Some Current Issues in Haptics Research

This is a survey of research issues for haptic and locomotion interfaces. A key issue is the workspace and dexterity of haptic devices. In the simulation of real environments, interactive geometric computations on complex models are a fundamental problem. Haptic rendering of forces of contact are increasingly based on measurements on real environments. Scientific visualization is another promising area for haptic interfaces, but the issue of how to usefully display data haptically needs to be worked out. Locomotion rendering issues include the display of inertial forces, slope, unilateral constraints, and turning. Examples of approaches to these issues are presented.