Tactile Pattern Recognition and Body Loci

Abstract

Experimentation was conducted to compare tactile pattern recognition on three body loci—back, abdomen, and inner thigh. Five blind subjects, experienced users of a tactile vision substitution system which displays images picked up by a television camera through patterns of vibratory stimulation on the skin, were asked to identify letter images displayed on three body regions. Though the previous experience had been limited to stimulation on the back, recognition accuracy and latency were significantly better on the abdomen. The results indicate that immediate transfer of previous learning occurs when body locus of stimulation is shifted, and further suggest that neural networks for tactile pattern recognition do not include specific peripheral neural receptors.