Interactive technology could help students feel what can't be seen
September 22, 2008
Haptic interface
Equations or graphs can explain what happens when atoms bump into each other, but a technology called haptics could help students know how it feels. A Purdue University researcher says haptic, or force-feedback, technology can be used in a variety of classroom subjects, especially in the sciences.
Haptics involves the use of devices, much like joysticks, that allow the user to scan over objects or surfaces and feel the interaction forces. The device measures the position of the tip of the joystick and feeds it to a computer program containing the dimensions of virtual objects, which graphically displays the object on a 3-D monitor. The program uses computer algorithms to calculate the interaction forces between the joystick tip and the virtual objects based on the object's physical properties and feeds that sensation back to the user, just as if the person were touching the objects in real life.
"It's hard to teach these topics when students can't see or feel what they are studying," said Gary Bertoline, associate dean for graduate programs and research in Purdue's College of Technology. "Through various devices that simulate physical properties, haptics allows you to feel things you can't see."
One potential use for haptics is in nanotechnology, where materials are built atom-by-atom or particle-by-particle, too small for the human eye to see without the aid of a high-powered microscope. Currently, undergraduate students typically learn about nanotechnology from textbooks, and usually only graduate students are exploring nanoscale materials in the lab.
Bertoline has recently begun a National Science Foundation-funded project that would develop course modules to incorporate the use of haptic devices in existing sophomore-level courses in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
"We live in a world that functions based on Newton's laws of physics, where, for example, if you drop an object, it will hit the ground unless acted upon by another force. That is something easily demonstrated that students can readily understand," said Bertoline, a distinguished professor of computer graphics technology. "In contrast, nanotechnology is heavily governed by quantum physics, which deals with systems at the atomic level and is much less intuitive and more unpredictable.
"It's tough to explain these concepts without demonstrating them, and we think haptics holds great promise and will go far beyond textbook learning in helping students comprehend and get excited about nanotechnology subjects."
The two-year project is called Enhanced Undergraduate Nanotechnology Education with Haptic and Visualization Tools. Bertoline is working with Ronald Reifenberger, a professor of physics; Deborah Bennett, associate professor of educational studies; and Hong Tan, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, all of Purdue.
Tan said students would be able to use the device to move virtual particles or grasp them with tiny tweezers, for example, and be able to sense the force exerted by the particles.
"If you move around a small particle, the force increases as you move closer to another particle, but that's something the human eye can't appreciate," she said. "These devices will hopefully make the physics and equations behind the science easier to imagine."
Over the course of the project, the team will conduct simulations of various actions at the nano-level, perform the calculations of the force exerted by each particle, and create and use computer software that translates the calculations into human sensations.
The Purdue team will then implement the modules into classrooms and test students to measure how well they have learned concepts.
"Studies that already have been done show that using haptic technology in the classroom increases learning retention," Bertoline said. "Many people learn better when they can touch and feel what they are learning, not just read about it."
Bertoline said although this technology is used frequently in industry, it has been in limited use in educational settings, mainly because the cost of the devices has been too high. Recently, devices in the range of $200 apiece have come on the market, which makes the technology more economically feasible for learning.
He predicts that the technology will someday become commonplace in the classroom, especially in STEM disciplines of science, technology, engineering and math.
"Haptics could be used to demonstrate hard versus soft surfaces at the cellular level in biology, which students can't experience under a microscope," he said. "It could be used in most sciences and even could help demonstrate math principles. There are a lot of ways haptics can be used in education."
Provided by Purdue University
-
Students design virtual ID badge to combat online hackers
13 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
-
Power profiles help electronics go green
9 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
-
New kind of high-temperature photonic crystal could someday power everything from smartphones to spacecraft
Feb 03, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (16) |
5
-
NASA releases Sector 33 air traffic control educational game app
Feb 01, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
-
UCSF leaders explore bioinformatics in research, patient care and education
Feb 01, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (33) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (4) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (2) |
0
-
How to calculate total compressibility in liquid porous solid system
2 hours ago
-
Need help reading 3-D
22 hours ago
-
A way to send and receive wireless data
Feb 11, 2012
-
Calling function with no input argument
Feb 10, 2012
-
Force free body diagram problem on gym equipment
Feb 10, 2012
-
Empirical data regarding shower heads and water
Feb 10, 2012
- More from Physics Forums - General Engineering
More news stories
Google might launch Drive for cloud storage soon
(PhysOrg.com) -- Google's next big move, according to the Wall Street Journal, is a cloud storage service called Drive. Hardly first to the plate, Google is simply catching up to introducing its cloud reposi ...
Iran blocks email, restricts net access: reports
Iran has further restricted access to the Internet and blocked popular email services for the past few days, in a move a top lawmaker said could "cost the regime dearly," media reports said on Sunday.
3 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
3
Love a click away in Indonesia's Twitter Republic
He was a geeky kid from Yogyakarta, she a glamorous city girl in Jakarta. In a country with one of the world's most vibrant social networking scenes they fell in love on Twitter.
11 hours ago |
4 / 5 (1) |
0
Walney offshore wind farm is world's biggest (for now)
(PhysOrg.com) -- The Walney wind farm on the Irish Sea--characterized by high tides, waves and windy weather--officially opened this week. The farm is treated in the press as a very big deal as the Walney ...
Navy to begin tests on electromagnetic railgun prototype launcher
The Office of Naval Research (ONR)'s Electromagnetic (EM) Railgun program will take an important step forward in the coming weeks when the first industry railgun prototype launcher is tested at a facility ...
Feb 06, 2012 |
4.5 / 5 (17) |
94
|
Overeating may double risk of memory loss
New research suggests that consuming between 2,100 and 6,000 calories per day may double the risk of memory loss, or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), among people age 70 and older. The study was released today and will be ...
Scientists discover molecular secrets of 2,000-year-old Chinese herbal remedy
For roughly two thousand years, Chinese herbalists have treated Malaria using a root extract, commonly known as Chang Shan, from a type of hydrangea that grows in Tibet and Nepal. More recent studies suggest that halofuginone, ...
New method to examine batteries -- MRI from the inside
There is an ever-increasing need for advanced batteries for portable electronics, such as phones, cameras, and music players, but also to power electric vehicles and to facilitate the distribution and storage of energy derived ...
Lab study raises questions over nano-particle impact
Tests involving chickens have raised questions about the impact on health from engineered nano-particles, the ultra-fine grains commonly used in drugs and processed foods, scientists said on Sunday.
Injured boomers beware: Know when to see doctor
(AP) -- It happened to nurse Jane Byron years after an in-line skating fall, business owner Haralee Weintraub while doing "men's" push-ups, and avid cyclist Gene Wilberg while lifting a heavy box.
A mitosis mystery solved: How chromosomes align perfectly in a dividing cell
Although the process of mitotic cell division has been studied intensely for more than 50 years, Whitehead Institute researchers have only now solved the mystery of how cells correctly align their chromosomes during symmetric ...