The somatosensory system is responsible for perceiving and analysing inputs such as pain, temperature, and tactile information, among others, and is therefore crucial to the normal functioning of our bodies. To date, different somatosensory modalities have mostly been investigated in isolation. However, in everyday life, we deal with a continuous stream of multimodal sensory information. In this context, studying cross-modal interactions within the somatosensory system is of great scientific interest. My PhD aims to characterise the integration of somatosensory modalities by the central nervous system and the resulting unified perceptions, with a particular focus on grip and haptic exploration. The knowledge gained from this project can then be useful for designing tactile displays and virtual reality setups.