Providing raised patterns and haptic feedback for mapping applications

A computer program product for tactile map-based navigation on a reconfigurable display surface, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructions executable by a system comprising one or more processors to cause the system to perform a method, the method comprising:

• receiving, by the system, an input destination for a user;
• generating, by the system, a navigational route to the destination based on a current location of the user;
• and
• transmitting, by the system, a control signal to the reconfigurable display surface to cause the reconfigurable display surface to render the navigational route on a map of a geographic area, wherein the rendering of the navigational route includes physically changing a topography of the reconfigurable display surface such that a first three-dimensional (3D) shape is formed on the map at a position of the current location and a second 3D shape is formed on the map at a position of the destination,
• wherein the configuration display surface comprises a plurality of movable grid cells and the physically changing a topography comprises altering a height or depth of one or more of the movable grid cells on the surface of the configurable display surface, and
• the transmission of the control signal further causes haptic feedback comprising a vibration to be provided to the user in response to a touch by the user of at least one of the first 3D shape or the second 3D shape.

A system for tactile map-based navigation on a reconfigurable display surface, the system comprising one or more processors configured to perform a method, the method comprising:

• receiving, by the system, an input destination for a user;
• generating, by the system, a navigational route to the destination based on a current location of the user;
• and
• transmitting, by the system, a control signal to the reconfigurable display surface to cause the reconfigurable display surface to render the navigational route on a map of a geographic area, wherein the rendering of the navigational route includes physically changing a topography of the reconfigurable display surface such that a first three-dimensional (3D) shape is formed on the map at a position of the current location and a second 3D shape is formed on the map at a position of the destination,
• wherein the configuration display surface comprises a plurality of movable grid cells and the physically changing a topography comprises altering a height or depth of one or more of the movable grid cells on the surface of the configurable display surface, and
• the transmission of the control signal further causes haptic feedback comprising a vibration to be provided to the user in response to a touch by the user of at least one of the first 3D shape or the second 3D shape.