Mechano thermo and proprioceptor feedback for integrated haptic feedback

Haptic sensation has two complex components; skin (cutaneous) sensing which is mediated by a variety of sensing organs that respond to pressure, vibration, displacement and temperature and kinaesthetic/ proprioceptive sensing (muscles and joints) which responds to motions and forces exerted by the interaction of the body with the external environment. Although haptic interaction has been identified as being crucial for many applications, achieving realism in haptic feedback has not been possible due to physical, understanding and modelling problems. This paper explores the sensation of touch from a physiological and technological perspective and shows how this can be combined with an integrated touch/force reflecting system to produce a ‘realistic’ haptic rendering.