Brass Haptics: Comparing Virtual and Physical Trumpets in Extended Realities

Despite the benefits of learning an instrument, many students drop out early because it can be frustrating for the student, expensive for the caregiver, and loud for the household. Virtual Reality (VR) and Extended Reality (XR) offer the potential to address these challenges by simulating multiple i...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Arts (Basel) 2023-07, Vol.12 (4), p.145
Main Authors: Blewett, Devon John, Gerhard, David
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Augmented reality
Design
Design and construction
extended reality
Familiarity
Feedback
hand tracking
Haptics technology
music interface
musical instrument simulation
Musical instruments
Simulation
Student attitudes
Technology application
Trumpet
Virtual reality
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Despite the benefits of learning an instrument, many students drop out early because it can be frustrating for the student, expensive for the caregiver, and loud for the household. Virtual Reality (VR) and Extended Reality (XR) offer the potential to address these challenges by simulating multiple instruments in an engaging and motivating environment through headphones. To assess the potential for commercial VR to augment musical experiences, we used standard VR implementation processes to design four virtual trumpet interfaces: camera-tracking with tracked register selection (two ways), camera-tracking with voice activation, and a controller plus a force-feedback haptic glove. To evaluate these implementations, we created a virtual music classroom that produces audio, notes, and finger pattern guides loaded from a selected Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) file. We analytically compared these implementations against physical trumpets (both acoustic and MIDI), considering features of ease of use, familiarity, playability, noise, and versatility. The physical trumpets produced the most reliable and familiar experience, and some XR benefits were considered. The camera-based methods were easy to use but lacked tactile feedback. The haptic glove provided improved tracking accuracy and haptic feedback over camera-based methods. Each method was also considered as a proof-of-concept for other instruments, real or imaginary.
ISSN:2076-0752
2076-0752
DOI:10.3390/arts12040145