Pen de Touchpen

 

Pen de Touch is a pen-shaped device that allows users to interact with virtual environments like they were real. The pen is a haptic display that uses kinesthetic sensations on the user’s fingers to signal different virtual environments. For instance, if the pen was inside a virtual box, the user would feel the kinesthetic sensations when they hit the side of the box by moving the pen. The device is an advance in haptic display since it doesn’t restrict the user through mechanical linkages and uses kinesthetic sensations over vibrations, giving a more accurate representation of tactile sensation. The pen de touch project team is comprised of Sho Kamuro, Kouta Minamizawa and Naoki Kawakami from the University of Tokyo and Susumu Tachi from Keio University. http://tachilab.org/modules/projects/pendetouch.html.