Effects of 3D-MOT with ultrasonic haptic feedback on cognitive and motor-cognitive performance

This study examined the effectiveness of incorporating ultrasonic mid-air haptic feedback into a three-dimensional multiple object tracking (3D-MOT). A custom-built ultrasonic phased array generated mid-air tactile stimuli within an 8 × 8 × 10 cm region, synchronized with a Unity-based interactive training game involving dynamic ball-catching tasks. This work assigned 20 healthy adult volunteers to the experimental (with haptic feedback) or control (without haptic feedback) groups. In addition, we assessed the cognitive and motor-cognitive performance before and after the intervention using lab-based and field-based cognitive control tasks (e.g., the flanker task) to examine potential transfer effects. The results showed that the experimental group demonstrated significantly faster learning progress by bleaching 26% more red spheres by day 6, and reaching performance stability 3 days earlier. Mixed-design ANOVA confirmed statistically significant differences in training trends (p = 0.035) and level scores (p = 0.051), with medium to large effect sizes. Besides, although both groups demonstrated improved cognitive control performance (i.e., reduced flanker effect in reaction time [RT]) following the intervention in the lab-based task, only the experimental group showed a further reduction in the flanker effect of RT at the perceptual-cognitive level on the field-based task (p = 0.003). This finding suggests that cognitive training with haptic feedback simulating somatosensory cortex activity may yield greater benefits for cognitive control processing during a motor task. This study showed that integrating ultrasonic haptic feedback meaningfully enhances visuospatial training outcomes, and offers a scalable, hands-free solution for cognitive rehabilitation, underscoring the promise of multisensory approaches to optimize cognitive health.