US-20260124074-A1 - WEARABLE HAPTIC FEEDBACK DEVICE

Abstract

Examples provide a wearable device including a pump in fluid communication with a plurality of valves and a haptic output portion including a plurality of membranes respectively corresponding to the plurality of valves. The plurality of membranes are selectively adjustable between an active state and an inactive state in accordance with a state of the plurality of valves. The device also includes an electronic processor configured to receive input from an external device, encode the input to a haptic sequence, and provide haptic feedback to the user by generating a control signal to open and close selected ones of the plurality of valves according to the haptic sequence, wherein opening a valve causes a corresponding membrane to inflate.

Inventors

• Jungkyu Kim
• Haohan ZHANG
• Gonzalo Tello
• Kanghoon Choi

Assignees

• UNIVERSITY OF UTAH RESEARCH FOUNDATION

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20231005

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A wearable device comprising: a pump in fluid communication with a plurality of valves; a haptic output portion including a plurality of membranes respectively corresponding to the plurality of valves, the plurality of membranes selectively adjustable between an active state and an inactive state in accordance with a state of the plurality of valves; and an electronic processor configured to: receive input from an external device, encode the input to a haptic sequence, and provide haptic feedback to the user by generating a control signal to open and close selected ones of the plurality of valves according to the haptic sequence, wherein opening a valve causes a corresponding membrane to inflate.
2. 2 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein the haptic output portion defines a contacting surface of the wearable device such that, when the wearable device is worn by the user, the haptic output portion contacts the skin of the user.
3. 3 . The wearable device of claim 2 , wherein inflation of a membrane causes the membrane to output a normal force to the skin of the user.
4. 4 . The wearable device of claim 1 , further comprising a pressure sensor configured to measure a pressure in a fluid path between the pump and the plurality of valves, wherein the electronic processor is configured to detect a leak in the fluid path based on a signal received from the pressure sensor.
5. 5 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein the electronic processor is further configured to: in response to detecting a leak in the fluid path, provide feedback to the user indicating that a leak is detected.
6. 6 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of membranes includes six membranes arranged in a three by two array.
7. 7 . The wearable device of claim 6 , wherein the haptic sequence is a Braille sequence.
8. 8 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of valves incudes an exhaust port, and the electronic processor is further configured to provide the haptic feedback to the user by, after opening a selected one of the plurality of valves, opening the exhaust port of the selected one of the plurality of valves.
9. 9 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of valves incudes a vacuum port, and the electronic processor is further configured to provide the haptic feedback to the user by, after opening a selected one of the plurality of valves, activating the vacuum port of the selected one of the plurality of valves.
10. 10 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein the pump is configured to supply a constant pressure to the plurality of valves.
11. 11 . The wearable device of claim 10 , wherein the constant pressure is 30 kilopascals.
12. 12 . The wearable device of claim 1 , further comprising a Darlington array configured to drive the plurality of valves based on the control signal.
13. 13 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein the input includes at least one selected from the group consisting of text input, audio input, image input, and video input.
14. 14 . The wearable device of claim 1 , wherein the electronic processor is communicatively connected to the external device by at least one selected from the group consisting of a universal serial bus (“USB”) connection, a Bluetooth connection, and a WiFi connection.
15. 15 . A method implemented in a wearable device, the method comprising: receiving input from an external device; encoding the input to a haptic sequence; and providing haptic feedback to the user by generating a control signal to open and close selected ones of a plurality of valves according to the haptic sequence, wherein a pump is in fluid communication with the plurality of valves, a haptic output portion includes a plurality of membranes respectively corresponding to the plurality of valves, the plurality of membranes are selectively adjustable between an active state and an inactive state in accordance with a state of the plurality of valves, and opening a valve causes a corresponding membrane to inflate.
16. 16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the haptic output portion defines a contacting surface of the wearable device such that, when the wearable device is worn by the user, the haptic output portion contacts the skin of the user.
17. 17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein inflation of a membrane causes the membrane to output a normal force to the skin of the user.
