How To Hug a Chicken Via the Internet

the_newsbeagle writes "Adrian Cheok, a professor of electrical engineering in Japan, wants to invent a "multisensory Internet" that will transmit not just information, but also experiences. To usher in this new age, he started by building a haptic system that enabled him to send a hug to a chicken via the Internet. Next came the 'huggy pajama' project, which allowed distant parents to send their kid a goodnight squeeze. Lately he's begun working on sending a taste over the internet with his 'digital lollypop' project."

I have 2 backyard chickens

[kawabago]

i can just imagine the commotion a mechanical monster lumbering into the run to give them a hug. I wouldn't have eggs for days!

Re:Tremendous implications for telemedicine

[travbrad]

I could see it working on earth, but surely the latency would make it impossible for a physician on earth to tactility interact with a patient on Mars. At best Mars is about 3 light minutes away from earth, and it can be as far as 20+ light minutes away. 100-200ms is enough to throw off online gamers, so I imagine 600,000ms would be a bit too much for a doctor to work with.

Re:Japan is weird, did you know that?

[KramberryKoncerto]

It's actually because of the researcher's Australian upbringing. Quoted from here [ieee.org]:

Growing up in Adelaide, Australia, Cheok had often played with the chickens kept by his grandfather, so he decided to focus on poultry (rule one). He built haptic jackets for the chickens himself (rule two), embedding them with vibrating elements. Tinkering taught him just how difficult it is to produce a gentle, humanlike touch. “The system develops as you build it,” Cheok says. “I see research as iterative—you’re learning from what you’re making.”

Re:Chicken Hugging

[ls671]

For the ducks and chickens I raise, I put their necks on a log and then I use an ax. One can also twist the necks while hunting for example and when no log and ax are handy. I feel the ax is better, hanging is a big no no in my book ;-)

P.S. I know one hangs them (by the feet) for the meat to age and the blood to drain.