HANS: a Haptic System for Human-to-Human Remote Handshake

Handshake is a gesture used worldwide for greeting and communication purposes that is impossible in remote and forced distance contexts. In this paper, we exploited recent results in wearable haptics for designing HANS, a novel haptic system developed for reproducing a remote handshake between two users. It consists of two modules: the sensing part composed of three rings developed for recording the handshake force and the actuation part a bracelet worn on user's palm, able to apply a pressure distribution that simulates the handshake action. Once a couple of devices are worn by two users, each of them has to grasp an everyday life object simulating the force that she/he would apply to their partner's hand, the force is recorded by the sensing rings and transmitted to the partner's actuation bracelet. The paper shows HANS's main design and integration features, and a set of preliminary evaluation tests. Users involved in the tests found the handshake perception reasonably realistic and their feedback on device usefulness, quality and ease of use was overall positive.