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Haptic Sonar Glove Lets You Feel Things Underwater You're Not Actually Touching

Inventions

123

April 17, 2017

Georgia is a bold and elegant font that is highly readable, even on smaller screens.

TECHNOLOGY

Georgia is a bold and elegant font that is highly readable, even on smaller screens.

TECHNOLOGY

Jets of water hit the fingers and let the wearer know where objects are without touching them.

TECHNOLOGY

#Artificial intelligence

#HongKong

#Robots

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This electronic glove uses sonar technology to let the wearer "feel" things underwater that he or she is not physically touching. When it detects an object in range, the glove—developed by a pair of Japanese Ph.D. candidates from Tsukuba University—will provide haptic feedback to the user by hitting the fingertips with pulses of water. The closer the gloved hand gets to an object, the harder the jets pump water, letting the user know how close their hand is to the object.

The haptic sonar glove, called IrukaTact—iruka is Japanese for "dolphin"—works by using a MaxBotix MB7066 ultrasonic device that sends information about the surrounding area to three motors via an Arduino Pro Mini. The motors are encased in silicone thimbles worn on the index, middle, and ring fingers, leaving the thumb and pinky finger free. IrukaTact was purposefully designed to be sleek and unobtrusive so the wearer could pick up objects with the gloved hand.

A small tube encases the wires, connects the MaxBotix sonar sensor to the middle finger, and keeps the sensor pointed in the same direction as the palm. When the glove detects an object or a change in the topography, the motors pump water from the surrounding environment against the fingertips. The current sonar sensor can detect objects only about 2 feet away underwater, but the researchers believe they can extend that range.

Divers could use the IrukaTact glove to scan the ground for objects or hazards when visibility is low. First responders might be able to use the glove to search for victims in a flood from just below the surface. The designers partnered with Ars Electronica to make the IrukaTact glove available in the form of DIY 3D printing instructions. With a sonar sensor, microcontroller, a few motors and a 3D printer, you could have your very own haptic water glove.