From earliest childhood, we use our hands to perceive, explore, and manipulate the world around us. Yet when we use simulation science, we are often limited to an image on a screen, restricying our sensory input to visual only. Our research focuses on development of haptic systems that will allow humans to utilize their remarkable skill at physical interaction in ways not otherwise possible. With haptics, we can "touch": objects located remotely, objects existing only in simulated worlds, objects too small or too large for normal human interaction, and objects that are too dangerous to touch with human hands.

What is a "haptic" device?

The word "haptic" means "relating to or based on the sense of touch". Haptic products allow people to "touch" computer-generated or "virtual" objects as if the objects had actual physical existence. In addition to providing position input like a mouse, a haptic device also provides output in the form of simultaneous physical feedback (e.g., force, vibration). These techniques stimulate the user's senses, creating the illusion of "touching" an object. Large forces are produced by "force feedback" devices and affect the finger and hand position and movement. Small scale forces are produced by "tactile" devices and affect the skin surface by stretching and pushing it.

How do haptic devices work?

Designing a haptic system requires careful calculation of the forces one would feel when touching a real object, and presentation of those forces to the user (via force feedback or tactile output) to create the illusion of "touching" the object. We normally employ haptic systems in one of two manners:

• Virtual Manipulation: A haptic device is used as part of the interface to a virtual environment, so that simulated objects can be touched, felt, and manipulated.
• Enhanced Teleoperation: A computational model or simulation is used as the visual interface for a human user operating a remote device which affects the real environment (common in telemedicine applications).