Human Haptic Perception: Basics and Applications

Haptic perception - human beings' active sense of touch - is the most complex of human sensory systems, and has taken on growing importance within varied scientific disciplines as well as in practical industrial fields. This book's international team of authors presents the most comprehensive collection of writings on the subject published to date and cover the results of research as well as practical applications. After an introduction to the theory and history of the field, subsequent chapters are dedicated to the neuro-physiological basics as well as the psychological and clinical neuro-psychological aspects of haptic perception. Moreover, results of studies into human haptic perception in the fields of virtual haptic and robotics are presented. In the final chapter, contributions from the applied and industrial sectors document the practical uses of knowledge about the human sense of touch.