Because electrocuting users is secretly what all developers long to do.

Originally shared by Roy Hembree

Electrical muscle stimulation used to create boundaries in VR

The Hasso Plattner Institute has developed a system that delivers electrical muscle stimulation to provide haptic feedback. It can create the illusion of holding and moving heavy objects as well as create the feeling of touching walls and turning knobs. The system is compact enough to fit in a backpack.

“When the user grabs the virtual cube, the user expects the cube’s weight to create tension in the user’s biceps and the cube’s stiffness to create a tension in the user’s pectoralis. In order to create this sensation, the system actuates the respective opposition muscles. In order to put a load onto the user’s biceps, it actuates the triceps and in order to put a load onto the user’s pectoralis, it actuates the user’s shoulder muscle. This creates the desired tension in biceps and pectoralis, thereby creating the desired experience.”

Link to the study: https://hpi.de/baudisch/projects/vr-walls.html

Source of GIF: https://youtu.be/OcSmCamMKfs