Magnetic Sleeve – Haptic Actuator

The idea behind this sleeve was pretty simple. Our sense of touch does not originate from force, it originates from pressure. The area in which pressure is applied does change the force but it only feels different due to the change in localization.
This sleeve works using this principle.

There is an internal magnetic band with 3 magnets attached at a 60 degree angle. The other band has a similar arrangement. However, its area of contact is much larger.

When the magnetic bands are actuated so they repel one another, the force on the inner sleeve is felt significantly owing to the smaller area of contact. The outer sleeve, which experiences an opposite force is felt much lesser due to the large area of contact. This can be used to simulate a haptic sensation around the area where the inner loop is in contact.

Since any 2D force can be resolved along 2 vectors which are not along the same direction, 3 magnets at 120 degrees can easily be used to represent any 2D force. The force control is almost linear due to the fact that the magnets are very close to one another. 

This was a product concept I designed. However, it did not get approved by my professor and I did not get to make it a reality.