Vibration presentation system, vibration reproduction method, and program

Abstract

A vibration presentation system comprising a vibration presentation device having at least one presentation vibrator, wherein the vibration presentation system is provided with a control unit that calculates, for each vibration sensor, perceptual intensity of vibration measured by the plurality of vibration sensors, integrates the perceptual intensity by adding the perceptual intensity, and calculates vibration to be presented to at least one presentation vibrator on the basis of the integrated perceptual intensity.

Description

Vibration presentation system, vibration reproduction method and program

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 537,204, filed on September 8, 2023, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] In recent years, with the popularity of e-sports and virtual reality (VR), video games such as online games and social games have become increasingly popular. Accordingly, there has been growing interest in technology that generates various vibrations, ranging from low to high frequencies according to the content of the game, using portable game consoles, game controllers, VR controllers, etc., and allows users to experience these vibrations.

[0003] For example, there is a technology in which vibrations are measured by attaching multiple vibration sensors to the wrist, and vibrations are reproduced using the same number of vibrators as the vibration sensors, thereby allowing the user to feel the vibrations (for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

[0004] International Publication No. WO 2021 / 085506 International Publication No. WO 2022 / 254732 International Publication No. WO 2022 / 254733 International Publication No. WO 2023 / 233491 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2021-047819 U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2019 / 0187798

[0005] Waga et al., 'Multi-channel Vibrotactile Transmission through a Bracelet Device based on the Intensity Segment Modulation' AsiaHaptics2022 BensmaIa, S., Hollins, M. & Yau, J. Vibrotactile intensity and frequency information in the Pacinian system: A psychophysical model. Perception & Psychophysics 67, 828-841 (2005). Kikuchi, D., Konyo, M., Tadokoro, S.: Generation of phantom sensations with arbitrary waveforms using vibration intensity, 2nd report: Evaluation of position controllability and tactile sensation maintenance, 26th Annual Conference of the Virtual Reality Society of Japan (2021)

[0006] However, a device that reproduces vibrations may only be equipped with one vibrator or fewer vibrators than the number of vibration sensors that acquired the vibrations. With fewer vibrators than the number of vibration sensors that acquired the vibrations, it is difficult to reproduce the vibration sensation measured by multiple vibration sensors.

[0007] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a technology that improves the reproducibility of vibration sensation measured by multiple vibration sensors using one or fewer vibrators than the vibration sensors that acquired the vibration.

[0008] One aspect of the present invention is a vibration presentation system including a vibration presentation device having at least one presentation vibrator, and a control unit that calculates the perceived intensity of vibrations measured by multiple vibration sensors for each of the vibration sensors, integrates the perceived intensities by adding the perceived intensities, and calculates the vibration to be presented to at least one presentation vibrator based on the integrated perceived intensity.

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the reproducibility of vibration sensations measured by a plurality of vibration sensors using at least one presentation vibrator.

[0010] 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an overview of a vibration presentation system 100 according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a procedure for calculating the vibration of one presentation vibrator 4 from vibrations measured by a plurality of vibration sensors 2. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the vibration acquisition device 1 according to an embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of high-frequency components of vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a comparative example of perceived intensity calculated by different methods. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the vibration acquisition device 1 according to an embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the vibration presentation device 3 according to an embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the results of a first experiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the results of the first experiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the results of the first experiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the results of the second experiment.

[0011] (Embodiment) FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an overview of a vibration presentation system 100 according to this embodiment. The vibration presentation system 100 includes a vibration acquisition device 1, multiple vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N, a vibration presentation device 3, and a presentation vibrator 4. Note that if vibration data acquired by the multiple vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N of the vibration acquisition device 1 is stored in a memory unit of the vibration presentation device 3, the vibration presentation system 100 does not need to include the vibration acquisition device 1. Hereinafter, when the multiple vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N are not to be distinguished from one another, they will be simply referred to as "vibration sensor 2." The vibration sensor 2 is a sensor that is attached to an object whose vibrations are to be reproduced and measures the vibrations. If the purpose is to reproduce vibrations of a wrist, the vibration sensor 2 is attached to the wrist. If the purpose is to reproduce vibrations of an object that a person holds or stands or sits on, the vibration sensor 2 may be attached to an object that a person holds or stands or sits on.

[0012] The presentation vibrator 4 is a vibrator that vibrates under the control of the vibration acquisition device 1. The presentation vibrator 4 may be, for example, a piezoelectric vibrator or a Linear Resonant Actuator (LRA) vibrator.

