Philips Unveils Force Feedback Jacket at 2009 World Haptics Convention
Philips Unveils Force Feedback Jacket at 2009 World Haptics Convention
Posted 03/26/2009 at 2:55pm
| by Paul Lilly
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Vibrating controllers may soon be considered old-school if Philips' new force feedback jacket catches on. The jacket, which was revealed by Philips at the IEEE-sponsored 2009 World Haptics Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, looks to bring a whole new level of immersion to multimedia content.
"We want people to feel Bruce Lee's anxiety about whether he will get out alive, causing a shiver to go up the viewer's spine and creating the feeling of tension in the limbs," said Paul Lemmens, Philips senior scientist.
To accomplish that goal, the jacket makes use of several physical actuators to affect the person wearing it, rather than relying on sound or motion-based vibration. There are sixty-four independently controlled actuators in all that extend from the torso on down to the arms, which are paired in arrays of four. Each array shares its own processor and is capable of being cycled on and off at a rapid rate of over 100 times per second, Philips says.
The concept may be more feasible than you think, at least from a power perspective. Philips claims the jacket can run on a pair of AA batteries for a full hour with twenty of the actuators being continuously triggered.
(Image Credit: Steve Brewster)
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mesiah
March 27, 2009 at 10:05pm
This idea would probably be really cool if it was done right. With a perfectly fitting body suit and high end VR equipment it would probably be as close as well come any time soon to true full virtual immersion. But the truth is, noones going to spend $5k dollars on a suit and VR equipment. So if this makes it to market it will probably be a $200 wearable version of the old massage chair accessory that your mom bought you for christmas when she was at the dollar store.
mps725
March 27, 2009 at 3:16am
Does it come in fat guy triple XL? I sure hope so, and on that note, how many actuators will fat guy triple XL have? Also, do we really have to look like tron when wearing our force feedback jackets. Can't it just look like a regular jacket.
Also, I bet that guy smells AWFUL. thanks for your time.
bingojubes
March 26, 2009 at 4:28pm
now you can experience what it's like to get hit by Shin Akuma's 20-somthing hit killer combo...or a fireball, your choice.
i wonder how much something like that is going to cost. maybe they should have made it a vest, instead. not to mention the vibration of the feedback. ROFL at the thought of it needing a charge station, or attached USB cable for charging. might work better on the WII than anything else.
hogkill
March 26, 2009 at 2:14pm
i think that guy should worry more about that mass of fungal hyphae coming out of his head instead of what jacket to wear
QuadCoreAbe
March 26, 2009 at 2:33pm
dreadlocks are the official hardcore programmer gear! The fungus is working just as much as the head below FYI...
Long Live Locks !!!!!
Digital-Storm
March 26, 2009 at 2:20pm
Yay, now when you get beat up for wearing expensive products such as this, it can force feedback what it feels like to be kicked in the side when you are on the ground. Awesome!
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