InTouch: a medium for haptic interpersonal communication
From ThesisWiki
Contents |
Authors
Scott Brave, Andrew Dahley
Overview
inTouch is a pair of rolling devices, each with three fluidly moving rollers. When one person interacts with their rollers the movements are translated to the other set. In this way two people who are separated at a distance can see or "feel" each other interacting with the rollers. By using them at the same time a direct connection is established through touch.
inTouch is conceived of as a "physical link for expressing the movements or gestures" of another person. The designers/authors thought that "the motion of the rollers was...appropriate for the expression of subtle emotional states than bounded motion."
Reflection
This is an early project but one of the few to use touch effectively in a synchronous communication. The ability to feel the movement the other person is causing seems really compelling, more so than feeling heat or pressure like some other projects. The prototype was described as "playful", which I could see being a good way to express emotion either separately or while engaging in other forms of communication such as a phone call.
There is no mention of printing on the rollers, which would make it hard to notice state changes if the other person is not physically there to witness the rolling. Adding simple printed markings would allow for synchronous haptic communication as well as asynchronous abstract messaging through manipulation of roller position.
