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A flexible skin-mounted haptic interface for multimodal cutaneous feedback

Nature Electronics volume 8, pages 818–830 (2025)Cite this article

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Abstract

Haptic feedback systems are a crucial technology for improving immersion in augmented and virtual reality applications, especially those requiring intricate finger motions. However, existing technologies are typically limited by rigid and bulky equipment that can degrade wearability while providing insufficiently nuanced tactile sensations. Here we report a lightweight and flexible finger-worn haptic device that provides controllable and nuanced cutaneous feedback. The device consists of four serpentine shape memory alloy structures in opposing pairs that manipulate a tactor, creating both individual and collective actuation patterns. In total, it can implement 11 distinctive motions for a variety of haptic sensations. In addition, because the device is composed of a soft three-dimensionally printed flexible finger cap structure and elastic cover, it can easily conform to human fingers, enhancing wearability and user comfort. We show that the haptic interface can be used in a variety of virtual and real-world activities.

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Fig. 1: Skin-mounted SMA haptic interface.
Fig. 2: Characterization of SSSA.
Fig. 3: Skin-mounted SMA finger haptic interface.
Fig. 4: Deployment of finger-mounted haptic interface in VR.
Fig. 5: Haptic interface for daily activities in a real-world application.
Fig. 6: Object detection application for visually impaired users.

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Data availability

The data that support the plots within this paper are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Code availability

The code for the haptics device demonstration is available via GitHub at https://github.com/ansue1234/SML_SMA_Haptics.

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Acknowledgements

This work was partially supported by an ICWERX grant from DEFENSEWERX and the Intelligence Community. This research was also supported by the MOTIE (Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy) in Korea, under the Human Resource Development Program for Industrial Innovation (Global) (grant no. P0017306, Global Human Resource Development for Innovative Design in Robot and Engineering) supervised by the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT). The human subject study was approved by the Carnegie Mellon University IRB (STUDY2024_00000021) and not directly funded by the ICWERX grant.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Beomchan Kang

    Present address: Exterior & Closure Materials Development Team, Hyundai Motor Group, Seoul, Republic of Korea

  2. Nathan Zavanelli

    Present address: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Soft Machines Lab, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Beomchan Kang, Nathan Zavanelli, Guo Ning Sue, Dinesh K. Patel, Subin Oh, Michael R. Vinciguerra & Carmel Majidi

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Beomchan Kang, Nathan Zavanelli, Dinesh K. Patel, Subin Oh, Michael R. Vinciguerra & Carmel Majidi

  3. Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Guo Ning Sue & Carmel Majidi

  4. National Creative Research Initiative for Functionally Antagonistic Nano-Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon, Republic of Korea

    Saewoong Oh

  5. HCI Group, Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany

    Jonathan Wieland

  6. Soft Robotics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Wei Dawid Wang

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Contributions

B.K. and C.M. conceived the initial concept. B.K., N.Z., D.K.P. and G.N.S. conceived the application context. B.K., C.M., D.K.P. and N.Z. wrote the manuscript. B.K. performed fabrication of the device. B.K. and D.K.P. performed the characterization of the device. B.K. and D.K.P. created the videos. C.M. supervised the project and provided scientific and experimental advice. All authors commented on the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Carmel Majidi.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Nature Electronics thanks Herbert Shea, Zhongda Sun and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Supplementary information

Supplementary Information (download PDF )

Supplementary Discussion, including Supplementary Figs. 1–17.

Supplementary Video 1 (download MP4 )

Overview of haptic interface.

Supplementary Video 2 (download MP4 )

Single-serpentine SMA actuator architecture.

Supplementary Video 3 (download MP4 )

Demonstration of actuator performance.

Supplementary Video 4 (download MP4 )

Cyclical actuation with varying frequencies.

Supplementary Video 5 (download MP4 )

Cyclical actuation in the diagonal direction.

Supplementary Video 6 (download MP4 )

Demonstration of actuation in the orthogonal direction.

Supplementary Video 7 (download MP4 )

Full demonstration of all actuator motions.

Supplementary Video 8 (download MP4 )

Demonstration of the wearability of the finger-mounted haptic interface.

Supplementary Video 9 (download MP4 )

VR demonstration showing various actuation modalities.

Supplementary Video 10 (download MP4 )

Sensory assistance for placing a painting on a wall.

Supplementary Video 11 (download MP4 )

Demonstration of object detection.

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Kang, B., Zavanelli, N., Sue, G.N. et al. A flexible skin-mounted haptic interface for multimodal cutaneous feedback. Nat Electron 8, 818–830 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41928-025-01443-w

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