| | |  | | | | Record from Web of Science® | | | | | | |
| Humans integrate visual and haptic information in a statistically optimal fashion |
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| Author(s): Ernst MO, Banks MS |
| Source: NATURE Volume: 415 Issue: 6870 Pages: 429-433 Published: JAN 24 2002 |
| Times Cited: 464 References: 25 |
| Abstract: When a person looks at an object while exploring it with their hand, vision and touch both provide information for estimating the properties of the object. Vision frequently dominates the integrated visual-haptic percept, for example when judging size, shape or position(1-3), but in some circumstances the percept is clearly affected by haptics(4-7). Here we propose that a general principle, which minimizes variance in the final estimate, determines the degree to which vision or haptics dominates. This principle is realized by using maximum-likelihood estimation(8-15) to combine the inputs. To investigate cue combination quantitatively, we first measured the variances associated with visual and haptic estimation of height. We then used these measurements to construct a maximum-likelihood integrator. This model behaved very similarly to humans in a visual-haptic task. Thus, the nervous system seems to combine visual and haptic information in a fashion that is similar to a maximum-likelihood integrator. Visual dominance occurs when the variance associated with visual estimation is lower than that associated with haptic estimation. |
| Document Type: Article |
| Language: English |
| Reprint Address: Ernst, MO (reprint author), Max Planck Inst Biol Cybernet, Spemannstr 38, D-72076 Tubingen, Germany |
Addresses:
1. Univ Calif Berkeley, Sch Optometry, Vis Sci Program, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA |
| Publisher: NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP, MACMILLAN BUILDING, 4 CRINAN ST, LONDON N1 9XW, ENGLAND |
| Subject Category: Multidisciplinary Sciences |
| IDS Number: 514HR |
| ISSN: 0028-0836 |
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| | | | | | | | | Record from Web of Science® | | | | | | | | | |