Haptic Library API (HLAPI)

The HLAPI provides high-level haptic rendering and is designed to be familiar to OpenGL® API programmers. It allows significant reuse of existing OpenGL code and greatly simplifies synchronization of the haptics and graphics threads.

This page contains the following sections:

View HLAPI diagram
Key Features and Benefits
OpenHaptics API Features

Key Features and Benefits

  • Designed for programmers familiar with graphics and with no prior knowledge of haptics
  • Enables reuse of existing OpenGL code for fast integration
  • Designed to integrate third-party libraries such as physics/dynamics and collision detection engines
  • Extensible and flexible architecture will enable future support of other graphics libraries such as Microsoft® DirectX®*
  • Support for polygonal meshes and therefore tessellated NURBS and subdivision surfaces
  • Includes API, utilities, and source code examples

OpenHaptics API Features

Shapes

  • OpenGL primitives (polygons, points, and lines)
  • Custom/extension

Force Effects

  • Constant (e.g. gravity)
  • Viscosity, 3D friction
  • Spring
  • Custom/extension

Touch Model

  • Single point
  • Contact/constraint

Surface Material Properties

  • Friction
  • Stiffness and damping
  • Front/back faces

Dynamics

  • Hooks for integration with third-party physics/dynamics and collision detection engines

Deformable Objects

  • Hooks for third-party integration

Events

  • Windows
    • 2D Mouse*
  • Haptic device
    • Touch/untouch
    • Stylus switch
    • Motion
    • Calibration

 HLAPI Diagram

Product specifications are for the OpenHaptics™ toolkit v1.02 and are subject to change without notice.

* Not supported on Linux®

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