Quantifying Customer Preferences for Active Haptic Feedback in Automotive Steering Wheel Control Buttons

One of the major yet little recognized challenges in robotic vitreoretinal surgery is the matter of tool forces applied to the sclera. Tissue safety, coordinated tool use and interactions between tool tip and shaft forces are little studied. The introduction of robotic assist has further diminished the surgeon's ability to perceive scleral forces. Microsurgical tools capable of measuring such small forces integrated with robotmanipulators may therefore improve functionality and safety by providing sclera force feedback to the surgeon. In this paper, using a force-sensing tool, we have conducted robotassisted eye manipulation experiments to evaluate the utility of providing scleral force feedback. The work assesses 1) passive audio feedback and 2) active haptic feedback and evaluates the impact of these feedbacks on scleral forces in excess of aboundary. The results show that in presence of passive or active feedback, the duration of experiment increases, while the duration for which scleral forces exceed a safe threshold decreases.

Pseudo haptic sensation is an illusion based on visual stimuli. In virtual environments the principle of pseudo haptic feedback is used to simulate material properties such as stiffness, mass and friction. Transfering the principle of pseudo haptic feedback to real haptic teleoperation systems can provide a haptic sensation for properties of material, manipulated without active haptic feedback. Hence, the implementation of pseudo haptic feedback to teleoperation systems reduces the requirements for kinematic structures and actuators of the used haptic user interface.

Hysteroscopy is a type of gynecological procedure that enables diagnosis and treatment of intrauterine pathologies using a minimally-invasive approach. Recent advancements, especially in optics, made it possible to perform this procedure in an ambulatory, outpatient setting without anaesthesia. Yet, such approach introduces additional challenges to gynecologists, as the surgical instruments have to pass through the cervix, a narrow curved canal. This process can be traumatic and even cause tissue damage or rupture. Current training curricula mainly focus on general minimally-invasive surgical skills or on inpatient hysteroscopy. This paper describes the first virtual reality training system designed purposely for in-office hysteroscopy training featuring both passive and active haptic feedback. Design requirements were defined through a literature review and a survey of clinical experts. A dedicated platform was developed and tested with clinicians and medical students. The results of the conducted experiments verified the skill acquisition capabilities of the platform showing a.o. shorter execution time and path length, lower integral forces in most of non-expert participants. The results also demonstrated the capability of the system to differentiate between experts and non-expert groups. Reported findings suggest that the platform has the potential to evolve into an effective solution for in-office hysteroscopy training.

Recently a number of TV manufacturers introduced TV remotes with a touchpad which is used for indirect control of TV UI. Users can navigate the UI by moving a finger across the touch pad. However, due to the latency in visual feedback, there is a disconnection between the finger movement on the touchpad and the visual perception in the TV UI, which often causes overshooting. In this paper, we investigate how haptic feedback affects the user experience of the touchpad-based TV remote. We described two haptic prototypes built on the smartphone and Samsung 2013 TV remote respectively. We conducted two user studies with two prototypes to evaluate how the user preference and the user performance been affected. The results show that there is overwhelming support of haptic feedback in terms of subjective user preference, though we didn't find significant difference in performance between with and without haptic feedback conditions.

Examining whether touch sensory feedback is necessary for science learning through experimentation: A literature review of two different lines of research across K-16

Clinical robotic surgery systems do not currently provide haptic feedback because surgical instrument interactions are difficult to measure and display. Our laboratory recently developed a technology that allows surgeons to feel and/or hear the high-frequency vibrations of robotic instruments as they interact with patient tissue and other tools. Until now, this type of feedback had not been carefully evaluated by users. We conducted two human-subject studies to discover whether surgeons and non-surgeons value the addition of vibration feedback from surgical instruments during robotic surgery. In the first experiment, 10 surgeons and 10 non-surgeons (n = 20) used an augmented Intuitive da Vinci Standard robot to repeatedly perform up to four dry-lab tasks both with and without haptic and audio feedback. In the second experiment, 68 surgeons and 26 non-surgeons (n = 94) tested the same robot at a surgical conference: each participant spent approximately 5 min performing one or two tasks. Almost all subjects in both experiments (95 and 98 %, respectively) preferred receiving feedback of tool vibrations, and all subjects in the second experiment thought it would be useful for surgeons to have the option of such feedback. About half of the subjects (50, 60 %) preferred haptic and audio feedback together, and almost all the rest (45, 35 %) preferred haptic feedback alone. Subjects stated that the feedback made them more aware of tool contacts and did not interfere with use of the robot. There were no significant differences between the responses of different subject populations for any questions in either experiment. This study illustrates that both surgeons and non-surgeons prefer instrument vibration feedback during robotic surgery. Some participants found audio feedback useful but most preferred haptic feedback overall. This strong preference for tool vibration feedback indicates that this technology provides valuable tactile information to the surgeon.

In today's modern era, cafes serve a variety of food and beverage menus to their customers. However, this high diversity often leads to problems in selecting menus that suit customer preferences. The main problem faced is the difficulty for customers in choosing the menu that best suits their personal tastes and preferences, given the large number and variety of menus offered by the cafe. The purpose of this research is to find a solution to the problem of selecting a cafe menu using the Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) method. The SAW method is applied to analyze cafe menu data and provide the most suitable menu recommendations based on individual preferences. There are 6 criteria applied in this study to match customer preferences, namely price, portion size, level of popularity, quality of ingredients, compatibility with taste, and aesthetic aspects. It is hoped that this research can provide better guidance for cafe customers in choosing a menu that suits their tastes, as well as help cafe owners in increasing customer satisfaction and sales. The results of calculations using the SAW method that has been carried out get the results of 5 menus that become recommendations because they get the top rank, first Alternative A1 menu Oatmeal Protein Shake has the highest rank with a score of 0.86, second alternative A7 menu Pepperoni Pizza with a score of 0.847, third alternative A4 menu Ramen Noodle with a score of 0.813. fourth alternative A1 menu Alfredo Spaghetti with a score of 0.766 and the fifth Alternative A8 menu Seafood Fried Rice with a score of 0.738.

