Prosthetic Upper-Limb Sensory Enhancement (PULSE): A Dual Haptic Feedback Device in a Prosthetic Socket

This study presents the Prosthetic Upper-Limb Sensory Enhancement (PULSE), a novel dual feedback device completely integrated into a prosthetic socket. The core of the system includes two compact vibrotactile actuators and two silicone chambers in contact with the user’s skin. These com- ponents provide high-frequency tactile cues for initial contact and surface information (e.g. texture) as well as pressure stimuli related to grasping force. Ten able-bodied participants and one subject with limb loss validated the system, accomplishing an object discrimination task in two different modalities (with and without the feedback). Standardized questionnaires evaluate users’ satisfaction and workload, enabling a systematic and ro- bust device assessment. The results show that the PULSE device enhanced performance compared to its absence without causing discomfort for a prosthetic user and able-bodied participants. The findings highlight the potential of dual haptic feedback to enhance sensory perception in prosthetic applications and offer valuable insights for future prosthetic design.