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Tactile Vest Gives Gamers a 4th Dimension

By pete_gallagher

How do you think violent videogame critics would react to a Tactile Gaming Vest that allows players to physically feel in-game shootings and stabbings?

The vest was created by University of Pennsylvania graduate student Saurabh Palan as part of his course work for a mechanical engineering class called Haptic Interfaces for Virtual Environments and Teleoperation.

When hooked up to a game like Half-Life 2, the player is able to feel simulated gunshots, slashing by knives and blood flow from wounds. Feedback, according to Palan's blog, is generated in the suit by a variety of 'solenoids, eccentric-mass motors, and Peltier elements controlled by custom electronics and a personal computer.'

Hits on-screen also register on the appropriate part of the player's vest and body.

More from Palan:

When the player gets shot in the game, the program will turn on the specific solenoid based on the position of gun shot in the game and also trigger the blood flow simulation process. The gun shot can be felt almost instantly as it occurs in the game.

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Full post as published by GamePolitics.com on April 22, 2010 (boomark / email).

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