X-Rings: A Hand-mounted 360° Shape Display for Grasping in Virtual Reality

X-Rings is a novel hand-mounted 360° shape display for Virtual Reality that renders objects in 3D and responds to user-applied touch and grasping force. Designed as a modular stack of motor-driven expandable rings (5.7-7.7 cm diameter), X-Rings renders radially-symmetric surfaces graspable by the user’s whole hand. The device is strapped to the palm, allowing the fingers to freely make and break contact with the device. Capacitance sensors and motor current sensing provide estimates of finger touch states and gripping force. We present the results of a user study evaluating participants’ ability to associate device-rendered shapes with visually-rendered objects as well as a demo application that allows users to freely interact with a variety of objects in a virtual environment.