Before we get into any of that, let’s step back a moment and look at what haptic technology is. In most cases it uses a kind of motor called an actuator to convert electrical, hydraulic or pneumatic energy into vibrations, which can be managed and controlled by software that determines the duration, frequency, and amplitude.

Smartphones that are present nowdays on the market already usinf this kind of technology through touch screen. Improving tactile feedback in consumer technology will be crucial as we further our attempts to bridge the divide between all that is physical and tangible and all that is digital and virtual.

In the virtual reality space, haptic technology could be the missing puzzle piece that propels the likes of Oculus Rift and Sony’s Project Morpheus into the mainstream. The trouble is that virtual reality now looks and sounds so lifelike that you instinctively feel like you’re physically in the virtual space, and that means that you want to touch things and to feel things touching you. But without haptics (or a whole lot of props and careful planning), neither of these are possible.