Embodied Auxetic Intelligence in a Glove‐Type Wearable Haptic Interface Connecting Humans to Robots and the Metaverse

Abstract

Abstract The versatility of fingers stems from their ability to interact with surroundings by taking poses, performing various grasping modes, and making dynamic bending motions. However, conventional glove‐type wearable interfaces often fail to fully engage the structural diversity and dynamic motions of fingers, providing tactile feedback to limited areas and restricting the full utilization of finger versatility for rich interactions. Here, a glove‐type auxetic wearable haptic (GAWH) interface that employs an auxetic meta‐design to offer embodied mechanical intelligence is introduced. This unique design ensures the positioning of haptic‐effective regions on all finger joints with high conformability, despite the variations in finger sizes among individuals. The GAWH delivers multimodal tactile feedback including static pressure, dynamic vibration, and variable stiffness with high spatial resolution to all joints. This enables users to interact with objects through diverse grasping modes and enhanced perception. Consequently, the GAWH provides real‐time meta‐linkage to virtual reality, allowing users to perform grasping tasks intuitively. Additionally, the GAWH facilitates interaction between humans and robots by enabling users to understand how robots feel during haptic‐assisted teleoperation. Overall, this work establishes a foundation for wearable haptic interfaces that can simultaneously enhance versatility, adaptability, and diversity, leveraging the full potential of the versatile fingers.