Welcome to the World of Haptics for Industrial Applications
From: Basque Research - 06/22/2007
By: Rosa Iglesias Perez

Vibrating cell phones, gaming controllers, and force-feedback control knobs
in cars are just the beginning of haptic technology, which applies force,
vibrations, and motion to connect users to computerized systems through the
sense of touch. Interacting with or manipulating a screen is no longer
limited to vision and sound, and with the emergence of PHANToM haptic and
hand exoskeleton devices "you can feel or touch what you see." Current use of
the devices can be seen in virtual modeling, medicine, education, assistive
technology for the vision impaired, industrial design, and maintenance. In
the industrial design field, haptic technology can be incorporated into
computer-aided design (CAD) systems to allow designers to also feel forces
and local stimuli similar to real situations during the assembly process. The
Collaborative Haptic Assembly Simulator (CHAS) was developed to allow
designers in different locations to grasp virtual parts and assemble them
into a digital engine, for example. Operators at Labein in Spain and Queen's
University Belfast in Northern Ireland used CHAS to collaborate in real time,
enabling the operator in Belfast to grasp and feel collisions as the other
operator assembled a part. Such collaboration over the Internet and
interaction over distance could allow doctors to diagnose and operate on
patients remotely, or an individual to shake another person's hand virtually. 

Read the entire article at:
http://www.basqueresearch.com/tesia_irakurri.asp?hizk=E&Kodea=110&lehiaketa_urtea=2007