Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27567755›Full record

ReviewRestorative neurology and neuroscience2016

Designing sensory-substitution devices: Principles, pitfalls and potential1.

Árni Kristjánsson, Alin Moldoveanu, Ómar I Jóhannesson, Oana Balan, Simone Spagnol, Vigdís Vala Valgeirsdóttir, Rúnar Unnthorsson

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Restorative neurology and neuroscience, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
27citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

27 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Residual gaze behaviour during navigation in blindness and low vision.Disability and rehabilitation. Assistive technology · 2026
    Review
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. The Role of Visual Factors in Dyslexia.Journal of cognition · 2023
    Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Analysis and Validation of Cross-Modal Generative Adversarial Network for Sensory Substitution.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021
    Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Árni KristjánssonLaboratory of Visual Perception and Visuomotor control, University of Iceland, Faculty of Psychology, School of Health Sciences, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Alin MoldoveanuUniversity Politehnica of Bucharest, Faculty of Automatic Control and Computers, Computer Science and Engineering Department, Bucharest, Romania.
Ómar I JóhannessonLaboratory of Visual Perception and Visuomotor control, University of Iceland, Faculty of Psychology, School of Health Sciences, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Oana BalanUniversity Politehnica of Bucharest, Faculty of Automatic Control and Computers, Computer Science and Engineering Department, Bucharest, Romania.
Simone SpagnolFaculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, School of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Vigdís Vala ValgeirsdóttirLaboratory of Visual Perception and Visuomotor control, University of Iceland, Faculty of Psychology, School of Health Sciences, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Rúnar UnnthorssonFaculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, School of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Reykjavik, Iceland.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

An exciting possibility for compensating for loss of sensory function is to augment deficient senses by conveying missing information through an intact sense. Here we present an overview of techniques that have been developed for sensory substitution (SS) for the blind, through both touch and audition, with special emphasis on the importance of training for the use of such devices, while highlighting potential pitfalls in their design. One example of a pitfall is how conveying extra information about the environment risks sensory overload. Related to this, the limits of attentional capacity make it important to focus on key information and avoid redundancies. Also, differences in processing characteristics and bandwidth between sensory systems severely constrain the information that can be conveyed. Furthermore, perception is a continuous process and does not involve a snapshot of the environment. Design of sensory substitution devices therefore requires assessment of the nature of spatiotemporal continuity for the different senses. Basic psychophysical and neuroscientific research into representations of the environment and the most effective ways of conveying information should lead to better design of sensory substitution systems. Sensory substitution devices should emphasize usability, and should not interfere with other inter- or intramodal perceptual function. Devices should be task-focused since in many cases it may be impractical to convey too many aspects of the environment. Evidence for multisensory integration in the representation of the environment suggests that researchers should not limit themselves to a single modality in their design. Finally, we recommend active training on devices, especially since it allows for externalization, where proximal sensory stimulation is attributed to a distinct exterior object.

Indexed as

Sensory AidsBiofeedback, PsychologyHumansNeuroimagingPerceptionPsychophysicsSensation Disordersmultisensory perceptionneural plasticitySensory substitution

Identifiers

PMID27567755
PMCPMC5044782

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.