Cross-modal interaction of stereoscopy, surface deformation and tactile feedback on the perception of texture roughness in an active touch condition: Interaction intermodale de la stéréoscopie, de la déformation de surface et de la retour tactile sur la perception de la rugosité de la texture dans un état tactile actif.

Research has shown that interaction with tactile surfaces can benefit from the addition of haptic feedback. The perception of this feedback is influenced by other modalities, visual and auditory, making it possible to reinforce or enrich it. However, the effect of visual depth cues, such as stereoscopic rendering and surface deformation, on the tactile perception of textures has not been studied yet, especially in an active touch condition. In this paper, we investigate the perceptual interaction between stereoscopy, surface deformation, and haptic feedback in the condition of active touch implemented using friction modulation based on ultrasonic vibrations. The experimental study is based on a Visual-Tactile exploration of a virtual texture. Our objective is to understand the interaction of one modality over the other for roughness and depth perception. Participants were asked to make visual and tactile texture roughness judgments and to estimate the depth of deformation of the texture below their fingers. Our results suggest that: 1) perceived tactile roughness can be modified by adding stereoscopic rendering and/or visual surface deformation but only for smooth tactile textures, 2) perceived visual roughness can be modified by increasing the tactile roughness, 3)the overall roughness (Visual + Tactile) is mainly impacted by the tactile perception.