TIMC lab (Grenoble, France) researchers have built a device that relays body movements to an array of electrodes on the tongue to help people with balance or other body-movement problems.

The “sensory substitution” allows people to sense changes in their posture (or too much pressure on a part of their body) they can’t otherwise feel, so that they can compensate for the changes.

The array design was originally built by University of Wisconsin Madison researchers as an alternative to vision. The French team made the device smaller and wireless.

Tongue displays could also help in situations where people are overloaded with information, such as flying aircraft, driving racing cars, or taking space walks.