Haptic Intelligence

Department News

David Gueorguiev receives ERC Starting Grant

  • 09 October 2023

The researcher from the Haptic Intelligence Department and from CNRS receives 1.5 million euros from the European Research Council (ERC). He and his team will develop an experimental and computational framework that will open new possibilities for engineers and designers to develop applications that rely on the sense of touch.

David Gueorguiev Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Linda Behringer


Blog: Creating the Tools to Conserve our Wildlife

  • 22 August 2023

Conservation tools vary, but are united in their potential to aid conservation of wildlife

We have published a perspectives piece on the different tools used throughout the world that are aiding in conservation of wildlife, and helping preserve the biodiversity of our planet. The perspectives highlight advances in technology, including both hardware and software, as well as frugal resources that are changing the way animals are conserved. For researchers and persons interested in learning about the ways conservation technology and tools are created and the foundational building blocks this piece serves as a starter guide to the field.

Andrew Schulz


Haptic Intelligence Keeping in Touch with Research at World Haptics 2023

  • 13 July 2023

Director Katherine J. Kuchenbecker and 24 other current members of the MPI-Haptic Intelligence (HI) Department presented an abundance of their current research projects at the 2023 IEEE World Haptics Conference (WHC) at the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in Delft, Netherlands. Dr. Yasemin Vardar, a former HI Department postdoctoral researcher and current Assistant Professor at TU Delft, helped organize the conference as Local Arrangements Chair. WHC combines EuroHaptics, AsiaHaptics, and the IEEE Haptics Symposium (North America) every other year. The HI team presented posters for six work-in-progress (WIP) papers, posters for two IEEE Transactions on Haptics (ToH) articles, a talk for one World Haptics technical paper and three hands-on demonstrations. Dr. Kuchenbecker also served on the four-person Editorial Board that managed the review of all ToH short papers and technical papers submitted to the conference. Additionally, HI’s brand-new CaCTüS intern, Moaaz Mughrabi, supported the conference as a student volunteer by helping participants check in, get accustomed to the presentation rooms, and set up their posters and demos.

Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Iris Andrussow Giulia Ballardini Farimah Fazlollahi Ifat Gertler Yijie Gong David Gueorguiev Ravali Gourishetti Moaaz Hudhud Mughrabi Autumn Hughes Haliza MatHusin Bernard Javot Behnam Khojasteh Rachael Lorsa Zhaoyang Li Ben Richardson Baptiste Rohou--Claquin Nataliya Rokhmanova Natalia Sanchez-Tamayo Andrew Schulz Gokhan Serhat Demet Tangolar Arekh Tiwari Lijuan Wang Cara Nunez Hasti Seifi Adam Spiers Yasemin Vardar Jonathan Fiene Hojin Lee Yitian Shao


Gokhan Serhat and Yitian Shao become faculty members at prestigious European universities

  • 15 November 2022

KU Leuven and TU Dresden have hired outstanding postdoctoral researchers from the MPI-IS Haptic Intelligence Department

Gokhan Serhat Yitian Shao


Otto Hahn Medal awarded to Alexis E. Block

  • 31 March 2022

The Max Planck Society honors Block with this prestigious award for her fundamental and innovative research in the field of human-robot interaction through the creation and evaluation of intelligent hugging robots.

Alexis Block Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Linda Behringer


Fingertip sensitivity for robots

  • 24 February 2022

Striving to improve touch sensing in robotics, scientists developed a thumb-shaped sensor with a camera hidden inside and trained a deep neural network to infer its haptic contact information. When something touches the finger, the system constructs a three-dimensional force map from the visible deformations of its flexible outer shell. This research invention significantly improves a robot finger’s haptic perception, coming ever closer to the sense of touch of human skin.

Huanbo Sun Georg Martius Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Linda Behringer


HI-Department featured in MaxPlanckForschung

  • 17 January 2022

In its upcoming edition, the science magazine of the Max Planck Society features several of the research projects of the Haptic Intelligence Department.

Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Rachael Burns Alexis Block


Hyosang Lee appointed new Cyber Valley Research Group Leader

  • 09 November 2021

The former PostDoc in the Haptic Intelligence Department started his new position at the Institute for Smart Sensors at the University of Stuttgart on October 1, 2021.

Hyosang Lee Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Linda Behringer


Challenging the design of electrovibrations to generate a more realistic feel

  • 06 April 2021

A user should feel realistic haptic feedback on a touchscreen embedded with electrovibration technology – independent of the number of fingers used, the movements made, or the pressure applied to the screen. Unfortunately, not even the most advanced touchscreen devices provide a realistic user experience – all images feel like glass. In the near future, a completely rethought design of the electrical signals causing the haptic sensation could close the gap between reality and fiction. In an experiment, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems and Delft University of Technology laid the foundation for rethinking the design approach, generating more compelling tactile sensations on touchscreens, and improving the usability of mobile devices.

Yasemin Vardar Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Linda Behringer


Haptic Intelligence Department rocks EuroHaptics 2020!

  • 08 October 2020

Experiences with a hybrid conference during the COVID-19 pandemic

Director Katherine J. Kuchenbecker and fourteen other members of the MPI-IS Haptic Intelligence (HI) Department presented twelve of their current research projects at the first-ever hybrid EuroHaptics conference. This meeting took place both physically and virtually from September 6 to 9, 2020, in Leiden, Netherlands. EuroHaptics is the primary European meeting for researchers working on haptic perception and technology. Together, the HI team presented nine work-in-progress (WIP) posters and three hands-on demonstrations, winning one award and being a finalist for another.

Katherine J. Kuchenbecker Rachael Burns Farimah Fazlollahi Maria Paola Forte David Gueorguiev Ravali Gourishetti Behnam Khojasteh Hojin Lee Hyosang Lee Saekwang Nam Cara Nunez Hasti Seifi Gokhan Serhat Neha Thomas Yasemin Vardar Eric Young