  Most existing locomotion devices that represent the sensation of walking
target a user who is actually performing a walking motion. Here, we attempted
to represent the walking sensation, especially a kinesthetic sensation and
advancing feeling (the sense of moving forward) while the user remains seated.
To represent the walking sensation using a relatively simple device, we focused
on the force rendering and its evaluation of the longitudinal friction force
applied on the sole during walking. Based on the measurement of the friction
force applied on the sole during actual walking, we developed a novel friction
force display that can present the friction force without the influence of body
weight. Using performance evaluation testing, we found that the proposed method
can stably and rapidly display friction force. Also, we developed a virtual
reality (VR) walk-through system that is able to present the friction force
through the proposed device according to the avatar's walking motion in a
virtual world. By evaluating the realism, we found that the proposed device can
represent a more realistic advancing feeling than vibration feedback.
