Feel me, hear me: vibrotactile and auditory feedback cues in an invisible object search in virtual reality

The visual sensory system is a well-researched system. While virtual reality (VR) is a predominantly visual experience, there is still the auditory and tactile aspects that can be considered. This study examines finding invisible static and dynamic targets in virtual reality with the help of vibrotactile and auditory cues. Using a ghost hunting setting, a game was developed to investigate the different types of cues as search indicators. The game consisted of three levels, the first with a static ghost, the second with one dynamic ghost and the third with two dynamic ghosts. Forty-two participants received vibrotactile feedback cues, auditory feedback cues and the combination of both. They played the game in three trials, one per each feedback condition, in three different levels. Each participant played the game twice. The results suggest that the combination of both types of cues might be the best to use in a simple non-visual search setting, but the non-visual cues do not matter in a complex non-visual search. Further implications on the real world are discussed, i.e. search of and navigation to temporarily out-of-view buildings in the real world.