IN THIS PAPER, A THEORETICAL ANALYSIS OF A NOVEL PHOTOELASTIC TACTILE TRANSDUCER IS PRESENTED. A 2-D OPTO-MECHANICAL MODEL OF THE TRANSDUCER IS USED TO CALCULATE THE LIGHT-INTENSITY DISTRIBUTION WHEN A FORCE PROFILE IS APPLIED. IN ORDER TO SOLVE THE TACTILE INVERSE PROBLEM, IT IS NECESSARY TO RECOVER THE PHASE-DELAY DISTRIBUTION FROM THE LIGHT-INTENSITY DISTRIBUTION. IN THE PAPER, AN ALGORITHM THAT RECOVERS THE PHASE-DELAY IS EXPLAINED IN DETAIL. FINALLY, A STUDY OF THE DYNAMIC RANGE OF THE SENSOR IS PRESENTED.