Fake Walls, Real Shocks: VR System Simulates Physical Barriers

Researchers found a way to simulate walls in VR by shocking the player's muscles. Credit:

Hasso Plattner Institute/University of Potsdam What happens when you walk into a wall in virtual reality? Nothing yet, but soon, your muscles could get shocked when you smack into a barrier, thanks to a new research project that aims to simulate walls and other objects in virtual reality. This expansion on the virtual reality (VR) experience uses electrical muscle stimulation to give users the sensation of hitting a wall or lifting a heavy object. The effect is created via haptic feedback, a type of tactile communication that uses forces or vibrations to re-create the sense of touch. A team of researchers from the Hasso Plattner Institute at the University of Potsdam in Germany created a wearable system that can shock different muscle groups throughout a person's body. In addition to a VR headset and tracking gloves, the researchers outfitted users with backpacks containing electrical muscle stimulators and a series of electrode patches that attach to the wearers' skin and produce the shocks. [Beyond Gaming: 10 Other Fascinating Uses for Virtual-Reality Tech]      https://www.livescience.com/59013-electrical-muscle-stimulator-creates-vr-walls.html