TouchTex: A Smart Glove Sleeve System for the Digital, Gesture-Controlled Transmission of Touch Over Distance

BMBF Funded Project TouchTex

Project Justification

The pandemic has underscored the value of digital connectedness – yet physical touch remains one of the least explored senses in virtual communication. While facial expressions and voice can be transmitted digitally, touch has not been directly detectable or transferable.

TouchTex addresses this gap by using smart textiles to detect and reproduce touch in real time – even across long distances. A combination of flexible, surface-conforming components integrated into gloves or cuffs enables the recognition of touch intentions and the delivery of electrical feedback.

Initial applications focus on clinical contexts – especially for patients under strict contact restrictions. Future use cases may include robotics, gaming, and immersive human–machine interaction.

Our Approach

Through exploratory experimentation with the TouchTex demonstrator, IXP will investigate how naturalistic social touch can be digitally captured and reproduced – with the goal of enabling intuitive and emotionally meaningful tactile interaction over distance.

Work Packages, Insights and Outcomes

The main objective of IXP in the TouchTex project is to create a comprehensive learning data corpus from both existing and newly generated datasets for sensor-based touch applications. To achieve this, IXP will conduct exploratory studies examining the feasibility of virtual touch using vibrotactile feedback and assessing how interpersonal touch can be detected and transmitted via digital communication channels.

These studies aim to identify and evaluate methods for simulating tactile sensations that closely resemble real physical contact – laying the foundation for emotionally meaningful touch experiences in virtual contexts.