The Touch Glove
From: Maker Faire 2012
By: Ally Seeley

For most people being able to touch the various surfaces and textures that
surround us in every day life is a luxury often taken for granted, as it is
second nature to feel with our hands and have that sensation relayed back to
our brains. Yet for some this is not possible. The touch glove I created is a
tool created to aid individuals with medical problems that limit their sense
of touch. The glove is outfitted with a pressure sensor and depending on the
surface one is feeling, the pressure sensor information is transmitted to a
set of LED lights located on the person’s wrist. The LEDs will then emit
different light patterns, which vary depending on the surface being touched.
The sensory experience of touch is now being turned into a visual experience. 

The idea behind this glove is that if a person no longer has the ability to
use all 5 senses, for example they can only understand 4, then a device like
this one can take in sensory information they can no longer understand and
output it into an experience the individual can recognize. For this piece the
sense of touch is now communicated through the sense of sight and visual cue.
Individuals can still have rich experiences when exploring their environment
and the loss of one sense should not deter one from exploring what is around
them. 

Source:
http://allyseeley.com/2011/05/30/final-touch-gloves/

Links:
Video (1:09)
http://vimeo.com/24446119

Tactile visualization with the Touch Glove
http://www.talk2myshirt.com/blog/archives/5781

The Touch Glove
http://www.instructables.com/id/The-Touch-Glove/

Related:
A haptic coat for the blind
http://www.lbruning.com/fashion/coats/haptic-coat-lilypad-arduino/