Tapping Synchronization Task

Field	Value
Name	Tapping Synchronization Task
Version	v0.1.0-dev
URL / Repository	E:/Taskbeacon/T000044-tapping-synchronization-task
Short Description	Chinese tapping synchronization task with one 600 ms practice trial, six scored test trials, and a metronome beat train at 450/600/750 ms tempi.
Created By	TaskBeacon
Date Updated	2026-04-05
PsyFlow Version	0.1.12
PsychoPy Version	2025.2.4
Modality	Behavior
Language	Chinese
Voice Name	zh-CN-YunyangNeural

1. Task Overview

This task measures auditory-motor synchronization with a paced tapping paradigm. Participants first read the Chinese instructions, complete one 600 ms practice trial, and then complete six scored trials distributed across three tempi: 450 ms, 600 ms, and 750 ms. Each trial begins with a ready screen, continues through a beat-synchronized tapping window, and then moves into a silent continuation window where the participant keeps tapping at the remembered tempo.

The implemented protocol uses a single space key as the local tapping proxy, a generated 1319 Hz / 100 ms metronome tone, and simple PsychoPy primitives for the fixation and text-only screens. The task is timing-based rather than accuracy-based: the data capture focuses on synchronization asynchrony, continuation inter-tap stability, omission count, and elapsed time.

2. Task Flow

Block-Level Flow

Step	Description
1. Load mode and config	main.py loads human, qa, or sim mode and resolves the matching YAML config.
2. Initialize runtime	Subject info, window, triggers, and the stimulus bank are initialized.
3. Show instructions	The participant reads the Chinese tapping instructions and presses space to begin.
4. Run practice block	The first block runs one 600 ms practice trial with sync tapping, continuation tapping, and a short practice break.
5. Run test block	The second block runs six scored trials balanced across 450 ms, 600 ms, and 750 ms tempi.
6. Finish	The goodbye screen appears with summary metrics, and the data are saved.

Trial-Level Flow

Step	Description
Instruction	Explain the tapping rule and start with the space key.
Practice ready	A brief ready screen appears before the practice trial.
Practice sync tapping	A fixation cross is shown while the 600 ms metronome tone repeats for 10 beats.
Practice continuation tapping	The tone stops and the participant continues tapping for 30 beats at the remembered tempo.
Practice break	A short transition screen separates practice from the scored trials.
Test ready	A brief ready screen appears before each scored trial.
Sync tapping	A fixation cross is shown while the tempo-specific metronome tone repeats for 10 beats.
Continuation tapping	The tone stops and the participant continues tapping for 30 beats at the remembered tempo.
Test ITI	A short fixation-only inter-trial interval separates scored trials.
Goodbye	The final screen reports summary metrics and exits on space.

Controller Logic

Component	Description
Condition generation	build_block_conditions() produces a fixed practice-first schedule: one practice_600 trial followed by six test trials balanced across tempo_450, tempo_600, and tempo_750.
Tempo plan	build_trial_plan() resolves the trial tempo, beat count, tone duration, and deterministic trial seed for each trial.
Response handling	space is the tapping proxy during the synchronization and continuation windows; the instruction and goodbye screens also use space to continue.
Timing control	Human mode uses the nominal durations from config/config.yaml; QA shortens the same phases with qa.timing_scale = 0.3; simulation uses the same state machine with deterministic tap schedules.
Summary metrics	The task reports synchronization asynchrony, continuation inter-tap interval mean/CV, omission count, and elapsed time.
Triggering	Each participant-visible phase emits a dedicated onset trigger, and every registered tap emits tap_press.

Other Logic

Component	Description
Metronome tone	A generated 1319 Hz / 100 ms WAV asset drives the paced tapping sequence.
Visual layout	Tapping windows use a centered fixation cross only; all text screens are single centered blocks.
No reward logic	There are no points, tokens, or correctness feedback in the task.
Simulation support	TaskSamplerResponder can emit scripted or sampled tap trains for QA and simulation flows.

3. Configuration Summary

All human settings are defined in config/config.yaml. QA and smoke-test overrides live in config/config_qa.yaml, config/config_scripted_sim.yaml, and config/config_sampler_sim.yaml.

a. Subject Info

Field	Meaning
subject_id	3-digit participant identifier used to seed the run.

b. Window Settings

Parameter	Value
size	[1280, 720]
units	pix
screen	0
bg_color	black
fullscreen	false
monitor_width_cm	35.5
monitor_distance_cm	60

c. Stimuli

Name	Type	Description
instruction_text	text	Chinese instructions describing the tap-to-the-beat rule and the practice/test sequence.
practice_ready_text	text	Ready screen shown before the practice trial.
practice_break_text	text	Short transition screen between practice and scored trials.
test_ready_text	text	Ready screen shown before each scored trial.
good_bye_text	text	End-of-task summary and exit screen.
fixation	text	Centered plus sign used during tapping and ITI screens.
metronome_tone	sound	Generated 1319 Hz / 100 ms metronome tone used during synchronization windows.

d. Timing

Phase	Duration
Practice ready	0.8 s
Practice sync tapping	10 × 600 ms = 6.0 s
Practice continuation tapping	30 × 600 ms = 18.0 s
Practice break	1.2 s
Test ready	0.8 s
Test sync tapping at 450 ms	10 × 450 ms = 4.5 s
Test continuation tapping at 450 ms	30 × 450 ms = 13.5 s
Test sync tapping at 600 ms	10 × 600 ms = 6.0 s
Test continuation tapping at 600 ms	30 × 600 ms = 18.0 s
Test sync tapping at 750 ms	10 × 750 ms = 7.5 s
Test continuation tapping at 750 ms	30 × 750 ms = 22.5 s
Test ITI	0.8 s
Metronome tone duration	0.1 s

e. Triggers

Event	Code
Experiment onset	1
Experiment end	2
Block onset	10
Block end	11
Trial onset	20
Instruction onset	21
Practice ready onset	22
Practice sync tapping onset	23
Practice continuation tapping onset	24
Practice break onset	25
Test ready onset	26
Sync tapping onset	27
Continuation tapping onset	28
Tap press	29
Test ITI onset	30
Goodbye onset	40

f. Adaptive Controller

Parameter	Value
condition_generation	Custom practice-first generator in src/utils.py.
practice_trials	1
test_trials	6
sync_beats	10
continuation_beats	30
practice_tempo_ms	600
tempo_levels_ms	450, 600, 750
tap_key	space
start_key	space
qa.timing_scale	0.3
sim responder	TaskSamplerResponder with scripted or sampled tap trains.
adaptive staircase	None

4. Methods (for academic publication)

The tapping synchronization task is a paced auditory-motor timing paradigm. Participants hear a metronome tone train and tap a single key in synchrony with the beat. The implementation includes one practice trial at 600 ms IOI followed by six scored trials distributed evenly across 450 ms, 600 ms, and 750 ms tempi. Each trial is divided into a synchronization window, during which tones are audible, and a continuation window, during which tones stop and the participant continues tapping from memory.

The task is intentionally timing-centric rather than accuracy-centric. The saved trial data capture synchronization asynchrony, continuation inter-tap interval mean and variability, omission count, and elapsed time, which makes the paradigm suitable for sensorimotor synchronization studies and beat production research. Participant-facing text remains in YAML, and the metronome tone is generated locally so the task stays auditable and reproducible without external media dependencies.

The runtime supports human, qa, and sim modes with the same state machine. QA shortens the timebase while preserving the phase structure, and simulation modes use deterministic tap schedules so the full pipeline can be validated without manual input.