What haptic stimuli do you like?

Lake Forest research student Ellis Mudrik ('26) just gave our lab a boost in how we think about “what feels good” (and what doesn’t) when it comes to haptic feedback.

At the Glassman Symposium, Ellis Mudrik presented research from our lab that focused on a deceptively simple question:

When a haptic cane vibrates to warn someone about an obstacle, what kinds of vibration patterns feel pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral—and why?

This matters more than you might think. A haptic signal isn’t just “on” or “off.” It has a texture —a character that users interpret emotionally and cognitively in real time. If a pattern feels annoying, startling, or fatiguing, people will ignore it. If it feels clear and comfortable, it’s more likely to be trusted and used consistently.

What She Found: It’s Not One-Size-Fits-All

Ellis found an interesting and surprisingly complex relationship between the type of haptic stimulus and how participants rated it:

Some haptic patterns were rated as pleasant by many users

Others were rated as unpleasant (or simply distracting)

And many landed in the middle as neutral, depending on the person and the context

But the most important takeaway was this:

Certain haptic stimuli didn’t act independently.

Instead, some patterns interacted with others—meaning one stimulus could change how another one was perceived. In some cases, these interactions influenced participant ratings strongly.

In other words, designing a good haptic cane isn’t just about picking a few “good” vibrations. It’s about understanding how a set of signals works together as a system.

These data are helping us to...

• choose stimulus combinations that are more comfortable and less confusing

• reduce patterns that users interpret as unpleasant or overly harsh

• refine how we sequence or “layer” signals so that the feedback feels clearer and more intuitive

The bottom line: better user experience leads to better performance. When the feedback is easier to interpret—and easier to tolerate—our canes become more effective tools for safe navigation.