[0013] The vibration acquisition device 1 acquires vibrations measured by a plurality of vibration sensors 2, and based on the acquired vibration signal, generates a vibration to be presented to one presentation vibrator 4. The vibration presentation device 3 presents the vibration generated by the vibration acquisition device 1 to the presentation vibrator 4, causing the presentation vibrator 4 to vibrate.

[0014] The vibration acquisition device 1 includes a control unit 11 having a processor 91 such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) or an NPU (Neural Network Processing Unit) and a memory 92 connected by a bus, and executes a program.

[0015] The control unit 11 executes a program to perform, for example, vibration acquisition processing, frequency division processing, high frequency integration processing, low frequency integration processing, and waveform synthesis processing.

[0016] The vibration presentation device 3 includes a control unit 31 having a processor 32 such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) or an NPU (Neural Network Processing Unit) and a memory 33 connected by a bus, and executes a program.

[0017] The control unit 31 executes a program to perform, for example, a vibrator control process.

[0018] The following describes each process performed by the control unit 11. The vibration acquisition process acquires vibrations measured by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N.

[0019] The frequency division process is a process of dividing the vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N into high-frequency components and low-frequency components. Here, the reference frequency for distinguishing between high and low frequencies may be any frequency, and for example, the high-frequency components and low-frequency components are divided based on a frequency between 80 Hz and 120 Hz.

[0020] The high frequency integration process is a process for integrating high frequency components of vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N. The method for integrating high frequency components will be described in detail below.

[0021] In the high frequency integration process, first, the perceived intensity of the high frequency components of the vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N is calculated. The method for calculating the perceived intensity may be, for example, the method disclosed in Non-Patent Document 2 or Non-Patent Document 3. The method for calculating the perceived intensity may also be, for example, the method described in Patent Documents 1 to 4.

[0022] Then, in a high-frequency integration process, the perceptual intensities calculated from the high-frequency components of the vibrations measured by each vibration sensor 2 are integrated. In the integration of the perceptual intensities, the perceptual intensities for the same time are added together to integrate the perceptual intensities.

[0023] Then, in the high-frequency integration process, the integrated perceptual intensity is converted into another vibration waveform having the same perceptual intensity, thereby calculating the high-frequency component. For example, the high-frequency component is calculated by converting it into an amplitude-modulated wave having a fixed frequency. In other words, the high-frequency component of the vibration to be presented to one presentation vibrator is calculated by performing the reverse operation of the perceptual intensity calculation method on the integrated perceptual intensity.

[0024] As will be described in more detail later, in the high-frequency integration process, if the original vibrations (vibrations for which the perceived intensity has not been calculated) acquired by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N are simply integrated as they are, the waveforms cancel each other out and some important waveforms disappear, and if this is presented by a single presentation oscillator 4, the bodily sensation cannot be reproduced. However, as described above, if the perceived intensity is calculated from the acquired original vibrations and integrated, the perceived intensity is returned as a positive intensity, so even if important peaks in the bodily sensation are integrated, important waveforms do not disappear. Therefore, if vibrations based on the integrated perceived intensity are presented by a single presentation oscillator 4, the bodily sensation can be reproduced.

[0025] The low-frequency integration process is a process of integrating the low-frequency components of vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N. The low-frequency components can be integrated, for example, by the following method. One method of integrating the low-frequency components is to use the low-frequency components of vibrations acquired from one vibration sensor among the low-frequency components of vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N as the integrated low-frequency component. For example, the low-frequency component of the vibration with the largest maximum amplitude among the low-frequency components of vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N is used as the integrated low-frequency component.

[0026] One method for integrating low-frequency components is to calculate the integrated vibration by calculating the average value or the effective value of the squared amplitudes of the low-frequency components of the vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N. Here, the squared value or the effective value of the amplitude may be corrected with a coefficient that takes into account the frequency-dependent characteristics of human perception. This correction is performed by performing a Fourier transform (e.g., FFT (Fast Fourier Transform)) on the time-domain vibration to express it in the frequency domain, then applying a gain according to the frequency and performing an inverse Fourier transform. Alternatively, the correction may be based on the frequency response characteristics of the presentation vibrator 4.

[0027] One method of integrating low-frequency components is to calculate the maximum value of the low-frequency components of the vibrations acquired from each of the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N, select the largest maximum value that exists within a predetermined time interval and use it as the integrated maximum value, and then smoothly connect the integrated maximum values ​​using spline interpolation or the like so that the intermediate position of adjacent integrated maximum values ​​becomes zero, thereby creating a re-synthesized waveform that is used as the integrated low-frequency component.

