# Enhancing User Experience in Virtual Museums: Impact of Finger Vibrotactile Feedback
## 3 Methodology
### Hardware and Software Enhancements  
The vibrotactile glove underwent significant hardware enhancements to improve user experience in the virtual museum setting based on feedback from an initial pilot study [34]. These improvements enhanced tactile feedback fidelity, ergonomic comfort, and overall user interaction. To accommodate the number of eccentric rotating mass (ERM) motors, we employed two Arduino Uno boards, one for each hand as shown in Figure 1a. This setup allowed for sophisticated control and independent motor activation, essential for simulating various textures within the virtual museum. Each hand features five ERM motors, one for each fingertip, enabling detailed and nuanced haptic feedback that accurately mimics the tactile sensations of different materials. By assigning a motor to each finger, the glove provides specific feedback depending on the part of the hand that interacts with the virtual object, significantly enhancing realism. Pulse width modulation pins on the Arduino boards were employed to modulate the vibration intensity, which is crucial for simulating a wide range of textures, from smooth porcelain to rough stone as shown in Figure 1b. The ability to dynamically adjust the vibration intensity was key to achieving a realistic sensory experience. To address the comfort and fit issues identified in the pilot study, significant ergonomic improvements were made. Figure 2 shows the custom 3D-printed fingertip holders, designed to fit snugly around each finger and provide a stable base for the ERM motors. The glove model was resized using the Blender software (version 3.1.2) to better match users' ergonomic needs, improving usability and wearability. Each fingertip holder features adjustable elastic bands to accommodate different finger sizes and shapes, enhancing the glove's usability and accessibility. The materials for the glove were chosen to balance durability and comfort. Flexible, lightweight materials were selected for the glove body to allow natural hand movements and reduce fatigue during prolonged use while ensuring durability to support the embedded hardware. Wiring and electronic components were carefully integrated to ensure user safety and comfort. The wiring layout was optimized to minimize bulkiness and prevent interference with natural hand movements, with protective measures implemented to shield users from electrical hazards. Software enhancements were adopted to elevate the tactile feedback mechanism's precision and realism, as well as the user interaction, within the virtual museum environment. These enhancements were essential to providing an immersive and real experience. The software modifications spanned several areas, including programming environments,integration protocols, and user interaction scripts, all tailored to improve the functionality and responsiveness of the vibrotactile glove. A cornerstone of the software enhancement involved deepening the integration with Unity 3D software (version 2021.3.8f1) and the Oculus Integration Software Development Kit (SDK) (version IDE 2.3.2). This was achieved by developing a custom script suite to facilitate seamless communication between the vibrotactile glove hardware and the virtual environment. These scripts allowed for dynamic changes in the vibration intensities based on the user's interaction with virtual objects, ensuring realistic simulated sensations for various textures (e.g., the roughness of stone or the smoothness of porcelain). Figure 1: **(a)** Dual Arduino Uno setup; **(b)** pulse width modulation control scheme. The glove's haptic feedback system was driven by five ERM motors for each glove, controlled by Arduino Uno boards. Custom sketches were developed for these boards using the Arduino Integrated Development Environment. Each motor's operation was intricately programmed to align with specific virtual interactions, allowing for nuanced feedback that varied by intensity to accurately simulate the different tactile sensations.