18. 18 . The method of claim 15 , further comprising: measuring, with a pressure sensor, a pressure in a fluid path between the pump and the plurality of valves; and detecting a leak in the fluid path based on a signal received from the pressure sensor.
19. 19 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising: in response to detecting the leak in the fluid path, providing feedback to the user indicating that a leak is detected.
20. 20 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the plurality of membranes includes six membranes arranged in a three by two array.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 63/413,690, filed on Oct. 6, 2022, the entire contents of which are fully incorporated herein by reference. FIELD Embodiments herein relate to haptic feedback devices. SUMMARY Visual impairments prevent many individuals from effectively reading information. Many individuals with visual impairments rely on audio description devices to consume text-based or other visual information. However, individuals with both hearing and visual impairments may rely primarily on tactile means for consuming information, such as Braille. Braille displays are typically expensive and large (e.g., tabletop devices), making them inaccessible for many individuals with visual impairments. Some vibratile feedback solutions exist, however, these options often lack portability. Additionally, studies indicate that users are more sensitive to normal forces than shear forces when receiving tactile feedback. Thus, there is a need for a portable device for providing haptic feedback, such as Braille, to a user. One example provides a wearable device including a pump in fluid communication with a plurality of valves and a haptic output portion including a plurality of membranes respectively corresponding to the plurality of valves. The plurality of membranes are selectively adjustable between an active state and an inactive state in accordance with a state of the plurality of valves. The device also includes an electronic processor configured to receive input from an external device, encode the input to a haptic sequence, and provide haptic feedback to the user by generating a control signal to open and close selected ones of the plurality of valves according to the haptic sequence, wherein opening a valve causes a corresponding membrane to inflate. In some aspects, the haptic output portion defines a contacting surface of the wearable device such that, when the wearable device is worn by the user, the haptic output portion contacts the skin of the user. In some aspects, inflation of a membrane causes the membrane to output a normal force to the skin of the user. In some aspects, the wearable device further includes a pressure sensor configured to measure a pressure in a fluid path between the pump and the plurality of valves, wherein the electronic processor is configured to detect a leak in the fluid path based on a signal received from the pressure sensor. In some aspects, the electronic processor is further configured to, in response to detecting a leak in the fluid path, provide haptic feedback to the user indicating that a leak is detected. In some aspects, the plurality of membranes includes six membranes arranged in a three by two array. In some aspects, the haptic sequence is a Braille sequence. In some aspects, each of the plurality of valves incudes an exhaust port, and the electronic processor is further configured to provide the haptic feedback to the user by, after opening a selected one of the plurality of valves, opening the exhaust port of the selected one of the plurality of valves. In some aspects, each of the plurality of valves incudes a vacuum port, and the electronic processor is further configured to provide the haptic feedback to the user by, after opening a selected one of the plurality of valves, activating the vacuum port of the selected one of the plurality of valves. In some aspects, the pump is configured to supply a constant pressure to the plurality of valves. In some aspects, the constant pressure is 30 kilopascals. In some aspects, the wearable device further includes a Darlington array configured to drive the plurality of valves based on the control signal. In some aspects, the input includes at least one selected from the group consisting of text input, audio input, image input, and video input. In some aspects, the electronic processor is communicatively connected to the external device by at least one selected from the group consisting of a universal serial bus (“USB”) connection, a Bluetooth connection, and a WiFi connection. Another example provides a method implemented in a wearable device. The method includes receiving input from an external device, encoding the input to a haptic sequence, and providing haptic feedback to the user by generating a control signal to open and close selected ones of a plurality of valves according to the haptic sequence. A pump is in fluid communication with the plurality of valves, and a haptic output portion includes a plurality of membranes respectively corresponding to the plurality of valves. The plurality of membranes are selectively adjustable between and active state and an inactive state in accordance with a state of the plurality of valves. Opening a valve causes a corresponding membrane to inflate. Other aspects of the invention will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FI