[0028] Furthermore, the method of calculating the maximum value described in Patent Document 4 may be applied to the low frequency components of the vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N, and the low frequency components may be integrated by generating a single wave.

[0029] By using any of the above methods, the low frequency components of the vibration of one vibrator are calculated.

[0030] The waveform synthesis process is a process of synthesizing the high-frequency components calculated by the high-frequency integration process and the low-frequency components calculated by the low-frequency integration process to generate vibrations to be presented by one presentation vibrator 4 .

[0031] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the procedure for calculating the vibration of one presentation vibrator 4 from the vibrations measured by a plurality of vibration sensors 2.

[0032] 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the vibration acquisition device 1 of this embodiment. The control unit 11 acquires vibrations measured by each of the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N through a vibration acquisition process (step S11). The control unit 11 divides the vibrations measured by each of the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N into high-frequency components and low-frequency components through a frequency division process (step S12). The control unit 11 calculates the perceived intensity of the high-frequency components of the vibrations acquired by each of the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N through a high-frequency integration process (step S13). As a result, the perceived intensity of the high-frequency components is calculated for each of the vibration sensors 2.

[0033] The control unit 11 adds the perceptual intensities calculated from each high-frequency component by the high-frequency integration process (step S14). As a result, the perceptual intensities of the high-frequency components for each vibration sensor 2 are integrated into a single perceptual intensity. The control unit 11 performs an operation on the integrated perceptual intensity by the high-frequency integration process inverse to the method of calculating the perceptual intensity (step S15). As a result, waveform data represented by the time amplitude of the high-frequency component is calculated.

[0034] The control unit 11 performs a low-frequency integration process to integrate the low-frequency components of the vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N (step S16). This allows waveform data represented by the time amplitude of the low-frequency components to be calculated. The operations from steps S13 to S15 and the operation of step S16 may be performed in parallel, or one operation may be performed after the other.

[0035] The control unit 11 performs waveform synthesis processing to synthesize the high-frequency components reproduced by the high-frequency integrating processing and the low-frequency components reproduced by the low-frequency integrating processing (step S17).

[0036] The vibrator control process is a process of controlling the presentation vibrator 4 based on the vibration acquired from the vibration acquisition device 1 .

[0037] The control unit 11 does not necessarily have to divide the vibration into high-frequency and low-frequency components by frequency division processing. In this case, the vibrations acquired from the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N are integrated by performing high-frequency integration processing. In this case, low-frequency integration processing and waveform synthesis processing are not performed.

[0038] Furthermore, in the above description, the control unit 11 calculates the vibration of the integrated perceived intensity presented by one presentation vibrator 4 based on the vibrations measured from the multiple vibration sensors 2, but the vibration of the integrated perceived intensity may be calculated for multiple presentation vibrators 4, the number of which is fewer than the number of vibration sensors 2. In this case, the multiple vibration sensors 2 may be divided into groups including the corresponding presentation vibrators 4, and the vibration of one corresponding presentation vibrator 4 may be calculated from the multiple vibration sensors 2 belonging to each group. Alternatively, the integrated perceived intensity may be distributed to the multiple presentation vibrators 4, as described in Patent Document 2.

[0039] Fig. 4A is a diagram showing an example of high-frequency components of the original vibration acquired from each of the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N. Fig. 4B is a diagram showing the perceived intensity calculated by a different method from the high-frequency components shown in Fig. 4A. The solid line in Fig. 4B represents the high-frequency components generated in this embodiment by calculating the perceived intensity from the high-frequency components of the original vibration measured by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N and integrating the perceived intensities calculated for each vibration sensor 2. The dashed line in Fig. 4B represents the high-frequency components generated by adding and integrating the high-frequency components of the original vibration measured by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N without calculating the perceived intensity, and then calculating the perceived intensity from the integrated high-frequency components.

[0040] As shown in FIG. 4A , the high-frequency components of the vibrations acquired by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N each exhibit two peaks, one near 0.13 seconds and the other near 0.2 seconds. The solid lines in FIG. 4B show peaks near 0.13 seconds and 0.2 seconds, while the dashed lines show a peak near 0.13 seconds but not near 0.2 seconds. This is thought to be because the high-frequency components of the original vibrations measured by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N are canceled out by adding them, eliminating the fluctuation in the vibration amplitude near 0.2 seconds. This vibration does not accurately reflect the bodily sensation. Therefore, in this embodiment, the perceived intensity is calculated from the original vibrations measured by each vibration sensor 2 and integrated, thereby accurately reflecting the bodily sensation in the vibrations reproduced by one or more vibrators.

