Next-Gen VR Gloves: Feel the Metaverse at Your Fingertips

MetaversePlanet January 23, 2023

0 1 minute read

A team of researchers from Singapore State University has unveiled a new type of glove that allows users to experience tactile sensations from the Metaverse directly through their fingertips.

The concept of the Metaverse is increasingly becoming a part of our everyday lives, with numerous companies developing various software and technologies for its use. Notably, Sony introduced the Micopi tracking sensors last month, significantly facilitating the full-body immersion into the Metaverse.

In a recent development, researchers from the State University of Singapore have presented their innovative gloves. These gloves enable users to feel every object they encounter in the virtual world as if they were touching them in reality.

You can feel even the smallest roughness

Next-Gen VR Gloves: Feel the Metaverse at Your Fingertips

The glove, named HaptGlove, operates with a more sophisticated and sensitive array of motors and a machine learning-supported algorithm, unlike standard VR controllers and gloves. Each finger is equipped with a feedback module.

These modules, powered by microfluidics, are significantly more sensitive and delicate compared to conventional feedback modules, yet they are nearly half as small. As a result, wearing the gloves doesn’t make your hands feel unduly heavy.

After putting on the glove, all you need to do is to run the corresponding software on your computer and then log into the Metaverse.

The system automatically detects and models objects close to your hand in the virtual environment, enabling you to touch them. Thanks to microfluidics, these gloves allow you to sense even minor textures and bumps, seemingly drawing inspiration from the film “Ready Player One.”

The team behind HaptGlove reveals that this project has been in development since 2019. They admit that the initial prototypes were far from successful, with even spherical models appearing angular in tests. However, they have continuously worked to refine these gloves to reach their current state of excellence.

Having secured the patent rights for the product, the researchers indicate that HaptGlove may soon be available for purchase. They estimate that the price for a pair of gloves could range from $3,700 (excluding taxes) to $15,000 (excluding taxes).