“We envision this device will be used by individuals who need or desire information to be transmitted to them privately and in a way that can be seamlessly integrated into clothing or other wearables,” said Marcia O’Malley (@MarcieOMalley), Chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Rice University and an author of the study.

The wearables may benefit amputees who use prosthetic limbs, people with hearing loss, and specialists such as surgeons, pilots, and soldiers who are inundated with visual and auditory information.

Visual and auditory cues like a flashing light on a dashboard or the ping of a new text message can effectively transmit information. However, many people are overwhelmed by such cues in their daily lives — and with too many notifications conveyed the same way, information can get lost in the clutter. “Haptics,” or touch-based stimuli, which include hot or cold sensations or cues based on pressure applied to the skin, can offer an alternative.

But while devices that produce visual cues or sounds are prevalent in everyday life, devices that use haptic cues are still uncommon since they usually require bulky hardware that weighs down the wearer.

To overcome this obstacle, the Rice University researchers developed a light, comfortable wearable device from textile materials that can be worn on a user’s arm. The team tested the device by measuring forces applied to the user as a function of pressure and the shape of the wearable — a task that proved somewhat challenging since different users had different experiences with cues from the same device, said Barclay Jumet (@JUMETkinmecrazy), a PhD candidate in mechanical engineering and the lead author of the study.

“Every person has a differently shaped arm, a different perception of what “feels good” in terms of the forces applied and the timing of the forces, and different capabilities in responding to the type of haptic cues we delivered,” said Jumet. “Fortunately, our textile-based platform is easily tailorable and adjustable to a range of body types and sizes.”

After testing the performance of their haptic textile sleeves in a lab-based study involving human participants, the researchers set out to see how well these devices could help users navigate in a real-world scenario. They integrated two of the sleeves into a shirt and completed the ensemble with a textile belt where they attached auxiliary components, making the device portable. Next, an experimenter sent cues to the user wearing the device, directing them where to walk for one kilometer.

“We were impressed that the user was able to navigate the streets of Houston and subsequently trace 50-meter-long Tetris pieces on an open field with 100% accuracy in receiving and interpreting navigational haptic cues,” said Daniel Preston (@ProfDanPreston), an assistant professor of mechanical engineering and the corresponding author of the study.

In another navigation test, the participant again interpreted the cues with total accuracy, this time while riding an electric scooter over paved bricks, concrete sidewalks, and graveled paths.

“Further development will seek to improve the ability to convey even more complex cues that remain easily and naturally discerned by the user,” said Preston.

Not only is it already making a difference to kākāpō survival, but establishing sequencing methods to work with populations under threat is also likely to be the foundation for the future of endangered wildlife science in New Zealand and the rest of the world.

The state-of-the-art methods developed by Dr. Joseph Guhlin (University of Otago ) and an international team to study kākāpō has revealed important aspects of kākāpō biology. The methods, reusable code, and pipeline is a blueprint and tool for conservation genomics in other species, especially intensively managed species. This has massive implications.

Dr. Guhlin’s work over the last year have two very significant outcomes:

• an in-depth understanding of kākāpō biology that simply would not be possible without genomics
• high-quality code and reusable pipeline — allowing other researchers to rapidly integrate these methods into their own work — which has significantly advanced New Zealand’s genomic capability.

This has given researchers the tools needed to identify specific genetic characteristics that are crucial to survival.

“Using technology created by Google, we have achieved what is likely the highest quality variant dataset for any endangered species in the world. This dataset is made available, through DOC and Ngai Tahu, for future researchers working with kākāpō,” Dr Guhlin said.

Department of Conservation’s Science Advisor for kākāpō Recovery, Dr. Andrew Digby, believes the genetic tools this study provides will make an immense difference to kākāpō conservation.

“kākāpō suffer from disease and low reproductive output, so by understanding the genetic reasons for these problems, we can now help mitigate them. It gives us the ability to predict things like kākāpō chick growth and susceptibility to disease, which changes our on-the-ground management practices and will help improve survival rates.”

While the study marks the beginning of a new era of kākāpō conservation genetics, Dr Digby acknowledges what it means for the future of all threatened species.

“The Kakapo125+ project is a great example of how genetic data can assist population growth. The novel genetic and machine learning tools developed can be applied to improve the productivity and survival of other taonga under conservation management.”