Evaluations of tactile displays of physiological monitoring

Physiological monitoring devices are used in the operating room (OR) to identify abnormal changes. They are currently detected by the anesthesiologist from direct observation of visual displays or by auditory cues. In an effort to improve OR safety, we explored the use of an alternative sensory modality, touch, to effectively and accurately convey patients' physiological information. To be accepted [1] such devices need to fulfill five criteria: learnability, errors, efficiency, memorability and satisfaction. We designed and compared various tactile displays in respect to some of these criteria.