Usually, the VR gloves available on the market offer a haptic feedback that is similar to a vibration sensation, but it does not really know the nature of the object affected. This is not the case of this novelty of HaptX, which promises to make your virtual hands feel different textures, shapes, temperatures, hardness … Moreover, these gloves are able to prevent your hands from crossing virtual objects!
To achieve such precision and realism, this virtual reality glove HaptX has been designed with a smart silicone fabric composed of small air pockets that are more haptic actuators under the fingers (more sensitive), and much less under the palms and in the hollow of the hand. When you touch a virtual object, these hundreds of bubbles inflate and make your skin feel like the real touch.
Apart from this second skin, it is also possible to add another layer constituted this time of microchannels through which circulates water to allow to feel the different temperatures. This revolutionary glove can also simulate a force feedback to apply a resistance of over four pounds on each finger.
Nevertheless, HaptX gloves have a major disadvantage: they are heavy, bulky and uncomfortable, especially because the glove is connected to an external module that propels air through a hose … In addition, if the first version of gloves will be launched next year, the marketing will initially concern only professionals who practice for example in medical, military or industrial spaces, where its precision and finesse being more important in these areas to which virtual reality applies than in the world of video games …
Another interesting fact, HaptX plans to rely on this technology to create a complete body. The company’s founder and CEO Jake Rubin have hinted at his intention to combine the gloves with an exoskeleton for a complete immersion in a virtual environment.
