Embodied virtual reality for the study of real-world motor learning
File(s)journal.pone.0245717.pdf (2.55 MB)
Published version
Author(s)
Haar Millo, Shlomi
Sundar, Guhan
Faisal, Aldo
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Motor-learning literature focuses on simple laboratory-tasks due to their controlled manner and the ease to apply manipulations to induce learning and adaptation. Recently, we introduced a billiards paradigm and demonstrated the feasibility of real-world-neuroscience using wearables for naturalistic full-body motion-tracking and mobile-brain-imaging. Here we developed an embodied virtual-reality (VR) environment to our real-world billiards paradigm, which allows to control the visual feedback for this complex real-world task, while maintaining sense of embodiment. The setup was validated by comparing real-world ball trajectories with the trajectories of the virtual balls, calculated by the physics engine. We then ran our short-term motor learning protocol in the embodied VR. Subjects played billiard shots when they held the physical cue and hit a physical ball on the table while seeing it all in VR. We found comparable short-term motor learning trends in the embodied VR to those we previously reported in the physical real-world task. Embodied VR can be used for learning real-world tasks in a highly controlled environment which enables applying visual manipulations, common in laboratory-tasks and rehabilitation, to a real-world full-body task. Embodied VR enables to manipulate feedback and apply perturbations to isolate and assess interactions between specific motor-learning components, thus enabling addressing the current questions of motor-learning in real-world tasks. Such a setup can potentially be used for rehabilitation, where VR is gaining popularity but the transfer to the real-world is currently limited, presumably, due to the lack of embodiment.
Date Issued
2021-01-27
Date Acceptance
2021-01-18
Citation
PLoS One, 2021, 16 (1)
ISSN
1932-6203
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Journal / Book Title
PLoS One
Volume
16
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© 2021 Haar et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
License URL
Sponsor
The Royal Society
Grant Number
NF170650
Subjects
Science & Technology
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Science & Technology - Other Topics
General Science & Technology
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN e0245717