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Tactile perception plays a critical role in the interaction of humans and environment. It begins with the mechanical stimulation induced by friction and is processed in the somatosensory cortex. To quantify the tactile perceptions of textile fabrics, the mechanical properties of fabrics and the features extracted from the friction and vibration signals were correlated with the subjective sensation rated by questionnaires. Meanwhile, the technique of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to identify the brain areas responsible for the tactile perception of textile fabrics. The results showed that during the tactile perception of textile fabrics, the coefficient of friction increased with the increasing normal load, indicating that the deformation mechanism of skin was relevant to the friction of skin against fabrics. The features of spectral centroid (SC), coefficient of friction, and diameter and critical buckling force of fiber had a strong correlation with the perceived fineness, slipperiness, and prickliness of fabrics, respectively. The postcentral gyrus, supramarginal gyrus, and precentral gyrus, with the corresponding functional regions of the primary somatosensory cortex (SI), secondary somatosensory cortex (SII), primary motor cortex (MI), and secondary motor cortex (MII), were involved with the perceptions of fabric textures. The fiber properties and fabric surface structures that caused the multidimensional feelings tended to induce the large area, intensity, and percent signal change (PSC) of brain activity. This study is meaning for evaluating the tactile stimulation of textile fabrics and understanding the cognitive mechanism in the tactile perception of textile fabrics.


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Tactile perception of textile fabrics based on friction and brain activation

Show Author's information Wei TANG1( )Shousheng ZHANG1Chuang YU1Hua ZHU1Si CHEN2Yuxing PENG1
School of Mechatronic Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, China
Fluid Machinery Center, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China

Abstract

Tactile perception plays a critical role in the interaction of humans and environment. It begins with the mechanical stimulation induced by friction and is processed in the somatosensory cortex. To quantify the tactile perceptions of textile fabrics, the mechanical properties of fabrics and the features extracted from the friction and vibration signals were correlated with the subjective sensation rated by questionnaires. Meanwhile, the technique of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to identify the brain areas responsible for the tactile perception of textile fabrics. The results showed that during the tactile perception of textile fabrics, the coefficient of friction increased with the increasing normal load, indicating that the deformation mechanism of skin was relevant to the friction of skin against fabrics. The features of spectral centroid (SC), coefficient of friction, and diameter and critical buckling force of fiber had a strong correlation with the perceived fineness, slipperiness, and prickliness of fabrics, respectively. The postcentral gyrus, supramarginal gyrus, and precentral gyrus, with the corresponding functional regions of the primary somatosensory cortex (SI), secondary somatosensory cortex (SII), primary motor cortex (MI), and secondary motor cortex (MII), were involved with the perceptions of fabric textures. The fiber properties and fabric surface structures that caused the multidimensional feelings tended to induce the large area, intensity, and percent signal change (PSC) of brain activity. This study is meaning for evaluating the tactile stimulation of textile fabrics and understanding the cognitive mechanism in the tactile perception of textile fabrics.

Keywords: tactile perception, friction, brain activation, characteristic features, textile fabric

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Publication history

Received: 24 September 2021
Revised: 17 March 2022
Accepted: 26 July 2022
Published: 09 December 2022
Issue date: July 2023

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© The author(s) 2022.

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51875566 and 51805218), a project funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions, and technically helped by Dr. Shengjie BAI, Chunai HU, and Yibing SHI in the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Test Section of Xuzhou Central Hospital, China.

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