Project description
Haptic technology for virtual medical touch
Haptic technology exploits the sense of touch to control virtual objects, machines and electronic devices. Implementation of this technology in biomedical devices would significantly benefit a range of clinical diagnostic and surgical procedures. However, existing haptic actuators cannot recapitulate the action of biological structures. To this end, scientists of the EU-funded Rachel project will test a range of organic materials for their capacity to provide realistic tactile cues upon stimulation. They will also investigate many aspects related to the perception of touch including the underlying physical and cognitive mechanisms. Apart from fundamental knowledge, the new actuators will open the door towards improved haptic technologies in healthcare and wearable devices employed in physical and cognitive therapy.
Objective
The importance of the sense of touch in the biomedical sciences is difficult to overstate. Touch and palpation are critical for a range of clinical diagnostic and surgical procedures. The use of tactile feedback in virtual surgery may accelerate medical training and ultimately lead to superior patient outcomes. Technologies designed to manipulate the sense of touch are termed as “haptics”. In order to enable a future where haptics are used in biomedical devices, there is a need to answer fundamental questions arising from the sense of touch perception of humans, as well as to develop novel and smart materials that can transmit realistic tactile cues. One of the great challenges of existing—“off-the-shelf” —haptic actuators is that they are incapable of recapitulating the feeling of biological structures. In this proposal, I plan to adopt a new experimental paradigm based on organic materials (e.g. conductive polymers and liquid crystal elastomers) as haptic actuators capable of producing realistic tactile cues upon stimuli. In addition, fundamental questions related to the sensitivities and thresholds of human touch perception will be assessed for the first time using these materials in conjunction with psychophysical tests. Employing the expertise of the Lipomi lab in materials science and by collaboration with cognitive scientists, I will shed light on the physical and cognitive mechanisms underlying the perception of touch. This work will establish the design principles of organic actuators that may revolutionize technologies for remote care, such as for communities located in “healthcare deserts”, and wearable devices for physical and cognitive therapy.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences health sciences health care services eHealth
- natural sciences computer and information sciences internet internet of things
- natural sciences chemical sciences polymer sciences
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine surgery surgical procedures
- engineering and technology materials engineering liquid crystals
You need to log in or register to use this function
We are sorry... an unexpected error occurred during execution.
You need to be authenticated. Your session might have expired.
Thank you for your feedback. You will soon receive an email to confirm the submission. If you have selected to be notified about the reporting status, you will also be contacted when the reporting status will change.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
-
H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
See all projects funded under this programme -
H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
See all projects funded under this programme
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
See all projects funded under this funding scheme
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019
See all projects funded under this callCoordinator
Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
69978 Tel Aviv
Israel
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.