Visual and Auditory Feedback of Vibration, and Particle Effects for Enhancing Pseudo-Haptic Button Interaction in VR

초록

Mid-air interaction in virtual reality (VR) offers a device-free and natural interface, but the absence of physical haptic feedback limits user experience. Pseudo-haptics, which leverage visual and auditory cues to induce the illusion of touch, provide a promising alternative. This study investigates the individual and combined effects of three pseudo-haptic feedback modalities: visual feedback of vibration (with varying frequency, amplitude, and duration), auditory feedback of vibration, and particle effects, on the perception and experience of mid-air button interactions in VR. An experiment with 36 participants subjectively evaluated 54 different virtual button conditions. The results show that visual vibration cues and particle effects significantly enhanced various aspects of the user experience, including haptic illusion, while auditory vibration feedback improved spatiotemporal perception and pragmatic quality. Among the modalities, particle effects had the strongest overall impact, and among the vibration parameters, duration was the most influential. Participant interviews revealed that excessive or incongruent multimodal feedback reduced the effectiveness and appeal of pseudo-haptic sensations. Furthermore, individual differences in preference suggest that personalized feedback settings could be advantageous. Based on the findings, we provide empirical guidelines for designing perceptually optimized pseudo-haptic feedback in VR button interfaces. © 2025 IEEE.

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