Active tactile perception

Abstract

We do not just touch, we feel (Bajcsy, Proceedings of the IEEE 76(8): 966–1005, 1988). Our tactile sense is not merely a passive receiver of information, but actively selects and refines sensations according to our present goals and perceptions (Gibson, Psychological review, 69(6) 1962). Our fingers, hands and bodies are not external from the world, but direct actions within it to access the information that we need. Thus, tactile sensation, perception and action cannot be considered simply as a forward process, but instead form a closed ‘active perception’ loop.