What is haptics technology? – The Hindu

Have you ever tried on a virtual reality headset? The second you put one on, you are literally transported to a 3D world where it feels like you’re living in a new reality! With every direction you turn, you are inside the virtual world filled with incredible sights and sounds that seem so real. But that…is seeing and hearing. What about the sense of touch? Without it being one of your sense organs connected to the virtual world, everything your hand fails to make contact with will turn permeable or vanish! So, how can virtual objects or applications be felt in the physical hands of their curious human users? That is where haptics come into play!

Connecting worlds through contact!

Haptic technology is defined as a type of technology that simulates artificial sensations of touch and provides users with a bridge to connect and come in (literal) contact with digital content. This connection comes in the form of vibrations, motions, resistance, changes in temperature, and other kinds of forces that influence one’s sense of touch. Haptic feedback refers to these physical responses generated by the device. Let’s take a simple example. When you chat on WhatsApp, you would still feel vibrations on the phone with every letter you type. Here, when a key is tapped, the contact and pressure are detected via the sensors of the touchscreen, and a signal is sent by the phone’s software to its haptic actuator (an electronic component that converts electric signals into physical vibrations). This, in turn, generates the sharp pulse that you feel in your fingertips when you press a key! The amazing thing is that you feel the vibration the second your finger touches the letter on the screen. So just imagine the speed of this entire process, which seems to occur in milliseconds!

Visually impaired fans follow an Africa Cup of Nations group soccer match using audio and haptic devices, in Rabat, Morocco, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
AP

Reach for the sky!

The vibration you feel on your phone is just ONE out of several different applications of haptics! But when exactly did the sense of touch come into discussion when it came to technology? Well, to begin the story of its first ever use and observation, we need to make like the cowboy doll Woody from Toy Story and reach for the sky! Because the earliest application of haptic technology is said to have been observed in aircraft during World War II. Servomechanisms were control systems which used physical negative feedback to alter and correct mechanisms when crafts were positioned dangerously. But in the case of aircraft that didn’t have servo motors, anytime one was at risk of a stall (reduction of lift), the pilot would sense the vibrations on their controls, which would serve as a good warning. While steps were taken to stop the vibrations,  scientists later realised that tactile feedback was extremely beneficial for the identification of dangerous oncoming flight conditions. They went on to specifically create devices that would vibrate to warn pilots and improve safety. 

As time went on, many devices and machines had their own unique versions with incorporated haptic technology. For example, in 1973, inventor Thomas D. Shannon received a U.S. patent for a tactile telephone, which would aid individuals with hearing impairments, allowing them to make calls using touch gestures.

Popular applications

While the majority of devices that give haptic feedback do so through vibrations, or vibrotactile feedback. Some other types of haptic feedback include ‘force feedback’, which uses pressure and motors to connect to the user through the device. A popular example of this would be driving simulators. Haptic gloves are also used in virtual reality gaming, which lets players physically feel objects they see through their headsets.