The Effectiveness of Multimodal Sensory Feedback on VR Users’ Behavior in an L-Collision Problem

Virtual Reality (VR) is highly dependent on visual information, although it offers multimodal channels for sensory feedback. In this study, we compared the effectiveness of different sensory modalities in the context of collision avoidance in the industrial manufacturing process. Participants performed a pick-and-place task with L-shaped objects on a virtual workstation. In a between-subject design each person performed one of four conditions: Baseline, Auditory, Haptic, and Visual condition. We measured the timing and accuracy of the performed actions. Statistical testing by an ANOVA showed a significant main effect, i.e. a difference between the conditions. We observed the lowest number of collisions in the auditory condition followed by the haptic, baseline and visual conditions. Post hoc tests revealed a significant difference between the auditory condition, the most accurate, and the visual condition, the least accurate. This implies that giving additional feedback by the visual modality is not optimal and utilizing a fully multimodal interface has increased effectivity.