[0041] 5 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the vibration acquisition device 1 according to the embodiment. As described above, the vibration acquisition device 1 includes a control unit 11 including a processor 91 such as a CPU and a memory 92 connected via a bus, and executes a program. By executing the program, the vibration acquisition device 1 functions as a device including the control unit 11, an interface unit 12, and a storage unit 13.

[0042] More specifically, the processor 91 reads out a program stored in the storage unit 13 and stores the read out program in the memory 92. When the processor 91 executes the program stored in the memory 92, the vibration acquisition device 1 functions as a device including the control unit 11, the interface unit 12, and the storage unit 13.

[0043] The control unit 11 controls the operation of various functional units included in the vibration acquisition device 1. The control unit 11 executes, for example, vibration acquisition processing, frequency division processing, high frequency integration processing, low frequency integration processing, and waveform synthesis processing. Note that if the control unit 31 of the vibration presentation device 3 described below has these functions, it is not necessary to provide functions other than the vibration acquisition processing.

[0044] The control unit 11 acquires, for example, target data input via the interface unit 12. The control unit 11 acquires, for example, target data that has been stored in advance in the storage unit 13.

[0045] The control unit 11 may, for example, acquire information stored in the storage unit 13. Specifically, the process of acquiring information stored in the storage unit 13 is a read process.

[0046] The interface unit 12 includes a communication interface for connecting the vibration acquisition device 1 to an external device. The interface unit 12 communicates with the external device via a wired or wireless connection. The external device is, for example, the vibration sensor 2. In this case, the interface unit 12 receives information about vibrations measured by the vibration sensor 2 through communication with the vibration sensor 2. The external device is, for example, the vibration presentation device 3. In this case, the interface unit 12 transmits information about vibrations to the vibration presentation device 3 through communication with the vibration presentation device 3.

[0047] The interface unit 12 includes input devices such as a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, and a microphone. The interface unit 12 may be configured as an interface that connects these input devices to the vibration acquisition device 1. In this way, the interface unit 12 accepts input of various information to the vibration acquisition device 1 via the input devices, either wired or wireless.

[0048] The interface unit 12 outputs various types of information. The interface unit 12 includes a display device such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display, a liquid crystal display, or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display. The interface unit 12 may be configured as an interface that connects these display devices to the vibration acquisition device 1. The interface unit 12 outputs information input to a communication interface or an input device of the interface unit 12, for example.

[0049] The storage unit 13 is configured using a computer-readable storage medium (non-transitory computer-readable recording medium) such as a magnetic hard disk drive or a semiconductor storage device. The storage unit 13 stores various information related to the vibration acquisition device 1. The storage unit 13 stores, for example, information on vibrations measured by the vibration sensor 2. The storage unit 13 stores, for example, information input to the interface unit 12. Note that the storage unit 13 may also store original vibrations previously acquired by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N or integrated perceived intensities calculated from the original vibrations. In this way, previously acquired vibrations can be presented by the presentation vibrator 4 even without the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N.

[0050] 6 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the vibration presentation device 3 according to the embodiment. As described above, the vibration presentation device 3 also includes a control unit 31 including a processor 32 such as a CPU and a memory 33 connected by a bus, similar to the vibration acquisition device 1, and executes a program. The vibration presentation device 3 functions as a device including the control unit 31, an interface unit 34, and a storage unit 35 by executing the program.

[0051] More specifically, the processor 32 reads out a program stored in the storage unit 35 and stores the read program in the memory 33. When the processor 32 executes the program stored in the memory 33, the vibration presentation device 3 functions as a device including the control unit 31, the interface unit 34, and the storage unit 35.

[0052] The control unit 31 controls the operation of various functional units included in the vibration presentation device 3. The control unit 31 executes, for example, a vibrator control process. Note that, when data acquired by the vibration acquisition device 1 or the like is stored in the storage unit 35, the control unit 31 may execute the same functions as the control unit 11 of the vibration acquisition device 1, for example, a frequency division process, a high-frequency integration process, a low-frequency integration process, and a waveform synthesis process.

[0053] The control unit 31 may, for example, acquire information stored in the storage unit 35. Specifically, the process of acquiring information stored in the storage unit 35 is a read process.

