NEW YORK, Nov 2: Meta has announced a collaboration with sensor manufacturer GelSight and South Korean robotics firm Wonik Robotics to commercialize advanced tactile sensors designed specifically for scientific research, rather than consumer use. The aim is to enhance AI capabilities, enabling machines to "learn about the world in richer detail" and to "better understand and model the physical world."

GelSight will assist Meta in bringing to market the Digit 360, described as a “tactile fingertip with human-level multimodal sensing capabilities.” This device is an improvement over Meta's previous Digit sensor, digitizing touch signals through an on-device AI chip and approximately 18 “sensing features” to detect changes in its environment.

In a blog post, Meta detailed the technology behind the Digit 360, stating, “We developed a touch-perception-specific optical system with a wide field of view for capturing omnidirectional deformations on the fingertip surface.” The sensor is equipped with various modalities to perceive unique profiles created by mechanical, geometrical, and chemical properties of surfaces, allowing it to detect vibrations, sense heat, and even identify odors.

The Digit 360 is expected to be available for purchase next year, and Meta is inviting researchers to submit proposals for early access to the device.

Meanwhile, Meta's partnership with Wonik Robotics will focus on a new generation of the Allegro Hand, a robotic hand equipped with tactile sensors similar to those in the Digit 360. This development builds on a platform created by Meta that integrates sensors onto a single robotic hand, with the new Allegro Hand featuring control boards to encode data from the tactile sensors onto a host computer.

The Allegro Hand is also set to launch next year.