philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

Intuitive virtual reality: Bimodal ‘electronic skin’ developed

Summary: Through the crafty use of magnetic fields, scientists have developed the first electronic sensor that can simultaneously process both touchless and tactile stimuli. Prior attempts have so far failed to combine these functions on a single device due to overlapping signals of the various stimuli. As the sensor is readily applied to the human skin, it could provide a seamless interactive platform for virtual and augmented reality scenario.

Example of how it works: "On the leaf of a daisy we attached a permanent magnet, whose magnetic field points in the opposite direction of the magnet attached to our platform." As the finger now approaches this external magnetic field, the electrical resistance of the GMR sensor changes: it drops. This occurs until the point when the finger actually touches the leaf. At this moment, it rises abruptly because the built-in permanent magnet is pressed closer to the GMR sensor and thus superimposes the external magnetic field. "This is how our m-MEMS platform can register a clear shift from touchless to tactile interaction in seconds," says Jin Ge.

The researchers cut down an activity that had previously required several interactions to merely one. "This may sound like a small step at first," says Martin Kaltenbrunner. "In the long-term, however, a better interface between humans and machines can be built on this foundation." This "electronic skin" -- in addition to virtual reality spaces -- could also be used, for example, in sterile environments. Surgeons could use the sensors to handle medical equipment without touching it during a procedure, which would reduce the danger of contamination.

See the full story here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/10/191029104802.htm