[0054] The interface unit 34 includes a communication interface for connecting the vibration presentation device 3 to an external device. The interface unit 34 communicates with the external device via a wired or wireless connection. The external device is, for example, the vibration acquisition device 1. In this case, the interface unit 34 acquires information about vibrations to be presented to the presentation vibrator 4 by communicating with the vibration acquisition device 1. The external device is, for example, the presentation vibrator 4. In this case, the interface unit 34 vibrates the presentation vibrator 4 by communicating with the presentation vibrator 4.

[0055] The interface unit 34 includes input devices such as a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, and a microphone. The interface unit 34 may be configured as an interface that connects these input devices to the vibration presentation device 3. In this way, the interface unit 34 accepts input of various information to the vibration presentation device 3 via the input device, either wired or wirelessly. Note that the target data does not necessarily need to be input to the communication interface, and may be input to the input device.

[0056] The interface unit 34 outputs various types of information. The interface unit 34 includes a display device such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display, a liquid crystal display, or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display. The interface unit 34 may be configured as an interface that connects these display devices to the vibration presentation device 3. The interface unit 34 outputs information input to a communication interface or an input device of the interface unit 34, for example.

[0057] The storage unit 35 is configured using a computer-readable storage medium (non-transitory computer-readable recording medium) such as a magnetic hard disk drive or a semiconductor storage device. The storage unit 35 stores various information related to the vibration presentation device 3. The storage unit 35 stores various information generated by the operation of the control unit 31, for example. The storage unit 35 stores information input to the interface unit 34, for example. Specifically, the storage unit 35 stores information on vibrations to be presented to the presentation vibrator 4. Note that if the storage unit 13 does not store the original vibrations previously acquired and measured by the vibration sensors 2-1 to 2-N or the integrated perceived intensity calculated therefrom, the storage unit 35 may store such data. In this way, previously acquired vibrations can be presented by the presentation vibrator 4 even without the vibration acquisition device 1.

[0058] (First Experiment) The first experiment conducted will now be described. Four vibration sensors 2 were attached around the arms of a badminton player, and the badminton player was made to perform a drive shot and a backhand shot, and vibrations were measured by the four vibration sensors 2.

[0059] Then, one vibration was generated based on the vibrations measured by the four vibration sensors 2 using four methods. The first method is the technique of this embodiment. The second method is a method of calculating the high-frequency components of one vibration by adding and integrating the high-frequency components of the vibrations measured by the four vibration sensors and calculating the perceived intensity from the integrated high-frequency components. The third method is a method of adopting one vibration measured by the four vibration sensors under the worst conditions (the one with the smallest maximum amplitude). The fourth method is a method of adopting one vibration measured by the four vibration sensors under the best conditions (the one with the largest maximum amplitude).

[0060] Furthermore, the perceived intensity was calculated independently from the vibrations measured by the four vibration sensors 2, and four vibrations were calculated by converting them into amplitude-modulated waves with equalized intensity. The four calculated vibrations were presented to four vibrators attached to the subject's arm to provide stimulation to the arm. The stimulation provided here was designated the "reference stimulation."

[0061] In addition, vibrations calculated using the above four methods were presented to a single vibrator attached to the subject's arm, providing stimulation to the arm. This stimulus was designated the "comparison stimulus." The same subjects were presented with a reference stimulus and a comparison stimulus, and were asked to rate the similarity of the comparison stimulus to the reference stimulus on a seven-point scale. The subjects were also asked to rank the similarity of the comparison stimulus. This was done for four subjects, and the average and error of the ratings were calculated.

[0062] Furthermore, experiments were conducted in which vibrations obtained by combining high-frequency and low-frequency components were presented to the presentation vibrator 4, and in which only high-frequency components were presented to the presentation vibrator 4.

[0063] 7 to 10 are diagrams showing the results of the first experiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a similarity evaluation of drive shot movements using a Likert scale. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a similarity evaluation of drive shot movements using a normalized ranking method. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a similarity evaluation of backhand shot movements using a Likert scale. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a similarity evaluation of backhand shot movements using a normalized ranking method.

[0064] The first method, which is the technique of this embodiment, consistently showed a high degree of similarity. The second method sometimes showed an evaluation equivalent to that of the first method, but sometimes had a larger error range or a lower evaluation than the first method. This is thought to be because, as mentioned above, the high-frequency components of the vibration were canceled out by adding them, and fluctuations in the vibration amplitude were not reflected in the calculated perceived intensity.

