Exploring shape memory alloys in haptic wearables for visually impaired people

Exploring shape memory alloys in haptic wearables for visually impaired people

Ghodrat, S. (TU Delft Emerging Materials)
Sandhir, P. (TU Delft Methodologie en Organisatie van Design)
Huisman, G. (TU Delft Human Information Communication Design)

2023

Wearable haptic assistive devices can provide tactile information to visually impaired people (VIP) to support independent living. However, electromechanical haptic feedback has a number of disadvantages, including hardware being relatively heavy, large, and producing excessive sound. Here, we present a design-driven investigation of the potential of shape memory alloy-based haptic feedback for VIP. We followed an iterative approach, focusing on hands-on material explorations, in which we identified challenges and subsequent solutions that designers of SMA-based wearable haptic assistive devices may be faced with when incorporating SMAs in their designs. We present several prototype iterations and an initial evaluation with VIP to offer insights into the potential of SMA-based wearable haptic devices for VIP.

shape memory alloy
haptics
wearables
visually impaired people
assistive device
research through design
material-driven design

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:6a5dd64d-933f-45aa-9fa7-ec4cb81a2eb6

https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomp.2023.1012565

2624-9898

Frontiers in Computer Science, 5

Institutional Repository

journal article

© 2023 S. Ghodrat, P. Sandhir, G. Huisman