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Video
calls are a common occurrence, but have you imagined being able to touch the
person on the other end of the line? Scientists are making this a reality.
Researchers
at the University of New South Wales, Australia, have invented a soft skin
stretch device (SSD), a haptic (触觉的) device
that can recreate the sense of touch. Haptic technology mimics (模仿) the experience of touch by stimulating small areas of the skin in
ways that are similar to what is felt in the real world, through force, vibration
(震动) or motion.
Vibration
is the most common haptic technology today and has been built into many
electronic devices, such as one attached to the back of a trackpad (触控板) in laptops, which mimics a button clicking. However, haptic
feedback with vibration becomes less sensitive when used continuously. The
existing technology also has great difficulty recreating the sense of touch
with objects in virtual environments or located remotely, according to Mai
Thanh Thai, lead author of the study.
The
new technology overcomes issues with existing haptic devices. The research team
introduced a novel method to recreate the sense of touch through soft, artificial
"muscles".
"Our
three-way directional skin stretch device, built into the fingertips of the
wearable haptic glove we also created, is like wearing a second skin — it's
soft, stretchable and mimics the sense of touch — and will enable new forms of
haptic communication to enhance everyday activities, " said Thanh Nho Do, senior
author of the study.
It
works like this: Imagine you are at home and you call your friend who is in
Australia. You wear a haptic glove with the SSDs and your friend also wears a
glove with integrated (集成的) 3D
force sensors. If your friend picks up an object, it will physically press
against your friend's fingers. And his/her glove with 3D force sensors will
measure these interactions. The force signals can be sent to your glove so your
device will generate the same 3D forces, making you experience the same sense
of touch as your friend.
The
haptic devices could be applied in various scenarios, allowing users to feel
objects inside a virtual world or at a distance. This could be especially
beneficial during such times like the COVID-19 pandemic when people rely on
video calls to stay connected with loved ones. Or it could be used in medical
practices. Doctors can feel a patient's organ tissues with surgical tools
without touching them.
(1)
What's the main purpose of the text?
A . To encourage the use of a new product.
B . To inform readers of a new invention.
C . To compare different haptic devices.
D . To introduce the development of haptic technology.
(2)
What can we learn about the SSD?
A . It mimics the sense of touch through a trackpad.
B . It mainly uses vibration technology.
C . It takes the shape of a glove.
D . It makes virtual haptic communication possible.
(3)
What does Paragraph 6 mainly talk about?
A . The advantages of the new haptic glove.
B . The applications of the new haptic technology.
C . An explanation of how the haptic device works.
D . A personal experience of using SSDs during a video call.
(4)
How could the new haptic device benefit people?
A . It could replace video calls as a way to communicate.
B . it could be used for recreating organ tissues.
C . Doctors could perform surgeries at once.
D . Users could feel remote objects in a realistic way.
答案: B
D
C
D