New haptic codec could transform teleoperations

In development since 2014, the "Haptic Codecs for the Tactile Internet" (HCTI) is similar in nature to JPEG or MP3, globally recognised formats for sending images or audio over the internet. To reduce the amount of data to be sent, programs known as codecs encode and decode data for transmission, filtering out data that is irrelevant for human perception.

However, haptic systems require a data loop, with information passing in both directions. Previously, it was common practice to send data packets in both directions up to 4,000 times per second for the transmission of tactile information.

"This places very high demands on the communication network that transports the data packets," said Prof Eckehard Steinbach, chair of Media Technology at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), which led the consortium.

The new HCTI standard – IEEE standard 1918.1.1 – compresses haptic data to reduce the clock rate of data transfer to around 100 times per second. According to Steinbach, this is much closer to the level of human perception.