>>Moving haptics out of the lab can be challenging. Tactile feedback in consumer electronics must be both convincing to the user and appropriate for the device.
The medical application of haptic technology is perhaps the most compelling. Immersion and SensAble Technologies create several training machines that give tactile feedback to surgeons as they learn procedures such as endoscopy and laparoscopy.
If the current wave of haptic innovation is any measure, reaching Okamura’s goal is only a matter of computer processing power and time. Engineers developing tactile feedback systems believe that current products are only the beginning of a much larger trend. “In general, I think haptics today is where the Internet was in the early ’90s,” says Tom Anderson, the CEO of Novint. “Not that many people know about it, but it’s one of the few technologies we’ll see in our lifetime that fundamentally changes computing.”
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The Nokia Haptikos Web pad prototype uses piezo actuators mounted beneath its touchscreen to produce vibrations and pulses. The screen has a 0.1-mm movement that is independent of the device body itself, allowing for highly accurate feedback. When the screen is touched, it can produce sensations that mimic the different stages of pressing a physical button, from pushing down to letting go. Nokia expects to include the technology in a product coming this year. (Diagram by Gil Ahn)
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