This paper presents an experimental setup and results on enhancing sensations of a common haptic effect -a virtual wall-induced via neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES). A single degree of freedom (DOF) elbow platform with position sensing was constructed. This platform supports the arm in the horizontal plane while elbow flexion and extension torques are generated by stimulation of triceps brachii or the biceps brachii muscles. The response of the system was experimentally characterized by determining the latency, and the relationship between stimulation pulse width, stimulation current, joint position and generated output torques. After system characterization, stimulation control methods to enhance haptic sensations were designed, implemented and pilot tested under a variety of virtual wall hit scenarios. Our results indicate that the wall hit trajectories and interaction were improved by control laws that initiated low intensity stimulation prior to the wall hit and utilized co-contraction for damping. The “priming” of the muscle with low intensity stimulation prior to the main stimulation improved the responsiveness of muscle contractions.

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This article discusses three important pieces of work that the Competition and Markets Authority has completed over the last year. The first two are market studies: The Mobile Ecosystems Market Study was launched over concerns that Apple and Google have too much control over operating systems (iOS and Android), app stores (App Store and Play Store), and web browsers (Safari and Chrome) that together form their 'ecosystems'; the Electric Vehicles Charging Market Study took actions and provided recommendations in a nascent but critically important market. The final piece of work is "State of Competition": a research project that assesses the evolution of competition in the UK over the past two decades.

This article (which is based on a Competition and Markets Authority submission to an OECD Roundtable on the Extraterritorial Reach of Competition Remedies) considers the role of extraterritorial remedies in UK merger control. The UK Courts have confirmed that the CMA is able to extend its jurisdiction in relation to remedies over conduct outside the UK in certain defined circumstances. This supports the CMA's ability to protect UK consumers in a globalized economy. Notwithstanding these powers, the CMA may take the additional risks that can arise around the implementation of extraterritorial remedies into account, where relevant, when designing remedies. In the CMA's experience, the challenges involved in designing and implementing extraterritorial remedies can best be addressed by close co-operation between different jurisdictions’ competition authorities.