Product, process and customer preference alignment in prefabricated house building

Aim: In this study, the improvement of the sales processes of an automotive company with the Lean Six Sigma (LSS) management philosophy is included. The company, whose history in the automotive sector dates to the 1980s, has a wide product range that is at the top of this sector of Turkey, which is based on intense competition. Within the scope of this study, improvements that will form the basis of digitalization in sales processes are aimed in line with the main purpose of maintaining and increasing customer satisfaction. Method: The application was carried out with the DMAIC (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) method to improve the processes that cause customer dissatisfaction and to create an integrated system by using LSS tools. Improvements were made in line with the purpose by applying the method step by step. Various surveys were conducted with customers, brainstorming activities were carried out with employees involved in sales processes, and process improvements were made by analyzing the data obtained from these activities. Results: All stages of the sales processes were addressed using the LSS approach, and it was observed that the customer satisfaction rate, which was 88% before the study began, increased to 95% after the study. Conclusion: In this study, the sales process of a company operating in Turkey and selling prestigious automobiles is discussed. This review provides a clear view of how LSS projects can be implemented in the sales organization. It also contributes to the enrichment of literature to facilitate the LSS application.

Drawing on the argument that students’ different learning behaviors, including their perceptions of and engagement with feedback, could have roots in learners’ fundamental motivational characteristics, this study examines how different second language learning motivational variables may predict university EFL (English as a foreign language) students’ feedback experience and preference. Data were collected from EFL students from three universities in an Asian region (N = 409) through three self-report questionnaires. Results of structural equation modeling (SEM) revealed that different components of the second language learning motivational construct appear to display differential associations with EFL students’ feedback experience and preference. In particular, this study brought to light the crucial role of attitudes to classroom English learning and intended learning effort as essential mediating motivational variables in predicting how EFL students conceive of and act on feedback. The findings of this study also provide significant insights into a complex and dynamic view of how student preference for different types of feedback actually works in the feedback process. The authors conclude by arguing that EFL teachers need to shoulder the burden of making the EFL classroom a supportive environment that promotes a positive self-concept and self-confidence as the first step toward stimulating students’ active feedback use, and that conditions need to be created to allow for connection of students’ preference for learning process-oriented feedback to action to maximize the pivotal role that students play in the classroom and learning process.

Haptic technology allows producing computer-generated signals that a perceiver experiences through touch. In general, haptic devices can be classified as active and passive. In this paper, we present a performance evaluation of a group of 10 voluntary subjects in a task of shape perception when both active and passive kinesthetic haptic feedback are provided. The results of a series of psychophysical experiments show that active haptics is superior for shape recognition: active haptics enhances the perception of surfaces while passive haptics conveys the sensation of being guided along pathways. In addition, the guidance nature of passive haptics makes the pathway direction easy to recognize. This last observation can be effectively exploited in more challenging tasks such as navigation/mobility assistance.

Companies’ marketing decision-making effectiveness depends on the quality of actions and time. In the current digital era, any marketing decision making must be timely in response to customers’ feedback, and implementing artificial intelligence (AI) technology is one significant option. This paper focuses on designing an Algorithm for Marketing Strategy Decision Making (AMSDM) that employs AI services to process online feedback from customers regarding products and services from companies’ websites or other e-commerce and social media platforms. For this research, 1200 texts containing customer feedback were analyzed by Azure Text Analytics service, which identifies the types of customers’ online feedback, domains, subdomains, and keywords it refers to and understands the emotional tone and attitudes conveyed in customer responses through sentiment analysis techniques. The model performance was underlined by computing the Accuracy, Precision, Recall, and F1-Score metrics for both short and long phrases feedback. Furthermore, Azure Text Analytics was integrated into a C# script to extract the frequency of occurrence of domains, subdomains, and keywords. After that, the process of AMSDM and its advantages were detailed. The AMSDM eliminates the necessity for manual intervention and conserves both time and resources. Moreover, the real-time nature of the analysis allows companies to respond promptly to changing market dynamics and customer preferences.

Gastroenterology Trainees Can Easily Learn Histologic Characterization of Diminutive Colorectal Polyps With Narrow Band Imaging

The present study investigated the perceptual dimensions associated with manual key clicks, with the goal of developing realistic haptic key-click feedback signals for virtual keys. We first harvested eight adjective pairs for describing the haptic feel of button and key presses from native English speakers. We then conducted the main experiment where participants provided adjective ratings and grouping data for twenty-three buttons and keys. An MDS analysis of the grouping data led to either a 2-D or 3-D solution. By projecting adjective ratings onto the MDS solution spaces, we found the 2-D perceptual space to be an adequate representation of human perception of manual key clicks. The two perceptual dimensions are determined to be shallow-deep and rough-smooth. Future work will explore the physical parameters corresponding to the perceptual dimensions and ways to simulate realistic key clicks by designing feedback signals using the relevant parameters.

Customer Window Quadrant as a Tool for Tracking Customer Satisfaction on the Furniture Market