Events Calendar

CS Colloquium: Allison Okamura (Stanford University) - Wearable Haptic Devices for Ubiquitous Communication

Speaker: Allison Okamura, Stanford University

Talk Title: Wearable Haptic Devices for Ubiquitous Communication

Series: Computer Science Colloquium

Abstract: Haptic devices allow touch-based information transfer between humans and intelligent systems, enabling communication in a salient but private manner that frees other sensory channels. For such devices to become ubiquitous, their physical and computational aspects must be intuitive and unobtrusive. The amount of information that can be transmitted through touch is limited in large part by the location, distribution, and sensitivity of human mechanoreceptors. Not surprisingly, many haptic devices are designed to be held or worn at the highly sensitive fingertips, yet stimulation using a device attached to the fingertips precludes natural use of the hands. Thus, we explore the design of a wide array of haptic feedback mechanisms, ranging from devices that can be actively touched by the fingertips to multi-modal haptic actuation mounted on the arm. We demonstrate how these devices are effective in virtual reality, human-machine communication, and human-human communication.

Register in advance for this webinar at:

https://usc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_u9NWPx3ZS2GK70dtN6-1ZA

After registering, attendees will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

This lecture satisfies requirements for CSCI 591: Research Colloquium.


Biography: Allison M. Okamura received the BS degree from the University of California at Berkeley and the MS and PhD degrees from Stanford University, all in mechanical engineering. She is currently Professor in the mechanical engineering department at Stanford University, with a courtesy appointment in computer science. She is an IEEE Fellow and Editor-in-Chief of the journal IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters. Her awards include the 2020 IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society Technical Achievement Award, 2019 IEEE Robotics and Automation Society Distinguished Service Award, and 2016 Duca Family University Fellow in Undergraduate Education. Her academic interests include haptics, teleoperation, virtual environments and simulators, medical robotics, neuromechanics and rehabilitation, and soft robotics. She is passionate about engineering education and diversifying STEM. Outside academia, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, running, and playing ice hockey. For more information about her research, please see the Collaborative Haptics and Robotics in Medicine (CHARM) Laboratory website: http://charm.stanford.edu.


Host: Heather Culbertson and Maja Mataric

Webcast: https://usc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_u9NWPx3ZS2GK70dtN6-1ZA

Location: Online Zoom Webinar

WebCast Link: https://usc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_u9NWPx3ZS2GK70dtN6-1ZA

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Computer Science Department