Haptic gloves are allowing users to touch and feel in VR

The idea behind the gloves was to make virtual objects feel real in the hands of the wearer, and add the sense of touch to virtual reality (VR) simulations. Meta’s gloves, which are in the prototype stage, use sensors to read signals the human brain sends to our hands through the neurons, and relay the same to a computer.

But while Meta’s gloves are still in the prototype stage, Indian companies like AjnaLens and Simulanis are already selling haptic gloves with similar technologies to customers.

According to industry executives, large companies using VR to train workers on handling complicated equipment in mining, manufacturing, and automotive industries, have started or are planning to use such gloves to improve the learning experience.

For instance, Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL), a unit of Vedanta Ltd, began using haptic gloves called AjnaSparsh developed by Mumbai-based VR firm AjnaLens to simulate mining rigs and prepare miners for the same.

Abhishek Tomar, co-founder and chief technology officer at AjnaLens, explained that Vedanta uses large machines, called mining rigs, at its mines. These rigs have 12 types of gears and levers and drivers have to be properly trained in order to use them accurately.

Adding the gloves allows the experience to become “phygital” instead of a purely digital experience. Trainees can now push, pull or rotate levers in the virtual world, and create muscle memory in the process.

“The fact that they learn to navigate real-life challenges in the digital space makes the training both safe and cost-effective,” a spokesperson for Vedanta said in a statement.

Vedanta isn’t the only one looking at such experiences. Tomar said Tata Motors is also going to use haptic gloves for driving and other simulators.

Noida-based VR, AR startup Simulanis is providing exoskeletal VR gloves called Reflexis to companies like HPCL and Mahindra. Developed last year, Simulanis’ gloves are being used for training, operations, repair, and maintenance in refineries, pipelines, retail, and operations-distribution-engineering by the two companies. “The gloves have gathered a lot of interest from many of our existing clients, especially those belonging to the manufacturing sector, like automotive, oil and gas, pharmaceutical, and FMCG,” said Raman Talwar, chief executive and founder-director of Simulanis. The healthcare and skilling sector are also producing some demand, he said.

Talwar said gloves like these allow motion tracking for the user’s entire hand and how it moves, including the fingers. The haptic feedback, in turn, provides the user a more “realistic and engaging” experience, he said.

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