Friction Sensation in Redirected Walking Using a Rotating Handrail

We propose a walker-type system designed to enhance Redirected Walking ( RDW ) within virtual reality ( VR ) by providing dynamic haptic feedback through a rotating circular handrail. Visual gain refers to a parameter that controls the amount of user movement within the virtual environment. Two user studies were conducted to investigate whether haptic feedback in RDW can expand the range of visual gain. In the first user study, we determined the thresholds of discomfort for slide gain ( SG ), defined as the ratio of the handrail’s rotational amount to the amount of user moved. Results showed that slide gains up to SG = 2.69 could be presented without causing discomfort. The second user study examined the visual gain detection threshold in conditions with and without haptic feedback. This represents an approximately 23% increase in the visual gain threshold when the slide gain was set to 2.69, and a 21% increase when the slide gain was set to 1.00, highlighting the influence of haptic feedback. The results demonstrate that this device can enhance the user’s perception of movement in VR by coupling visual and haptic cues.