Research project: a virtual reality headset for even more sensation of touch in the mouth.
Effect of a crawling spider
Representing one of the most sensitive parts of the body along with the fingers, the mouth was targeted by Future Interfaces Group as an ideal area to simulate the sense of touch. This American company approached Carnegie Mellon University to develop a system of waves associated with headphones. “The proximity of the mouth to the helmet offers a significant opportunity to allow haptic effects on and in the mouth”, specifies the company on its site. Thanks to the technology that the company has developed, a user wearing the augmented reality headset could, for example, feel the same sensations as when drinking water from a fountain. But that’s not all. The user might also feel the legs of a spider or insects crawling on their face, or splashes of mud
How it works ?
To arrive at the final result, the researchers combined several parameters: the strength of the effect, the location of the effect and the duration of the effect. Sensations are activated by high frequency pressure waves. It is an airborne acoustic energy on the lips and in the mouth whose wave frequency is not perceptible by the ears. These waves are emitted from a series of loudspeakers – called transducers – attached to the underside of the helmet. The waves focus on specific points in the mouth, causing a feeling of pressure. Over time, this pressure in turn creates a vibration effect. Participants were virtually immersed in a forest infested with cobwebs during the test and then in a school equipped with a water fountain as well as in a racing game. Unfortunately, this technology is still in its infancy and can only generate a small number of effects with points. For all intents and purposes, the group specifies that this device does not yet allow kissing virtually.