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Updated: Jun 6, 2026

Applying Incongruent Visual-Tactile Stimuli during Object Transfer with Vibro-Tactile Feedback
Published on: May 23, 2019
Perceptual interactions in the loudness of combined auditory and vibrotactile stimuli
E Courtenay Wilson1, Louis D Braida, Charlotte M Reed
1Research Laboratory of Electronics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Speech and Hearing Bioscience and Technology Program, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
Abstract:
The loudness of auditory (A), tactile (T), and auditory-tactile (A+T) stimuli was measured at supra-threshold levels. Auditory stimuli were pure tones presented binaurally through headphones; tactile stimuli were sinusoids delivered through a single-channel vibrator to the left middle fingertip. All stimuli were presented together with a broadband auditory noise. The A and T stimuli were presented at levels that were matched in loudness to that of the 200-Hz auditory tone at 25 dB sensation level. The 200-Hz auditory tone was then matched in loudness to various combinations of auditory and tactile stimuli (A+T), and purely auditory stimuli (A+A). The results indicate that the matched intensity of the 200-Hz auditory tone is less when the A+T and A+A stimuli are close together in frequency than when they are separated by an octave or more. This suggests that A+T integration may operate in a manner similar to that found in auditory critical band studies, further supporting a strong frequency relationship between the auditory and somatosensory systems.
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