Facebook is working on a technique that allows people to feel smartphone messages through their skin when they are unable to access their device.

The social network's team of in-house scientists have are working on a sleeve-like prototype, which translates words into vibrations delivered by pads onto the arm, according to a paper published by the social media giant’s research team.

The sleeve could be useful in situations when a person is unable to check their smartphones like during a meeting, when in the cinema, or while attending church, the academics said.

The revelation may add further fuel to the rumours that Facebook is making a move to hardware, following the footsteps of Amazon and Google. There has been suggestion that Mark Zuckerberg may launch his own messaging device, during Facebook's annual developer conference, F8, which kicks off on May 1 in Silicon Valley.

The device, called a transcutaneous language communication (TLC) system, could also be used when running, driving or carrying shopping bags in both hands.

View photos Mark Zuckerberg takes the stage during his annual developer conference, F8, in April 2017 More

“It can be devastating to miss important call, text, or notification from a loved one,” the paper stated.

The sleeve works by transmitting a representation of the written language onto the arm, similar to Morse code, so that the recipient can understand the message without looking at their smartphone but simply feeling it through the skin.

"We use the forearm as the medium because it has a better tactile sensitivity than most body parts, less likely to disrupt daily activity compared to the hand, and more socially acceptable than the forehead or feet,” the paper stated.

This means people can receive “meaningful messages on their arms” by feeling the vibrations, instead of “inconveniently taking out and looking at their smart devices.”

The team behind the project has also developed an application to help users get to grips with the system, allowing them to learn words within minutes. Volunteers were able to remember 20 simple words a day after receiving 26 minutes of training.