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Several years ago researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology created a mind bending bit of technology, a haptic learning glove. The original study showed that wearing the glove, which gives slight vibrations on each finger, allowed beginners to learn to play piano melodies in 45 minutes.
10 years later, and the researchers have advanced that technology to incorporate passive haptic learning, allowing people to acquire motor skills through vibrations, without even paying attention to their hands. Georgia Tech professor Thad Starner, and Ph.D student Caitlyn Seim examined the effectiveness of the gloves in teaching Braille. In a controlled study, wearers of the gloves were on average a third more accurate than the control group at writing Braille, and the knowledge even transferred into being able to read Braille for the glove group.
Absolutely amazing. And in addition to all the things above, the video as well as this article, go into how passive haptic learning can help improve sensation and mobility for people with spinal cord injuries. While some wearables are mind bendingly stupid, this goes to show that there is also some really incredible stuff going on. You can also check out the full research paper here. Huge thanks to Guarana [BAWLS] for the story.
"Equipment used for hand rehabilitation may seem monotonous and boring to some, and doesn’t provide any feedback or incentive," said Starner, who oversees the Contextual Computing Group. "Mobile Music Touch overcomes each of those challenges and provides surprising benefits for people with weakness and sensory loss due to SCI. It’s a great example of how wearable computing can change people’s lives."
10 years later, and the researchers have advanced that technology to incorporate passive haptic learning, allowing people to acquire motor skills through vibrations, without even paying attention to their hands. Georgia Tech professor Thad Starner, and Ph.D student Caitlyn Seim examined the effectiveness of the gloves in teaching Braille. In a controlled study, wearers of the gloves were on average a third more accurate than the control group at writing Braille, and the knowledge even transferred into being able to read Braille for the glove group.
Absolutely amazing. And in addition to all the things above, the video as well as this article, go into how passive haptic learning can help improve sensation and mobility for people with spinal cord injuries. While some wearables are mind bendingly stupid, this goes to show that there is also some really incredible stuff going on. You can also check out the full research paper here. Huge thanks to Guarana [BAWLS] for the story.
"Equipment used for hand rehabilitation may seem monotonous and boring to some, and doesn’t provide any feedback or incentive," said Starner, who oversees the Contextual Computing Group. "Mobile Music Touch overcomes each of those challenges and provides surprising benefits for people with weakness and sensory loss due to SCI. It’s a great example of how wearable computing can change people’s lives."
