Do you want to feel everything in VR games? The OWO Tactile Vest presented at CES 2022 will do just that. At CES 2022, there were a lot of unique gaming products, such as the CyberPowerPC breathable computer case and several companies that introduced new accessories that can enhance the virtual reality experience. One of them is the OWO Haptic Vest, which will allow you to feel pain from a bee sting to a bullet wound.
That sounds great. But how does this vest work, and what do you need it for?
The vest looks like a shirt and is worn directly over your skin. It allows you to experience sensations in 10 different parts of your torso, including your arms. For example, insect bites, getting hit by a bullet, feeling a shot come out of a wound, stab wounds, and blows.
It can also be used to feel the difference in weight of light and heavy objects when lifted or pushed out, to feel the recoil of a gunshot, a fall in the air, and a fast-driving motion.
This vest will be completely wireless, with an 8-hour battery life, several sizes, and customizable using OWO's mobile device app.
OWO said it plans to sell the product to consumers in late 2022. Once it goes on sale, it will be priced at $450.
How the OWO Haptic Vest Works
The vest has high conductivity electrodes built into it that deliver different sensations to your muscles through electrical impulses. If you get hit in a game, the vest will signal the entire electrode surface.
And if the sensation is more like insect bites, it will send small pulses across multiple electrodes. The OWO can change up to nine electromagnetic wave parameters, causing a variety of impressions in your muscles. These electromagnetic pulses cause your muscles to contract, causing a natural pain sensation.
When lifting or pushing heavy objects in the game, the vest will transmit an electrical impulse to your hands so that you can feel the difference from other things.
What system is the OWO tactile vest compatible with?
OWO states that this vest supports all platforms, as it connects to the system via Bluetooth. The question is compatibility with any game.
To encourage game developers to support the vest, OWO offers them a software creation kit on its website.
OWO also encourages developers to reach out via social media or email if there are any problems and ideas for new experiences that could be used successfully with the vest.
Vest settings may be slightly different depending on which headset you have, but OWO will provide more information on specific issues after real-world testing.
Customization and product benefits
The experts at OWO are well aware that not everyone has the same tolerance for pain and have created an app that allows you to customize the vest based on your needs.
With the app, you can adjust the intensity of the different sensations and control which part of the body you want or don't want to use.
OWO recommends that when taking care of the vest, you rinse it with your hands in cool water after removing the gel patches and then covering the patches with the included plastic protectors. If you take proper care of the vest, the fewer times, you will need to replace the gel patches.
Similar devices to the OWO vest have been released in the past, but we haven't seen any real advancement after the presentation stage.
OWO has developed a VR device that enhances the gaming experience, giving users the ability to customize the background using an easy-to-use app at an affordable price of $450. Hopefully, once the vest is in customers' hands, it will force other manufacturers to develop even more immersive accessories to enhance your virtual reality experience.
