three experiments carried out in total: two of them at the packet transmission rate of 1000 Hz with a change in the virtual coupling parameters in Scheme 2, and the third one, which tested the three virtual coupling schemes at two fixed transmission rates of 500 Hz and 100 Hz. Locally, the haptic update rate was maintained at 1000 Hz during all the experiments. Our results demonstrate that the peer-to-peer virtual coupling schemes can be used for maintaining position coherency in a NHVE. We also show that the position error and the force rendered to the users increase with the reduction in the packet transmission rate. Given that these experiments were performed through the actual Internet, this work proves valuable for global-scale stable haptic collaboration using the Internet.
AB - In this paper we present the results from several global-scale haptic collaboration experiments that were performed using the Internet. These experiments consist of three virtual coupling schemes proposed to maintain position coherency in a networked haptic virtual environment (NHVE). We compared two of our virtual coupling schemes - which represent a peer-to-peer architecture - to the third - with a client-server architecture. We set up a packet reflector network at our collaborator servers (Italy, Canada and North Carolina, USA) to perform the experiments with subjects located within the same laboratory. Our largest one-way latency was in the order of 200 ms for the packet reflector situated in Italy. The virtual coupling parameters were chosen so that it resulted in stable operation for all the delay values that were tested. User Datagram Protocol (UDP) was used for haptic data communication because of the high transmission rate requirement for NHVEs. There were three experiments carried out in total: two of them at the packet transmission rate of 1000 Hz with a change in the virtual coupling parameters in Scheme 2, and the third one, which tested the three virtual coupling schemes at two fixed transmission rates of 500 Hz and 100 Hz. Locally, the haptic update rate was maintained at 1000 Hz during all the experiments. Our results demonstrate that the peer-to-peer virtual coupling schemes can be used for maintaining position coherency in a NHVE. We also show that the position error and the force rendered to the users increase with the reduction in the packet transmission rate. Given that these experiments were performed through the actual Internet, this work proves valuable for global-scale stable haptic collaboration using the Internet.
KW - Collaborative haptic virtual environments
KW - Collaborative haptics
KW - Haptic virtual environments
KW - Human factors
KW - Multi-rate haptics
KW - Multi-user haptics
KW - Networked applications
KW - Networked haptic virtual environments
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=49749140433&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=49749140433&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/HAPTICS.2008.4479954
DO - 10.1109/HAPTICS.2008.4479954
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:49749140433
SN - 9781424420056
T3 - Symposium on Haptics Interfaces for Virtual Environment and Teleoperator Systems 2008 - Proceedings, Haptics
SP - 259
EP - 266
BT - Symposium on Haptics Interfaces for Virtual Environment and Teleoperator Systems 2008 - Proceedings, Haptics
T2 - Symposium on Haptics Interfaces for Virtual Environment and Teleoperator Systems 2008 - Haptics
Y2 - 13 March 2008 through 14 March 2008
ER -