Abstract
Large-scale datasets are essential for training generalist robot control policies. Collecting real-world tactile data is costly and time-consuming, motivating the use of tactile simulations. However, current tactile simulators capture only overall contact geometry and miss fine details like texture. This results in a significant domain shift between simulated and real tactile data. To address this gap, we introduce Norm2Tex, a plug-in method that augments simulations of vision-based tactile sensors with high-frequency surface details from normal map textures. By modifying the target object's depth map before a tactile simulator's rendering pipeline, Norm2Tex seamlessly integrates into different tactile simulators. We also evaluate sim-to-real transfer using material classification and a reinforcement learning task. Our results show that Norm2Tex preserves material-dependent tactile information across domains, improving texture recognition and producing material-dependent control behavior in the real world.
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Publication details
- Journal
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- Open access
- Green open access
Cite this article
APA 7
Bien, S., Makowski, D. O., Calandra, R., Walter, F., & Burgard, W. (2026). Norm2Tex: Augmenting Visuo-Tactile Simulations with Texture. https://omanscience.com/en/articles/norm2tex-augmenting-visuo-tactile-simulations-with-texture
MLA 9
Bien, Seongjin, et al. "Norm2Tex: Augmenting Visuo-Tactile Simulations with Texture." https://omanscience.com/en/articles/norm2tex-augmenting-visuo-tactile-simulations-with-texture.
Chicago (author–date)
Bien, Seongjin, Débora Oliveira Makowski, Roberto Calandra, Florian Walter, and Wolfram Burgard. 2026. "Norm2Tex: Augmenting Visuo-Tactile Simulations with Texture." https://omanscience.com/en/articles/norm2tex-augmenting-visuo-tactile-simulations-with-texture.
Harvard
Bien, S., Makowski, D. O., Calandra, R., Walter, F. and Burgard, W. (2026) 'Norm2Tex: Augmenting Visuo-Tactile Simulations with Texture', Available at: https://omanscience.com/en/articles/norm2tex-augmenting-visuo-tactile-simulations-with-texture.
Vancouver
Bien S, Makowski DO, Calandra R, Walter F, Burgard W. Norm2Tex: Augmenting Visuo-Tactile Simulations with Texture. https://omanscience.com/en/articles/norm2tex-augmenting-visuo-tactile-simulations-with-texture
IEEE
S. Bien, D. O. Makowski, R. Calandra, F. Walter, and W. Burgard, "Norm2Tex: Augmenting Visuo-Tactile Simulations with Texture," https://omanscience.com/en/articles/norm2tex-augmenting-visuo-tactile-simulations-with-texture.