Core Haptics

Apple's iOS framework for designing and playing custom vibrotactile patterns on iPhone using the Taptic Engine. Core Haptics lets developers synthesize transient 'taps' and continuous vibrations, vary intensity and sharpness over time, and synchronize haptics with audio using the Apple Haptic and Audio Pattern (AHAP) format. For accessibility, Core Haptics is the primary tool for adding non-visual tactile feedback to iOS apps beyond the default system haptics - for example, conveying shape, proximity, boundary contact, or confirmation cues to blind and low vision users. The Android equivalent is the VibrationEffect API; both are constrained by the limited bandwidth and resolution of smartphone actuators, which cannot reliably render fine texture distinctions.