  This study explores the impact of whole-body vibrations induced by external
vehicle perturbations, such as aircraft turbulence, on the perception of
electrovibration displayed on touchscreens. Electrovibration holds promise as a
technology for providing tactile feedback on future touchscreens, addressing
usability challenges in vehicle cockpits. However, its performance under
dynamic conditions, such as during whole-body vibrations induced by turbulence,
still needs to be explored. We measured the absolute detection thresholds of 15
human participants for short- and long-duration electrovibration stimuli
displayed on a touchscreen, both in the absence and presence of two types of
turbulence motion generated by a motion simulator. Concurrently, we measured
participants' applied contact force and finger scan speeds. Significantly
higher (38%) absolute detection thresholds were observed for short
electrovibration stimuli than for long stimuli. Finger scan speeds in the
direction of turbulence, applied forces, and force fluctuation rates increased
during whole-body vibrations due to biodynamic feedthrough. As a result,
turbulence also significantly increased the perception thresholds, but only for
short-duration electrovibration stimuli. The results reveal that whole-body
vibrations can impede the perception of short-duration electrovibration
stimuli, due to involuntary finger movements and increased normal force
fluctuations. Our findings offer valuable insights for the future design of
touchscreens with tactile feedback in vehicle cockpits.
