Introduction

The invention is a wearable haptic system to guide the gait rhythm of a person through vibrating stimuli. The system can suggest the speed of the step to avoid collision with a moving object or to synchronize the step with that of another person, as well can signal the need to change direction to reach a particular destination.

Technical features

A haptic system constituted of a vibrotactile device configured to be worn on a portion of a subject’s body. In detail, the system is constituted of devices having motors configured to generate a vibration; an actuation unit configured to receive wireless control signals and to cause vibrations of motor responsive to wireless control signals; a portable telecommunication device comprising a control unit configured to transmit wireless control signals to actuation unit, and to transfer actuation pulses at prefixed intervals to the motor, so that a subject who wears the haptic system can conform his own step or race rate to vibration pulses. The vibrotactile device comprises an accelerometer, in order to provide wireless accelerometer signals to the portable telecommunication device, by the actuation unit, to change the rate of actuation pulses on vibrotactile device responsive to accelerometer signals.

Possible Applications

• Medical sector:
  • Rehabilitation, for asymmetrically or irregularly ambulant patients;
  • Monitoring and guiding people, especially blind;
• Robotics and human-robot cooperation;
• Social running.

Advantages

• Elevata usabilità: indossabile e portatile;
• Confortevole;
• Lunga durata della batteria;
• Vibrazioni regolabili in funzione delle esigenze di ogni utente.