The Kajimoto Laboratory of the University of Electro-Communications near Tokyo has developed a prototype touchscreen that can actually transmit sensations to the palm of your hand. The lab believes that one day, this technology can be used to create content for gaming or entertainment. While playing a game, for example, it might be possible to create the feeling of insects or ants crawling on your palm.
"The back is an electrical tactile display, and when you touch the touch panel, it conveys an electrical touch at the same spot on the back," explained the lab on its website. "This means that while you are actually touching the front screen, you have the feeling that the touch is going through the screen and being traced on your palm. If there are icons or graphics on the screen, they can also be felt on your palm."
The Kajimoto laboratory researches tactile and multimodal human interfaces. In addition to the touchscreen, the lab has researched a touch panel that doesn't rely on finger movement, a pedestrian collision prevention system and a kiss transmitter.
The laboratory hasn't given any indication when its tactile touchscreen technology might make its way into commercial hardware.
