IN GOOD HANDS
HOW CUSTOM ICS ARE RESTORING TOUCH TO HUMAN-MACHINE INTERFACES.
“ To touch is to give life,” said Michelangelo. Though spoken in Renaissance Italy, the idea still resonates in the Digital Age. Across industry, traditional controls are being replaced by sleek digital interfaces, removing the tactile cues that once guided human action. Here, Ross Turnbull, Director of Business Development at applicationspecific integrated circuit( ASIC) specialist Swindon Silicon Systems, explains how haptic technology, powered by custom ICs, is restoring touch to humanmachine interfaces.
In the earliest industrial machines, operators controlled equipment using physical inputs such as levers, knobs, buttons and switches. These are the first human-machine interfaces( HMIs). Acting as a direct link between humans and machines, they allowed users to guide operations, monitor responses and make adjustments in real time.
Over time, traditional controls have been replaced by digital panels and touchscreens. These modern interfaces allow for flexible layouts and programmable controls; however, this evolution has largely removed the tactile cues that mechanical interfaces provided.
Without this feedback, users must rely solely on visual or auditory signals. In demanding industrial environments, this can impact performance and safety, increasing cognitive load, slowing reaction times and making high-precision tasks more error-prone.
The digital revolution and industrial modernisation show no signs of slowing. This presents a key challenge for designers: how can they maintain intuitive, responsive and safe human-machine interaction?
Restoring the sense of touch
Haptic technology allows digital systems to recreate physical sensations, generating tactile responses that signal when an input has been recognised or when a machine has changed state. These effects range from a sharp, button-like click to more nuanced pulses or vibrations that guide user behaviour.
8 AUTOMATION, CONTROL & ENGINEERING