More importantly, however, high-fidelity haptics can bring an otherwise cold, flat screen to life. The technology can contribute to an emotional connection both between people communicating electronically, and between humans and machines.

Ramstein gave the example of an experimental device that enabled his wife to feel his heartbeat, even though he was in another city. He envisions a world of haptic devices that enable people to literally stay in "touch" with loved ones at all times, regardless of distance.

Tara Mullaney, a graduate student at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago, recently in Design & Emotion that she sees haptic design as a way to "bridge technology and feelings, allowing us to create deeper connections and more complex sensory interactions between objects and their users."

While Immersion's next-generation "high-fidelity haptics" technology is in the prototype stage, it's almost certainly going to be baked right in to a breathtakingly wide range of consumer products over the next three years.