Less is more: Designing Wearable Vibrotactile Wristbands for Blind and Visual Impaired Creatives

Previous research has shown that blind and visually impaired music producers benefit from wearable vibrotactile feedback technologies. Keyboard-based interactions become more accessible, particularly when using Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs) applications. This study examines the optimal location and number of motors to display spa- tiotemporal patterns. We review existing literature to understand how vibrotactile technologies are integrated into wearable designs. We identify the hand as the most effective body location for keyboard interaction and survey existing systems to pinpoint design gaps in the literature. We designed and evaluated a wearable armband featuring five motors in different locations. Participants could identify the exact location of the vibration stimuli, achieving a 71% success rate regardless of the hand location. The study was repeated with three motors, achieving a success rate of 97%. In addition, results can potentially be influenced by age and body mass when using five motors. We propose the use of three motors around the hand for displaying spatiotemporal patterns.