Magnetic shape-memory (MSM) technology has a high potential for haptic interfaces as it allows to combine both sensing and actuation technologies into the same component.
Strains produced are a hundred times larger than in piezoelectric materials and the shape changes remain after the force or magnetic field is removed from the system, unlike piezoelectric materials. The project focused on multimodal interaction. LUT created multi-crystalline Ni-Mn-Ga actuators and UTA carried out their empirical evaluation and software development.
Background
Touchscreen-based interaction in mobile devices and wearable technology were the key areas of research. Results from the constructive research and user testing at UTA were very promising for touchscreen based applications and have been presented in scientific publications.
MSM based actuators were also compared with other technologies, such as, piezoelectric and electromagnetic actuators in similar setups to gauge possible performance variations.
Funding source
Academy of Finland
Contact persons
Kari Ullakko
Professor / Project Coordinator
Kari.Ullakko [at] lut.fi
+358 50 410 53 76
Roope Raisamo
Professor
roope.raisamo [at] tuni.fi
+358 50 570 2007