Tired of seeing 3-D renderings of objects on your screen and being unable to grab and fondle them? Just slip your fingers into the firm grip of Japanese haptics robot HIRO III. Driven by 15 independent motors, its black phalanges provide real-time force feedback to your hand, precisely simulating the weight and contour of virtual 3-D objects -- a pretty wild paradigmatic leap forward in interface technology!

In this video, a woman watches a 3-D shape on a screen, then gropes and explores it with the help of HIRO III. As the screen displays a virtual hand gripping the spinning polyhedron, the woman's fingertips, each clipped to one of the robot's fingers, vibrate with the movement of the virtual object.


HIRO III was developed at Japan's Gifu University, where the laboratory is currently working towards putting the haptic technology to work in manual screenings for breast cancer. While the system obviously has great potential for use in telemedicine, myriads of other uses -- gaming, for instance -- come to mind as well.

[Diginfo via Gizmodo]

11 Comments

hahaha... 'fondle', 'vibrate' and 'other uses'. Finally a concept product with 'practical' applications.

Can this tech be converted to a suit? I can think of some fun VR activities you could do with something like that ;)

I like how they are using breast cancer as a smokescreen to make virtual boobs a reality. Fight the good fight!

This is what the Kinect needs to be useful. Tactile feedback is the phrase thats been thrown around the vijea gams indarstrii.

I mean... I think we are all thinking the same thing. Virtual boobies. and this would be really cool for gaming...

Lara Croft has some nice virtual boobies....

Hey...you guys are really...
OK, I have to admit that I've also had this kind of thought pops into my mind. But I think this is definitely not the factor that motivated those researchers, or... probably it is? aha...

the very first thing that came to mind was this thing accidently breaking my fingers with my hand in it

but why would you need the image of your hand on the tv??? it would be cool if one day it was in the movie theater or at home with those new 3d tv's. but they should find a way to make it simpler. i think they should make3d movies/tv's that don't make people sick. i know that has something to do with the 3dness of it and basically it is playing tricks on your mind but they should find a way

hahahaha

Billy Mays:
"TIRED of seeing 3-D renderings of people on your screen and being unable to grab and fondle them??!

Sick of getting arrested for soliciting hookers??!

Well have I got the product for you!!"

Yeah!!! Virtual feelable boobies!!!



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