Tactile perception of natural and simulated textures : a psychophysical approach

The sense of touch is less understood than the visual and auditory senses even though we are continuously using it in our everyday life to interact with the world around us at several levels: texture perception, vibration detection, assessment of the position of our body and limbs. The tactile sense is so embedded in us that we barely notice its existence unless an injury or pathology deprives us from it. The aim of this thesis is primarily to explore the pathways of tactile sensation, from the complex contact mechanics at the finger-surface interface to the respective contributions of the neural pathways processing the tactile signal. The simultaneous implementation of psychophysical measurements and interfacial force recordings enabled us to propose governing principles for the tactile perception of smooth surfaces. These principles are later used to investigate the capacity to feel friction modulation performed by ultrasonic vibrations.