Articles
Who
Researchers from nine European universities, part of the EU Immersence (Immersive multi-modal interactive presence) research project, are developing haptic and multi-modal interfaces, new signal processing techniques and a method to generate VR objects from real-world objects in real time.
Technology
The hardware developed includes a tactile sensing glove, conductive polymers for tactile display interfaces, and thermal rendering of materials.
The VR technology was developed at the computer vision lab of the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) Zürich and uses a 3D scanner and advanced modelling system to create a virtual representation of a real object. That is transmitted to a remote location and the recipient, wearing VR goggles and touching a haptic interface, can move, prod and poke it.
The interface uses a robotic arm that has one contact point to give the sense of touching an object, but the user cannot pick up the object or handle it. Researchers at the Universidad Politécnica in Madrid are developing a haptic device with two contact points that should make it possible to grasp an object with a virtual hand.
Application
The Immersence project aims to make VR objects and characters touchable. In addition to seeing and hearing their virtual surroundings, objects and avatars, users can touch them, paving the way for new applications in telepresence, telemedicine, industrial design, gaming and entertainment.
Andreas Schweinberger, a researcher at Technische Universität München and coordinator of Immersence, says: “The audiovisual aspects of VR have come a long way so adding a sense of touch is the next step. We know that the more senses that can be used, the more interaction, the greater the sense of presence. The research will also help in the development of cognitive robots that are better able to interact with humans.”