Smartphone robot finger lets devices crawl and touch users
Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A robotic finger that plugs into your smartphone could let loved ones send a remote caress alongside an emoji or empower your device to crawl across your desk, a demonstration by French researchers shows. Developer Marc Teyssier and colleagues from Paris-Saclay University and Sorbonne University created the MobiLimb prototype to explore how robotic prosthetics could give our inert devices new uses or personas. Mr Teyssier writes on his website: “In the spirit of human augmentation, which aims at overcoming human body limitations by using robotic devices, our approach aims at overcoming mobile device limitations by using a robotic limb.” A video demonstrating the motorised digit’s myriad uses show it acting as an automated stand for phones and tablets, a joystick for gaming, or a flexible light. There are also eerie shots of it sheathed in prosthetic human skin to allow it to sensitively touch users and add a human dimension to instant messaging.
Flexible sensor 'skin' to help robots or prosthetic devices convey a sense of touch
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