‘Haptic rendering’ broadly refers to conveying to a user information of virtual objects or data through tactile stimuli. In this paper, we present a general framework for haptic rendering and we outline its major building blocks. Among all applications of haptic rendering, the display of contact interactions with rigid and deformable virtual models through the sense of touch has matured considerably over the last decade. In the paper, we focus on the computational aspects of haptic rendering of contacting objects, and we classify algorithms and representations successfully used in its three major subproblems: collision detection, dynamics simulation, and constrained optimization. In addition, haptic rendering is an integral part of a multimodal experience, often involving both visual and auditory display; therefore, we also discuss multimodal implications in the choice of algorithms and representations.

@Article\{OGL13,
  author       = "Otaduy, Miguel A. and Garre, Carlos and Lin, Ming C.",
  title        = "Representations and Algorithms for Force Feedback Display",
  journal      = "Proceedings of the IEEE",
  year         = "2013",
  note         = "To appear...",
  url          = "http://gmrv.es/Publications/2013/OGL13"
}