[0065] The second experiment conducted will be described below. In the second experiment, unlike the first experiment, a person wearing four vibration sensors 2 around their wrist was asked to shake maracas from side to side, and the vibrations were measured by the four vibration sensors 2. At this time, the vibrations measured by the four vibration sensors 2 included continuous high-frequency components. Other conditions were the same as in the first experiment, and the vibrations measured by the four vibration sensors 2 using the four methods were integrated into a single vibration.

[0066] In the second experiment, unlike the first experiment, the same subjects were presented with a reference stimulus and four comparison stimuli with different integration methods, and were asked to rank the comparison stimuli in order of how similar they felt to the reference stimulus. The rankings were then converted into normalized scores, and the vibration integration methods were evaluated. This was done for three subjects, and the average normalized score was calculated.

[0067] Fig. 11 shows the results of the second experiment. The vibrations integrated by the first method had the highest normality score, and were able to reproduce vibrations from multiple oscillators with a single oscillator better than the other methods.

[0068] As described above, the vibration acquisition device 1 according to this embodiment can improve the reproducibility of vibrations measured by multiple vibration sensors using a single vibrator compared to conventional techniques. Furthermore, experiments have shown that this embodiment can also improve the reproducibility of vibrations that continuously occur at high frequencies using a single vibrator.

[0069] The control unit 11 may be implemented using a plurality of information processing devices connected to each other via a network. In this case, the respective functional units of the control unit 11 may be distributed and implemented in the plurality of information processing devices. The same applies to the control unit 31.

[0070] All or part of the functions of the vibration acquisition device 1, the vibration presentation device 3, and the vibration presentation system 100 may be realized using hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a PLD (Programmable Logic Device), or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). The program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. Examples of computer-readable recording media include portable media such as flexible disks, optical magnetic disks, ROMs, and CD-ROMs, and storage devices such as hard disks built into computer systems. The program may be transmitted via a telecommunications line.

[0071] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above in detail with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes designs within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

[0072] 100 vibration presentation system, 1 vibration acquisition device, 2 vibration sensor, 3 vibration presentation device, 4 presentation vibrator, 11, 31 control unit, 91, 32 processor, 92, 33 memory, 12, 34 interface unit, 13, 35 storage unit

Claims

1. A vibration presentation system comprising a vibration presentation device having at least one presentation oscillator, the vibration presentation system comprising: a control unit that calculates the perceived intensity of vibration measured by a plurality of vibration sensors for each of the vibration sensors, integrates the perceived intensities by adding up the perceived intensities, and calculates vibration to be presented to at least one presentation oscillator based on the integrated perceived intensity.

2. The vibration presentation system of claim 1, wherein the control unit divides vibrations measured by multiple vibration sensors into high-frequency components and low-frequency components for each vibration sensor, calculates the perceived intensity of the high-frequency components for each vibration sensor, integrates the perceived intensities by adding the perceived intensities, calculates the high-frequency components of the vibration to be presented to the at least one presentation oscillator based on the integrated perceived intensity, integrates the low-frequency components and calculates the low-frequency components of the vibration to be presented to the at least one presentation oscillator, and synthesizes the high-frequency and low-frequency components of the vibration to be presented to the at least one presentation oscillator to calculate the vibration to be presented to the at least one presentation oscillator.

3. The vibration presentation system according to claim 2, wherein the high frequency components and the low frequency components are divided based on a frequency between 80 Hz and 120 Hz.

4. The vibration presentation system according to claim 2, wherein the low-frequency components are integrated by calculating an average value or an effective value of the squared values ​​of the amplitudes of the low-frequency components, and the low-frequency components of the vibration to be presented to the at least one presentation vibrator are calculated.

5. The vibration presentation system according to claim 2, wherein the low-frequency components are integrated by calculating an amplitude based on a maximum value of the amplitude of the low-frequency components, and the low-frequency components of the vibration to be presented to the at least one presentation vibrator are calculated.

6. The vibration presentation system according to claim 2, further comprising a vibration acquisition device having the plurality of vibration sensors.

7. A vibration reproduction method comprising the steps of: calculating a perceived intensity of vibration measured by a plurality of vibration sensors for each of the vibration sensors; integrating the perceived intensities by adding up the perceived intensities; and calculating a vibration to be presented to at least one presentation transducer based on the integrated perceived intensity.

8. A program for causing a computer to execute the vibration reproduction method according to claim 7.

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