At this point, the only thing certain about virtual reality is that it’s happening (again) and more than likely to stay. Beyond that, we have no idea where the industry is headed, which leaves the field wide open for all comers with their own technologies in tow. The Teslasuit is an attempt at bringing a full-body haptic suit to the VR experience, allowing you to feel the sensations of the virtual world right on your skin.
Designed to wear over the entire body (save for the neck, head, hands, and feet), the suit will help you recreate a whole new world of physical sensations, from a loving hug to a punch to the gut to a bullet piercing through an arm. The creators claim the suit can even recreate climate events, making you feel both heat and cold by stimulating the right parts of the body with mild electrical impulses, so you might want to steer clear of any game where the hero ends up burning in a raging inferno at any point in the storyline.
The Teslasuit is made using a smart textile with the electro-tactile haptic feedback hardware embedded right into the fabric, so there are no protruding sensors that you can accidentally knock off or pull out. Each suit can take up to 52 points of haptic feedback, which are spread strategically across the entire body. A belt included with each suit serves as the primary control unit, interfacing with the headsets, PCs, and other devices involved in your VR ensemble, with an included editor allowing you to customize the kind of sensations it delivers for varying types of conditions.
A Kickstarter campaign is currently running for the Teslasuit. Pledges to reserve a full suit starts at £1,199.