Enhancing the Immersion of Augmented Reality Through Haptic Feedback

Mobile multi-actoric force feedback gloves (bHaptics Tactgloves) have been coupled with a mobile holographic display device (HoloLens 2). The communication is realized using open programmable interfaces, while the gloves are paired with a laptop. The holographic device, which must be connected to the internet, sends information via a network protocol to the cloud. This information is read by a program on the laptop and converted into actions sent to the gloves. The intensity and duration of the force-feedback can be modulated depending on the action the user is currently performing. Clicking a holographic button triggers a low-intensity, short-duration pulse at the fingertip while moving the entire hand into an area of potential danger causes all fingers and wrist motor to vibrate at maximum intensity as long as the user does not remove the hand from that area. First tests have shown that for novice users and users familiar with Augmented Reality, the additional sensory feedback through haptics offers a significantly higher level of immersion. While previously holograms could only be interacted with by hands without any haptic feedback, they now report that they have a sense of being able to touch and feel the holograms. The feedback gloves are viewed to be bulky and stiff, hence further development is needed on the hardware side, similar to the holographic devices themselves. Overall, connecting force-feedback gloves with Augmented Reality shows large potential in the fields of manufacturing, maintenance and education, as the level of immersion is further increased.