①Video calls are a common thing in our daily life. But have you imaged being able to touch the person on the other end of the line? Scientists are making this a reality.
②Researchers have invented a soft skin stretch device( SSD), a haptic device(触觉设备), that can recreate the sense of touch. Haptic technology copies the experience of touch by stimulating(刺激)part of the skin in ways that are similar to what is left in the real world. through force, vibration(振动)or movement.
③The new technology overcomes problems with existing haptic devices. The research team introduced a novel method to recreate the sense of touch through soft, man-made "muscles".
④"Our three-way directional skin stretch device, built into the fingertips of the wearable haptic glove. is like wearing a second skin —it's soft, stretchable and similar to the sense of touch — and will enable new forms of haptic communication to improve everyday activities, " said Thanh Nho Io, senior author of the study.
⑤Imagine you are at home and you call your friend lar away. You wear a haptic glove with the SSI) s and your friend also wears a haptic glove. If your friend picks up an object, it will physically press against your friend's lingers. And his glove will measure these interactions. The force signals can be sent to your glove so your device will make the same forces, making you experience the same sense of touch as your friend.
⑥The haptic devices could be used in various places, allowing users to feel objects inside a virtual world or at a distance. This could be especially beneficial during such times like the COVII)-19 pandemic when people depend on video calls to keep in touch with loved ones. Or it could be used in medical practices. Doctors can feel a patient without touching him.
