Seminar: Democratizing Haptics

Abstract

Haptics, the science and technology of programmable touch experiences, is increasingly used to improve functionality in virtual reality, robotics, and wearable applications. Investments by large companies such as Meta, Apple, and Google are helping to drive growth in the field. Yet, haptic technology is complex and specialized. Thus, current progress is limited to achievements by a small group of experts and lab-based studies that do not scale to the diverse needs and preferences of users. My goal is to create a future where everyone can understand, access, and adapt touch technology for their needs. In this talk, I present my research toward this goal in the areas of haptic personalization, multisensory design, haptic technology collections, and social physical interactions with robots. Finally, I discuss the remaining steps toward a future where effective and fun virtual touch experiences are designed, tailored, and embraced by all.

Bio

Hasti Seifi is an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Copenhagen. Previously, she was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Germany. She received her Ph.D. in computer science from the University of British Columbia, her M.Sc. from Simon Fraser University, and her B.Sc. from the University of Tehran. Her research interests lie at the intersection of human-computer interaction, haptics, and social robotics. Hasti has published her work in top-tier venues such as ACM CHI, IEEE Transactions on Haptics, IEEE World Haptics Conference, and ACM Transactions on Human-Robot Interaction. Her work was recognized by an NSERC postdoctoral fellowship (2018), the EuroHaptics best Ph.D. thesis award (2017), and a Maria Klawe award for her efforts in computer science diversity and outreach (2017). Hasti serves the HCI and haptics communities in various roles such as the program co-chair of EuroH!
 aptics 2022 and an associate chair of IEEE WHC, ACM CHI, and ACM UIST conferences.