Researchers at the Northwestern University have created a new wearable technology that creates precise movements to mimic complex sensations.
The wireless device, documented in the Journal Science, applies force in any direction to generate a variety of sensations such as vibrations, stretching, pressure, sliding and twisting. Sensations can also be combined and operated quickly or slowly to simulate a nuanced, realistic sense of touch such as pressure, vibration, stretching, sliding and twisting..
The haptic device is powered by a rechargeable battery, using Bluetooth to wirelessly connect to VR headsets and smartphones, with the device small enough to be placed anywhere on the body in conjunction with other actuators in arrays or integrated into other wearable electronics.
Northwestern University has played a key role in the development of haptic devices, developing a smart wearable device in 2023 to track voice usage, alerting users to overuse before vocal fatigue and injury occurs.
The researchers believe that the device could improve virtual experiences by helping individuals with visual impairments to navigate their surroundings by reproducing the feeling of different textures on flat screens for online shopping, providing tactile feedback for remote healthcare visits and allowing people with hearing impairments to ‘feel’ music through vibrations.
John Rogers, professor of materials science and engineering, biomedical engineering, and neurological surgery, Northwestern University, commented: “Almost all haptic actuators really just poke at the skin.
“But skin is receptive to much more sophisticated senses of touch. We wanted to create a device that could apply forces in any direction — not just poking but pushing, twisting and sliding. We built a tiny actuator that can push the skin in any direction and in any combination of directions. With it, we can finely control the complex sensation of touch in a fully programmable way.”
The study builds on previous work from Rogers’ and Huang’s labs, in which they designed a programmable array of miniature vibrating actuators to convey a sense of touch.