Innovative Haptic Interfaces Emerging from Soft Robotics

The field of soft robotics has made inroads into a number of applications that have previously been dominated by rigid robots such as assistive technologies, surgical robotics and haptics. This workshop aims to bring together experts active in the field of creating sensors interacting with soft objects, understanding how sensory information is fed back to the human and studying haptic devices made of soft materials. We will explore the synergies that will arise from bringing together soft robotics and haptics and identify the advantages that these new soft materials bring to the field of haptics.
This ICRA 2017 workshop will provide a review of current technology using silicone and rubber materials for creating sensors on the one hand and haptic devices on the other hand. This will help exploring the reasons of current emergence of soft haptic interfaces and identifying the benefits associated with applying soft robotics in this field. The workshop will explore the challenges that lie ahead to create new robot systems that can enhance feeding back haptic information to the human in the future.