Technology has certainly come a long way when it comes to helping out the disabled in various capacities, and for the hearing impaired, most of the time it would be cochlear implants that are paraded. However, cochlear implants do cost a bomb, and will require invasive surgery. What if there is an alternative method? Neuroscientist Dr. David Eagleman alongside graduate student Scott Novich have come up with the idea of sensory substation clothing.
This dynamic duo are working on a hearing device which one is able to wear on the torso itself. Known as Vibrotactile Extra-Sensory Transducer (or simply translated to “Vest” for short), it is capable of translating sound into tactile feedback. According to Eagleman, with the right kind of training, the brain is able to figure out how to “translate” Vest’s vibrations into various data, eventually allowing wearers to potentially “hear” through their skin.
Eagleman claims that it is not too different from now natural hearing works, as the brain basically interprets electrical signals and sends such “data” to your consciousness as perception. Just like cochlear implants, the whole idea of the Vest is to accomplish a similar effect without any need for surgery.
While the Vest is solely focused on restoring one’s hearing, the future would see such a system developed further so that human perception can be augmented in new ways. [Project Page]
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