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Acoustic Sensors Make Any Surface a Touch Pad

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the now-isn't-that-keen dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Using cheap acoustic sensors the surface of any 3D object can be instantly made into a touch-sensitive interface capable of tracking two objects at once. Its creators are planning to make hospitals more hygienic — keyboards and mice will be replaced by desks wired to perform as keyboards and touchpads. A video shows it in action [.wmv]."

5 of 142 comments (clear)

  1. New PDA Feature? by blaster151 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Hospitals? Not the first application that would have come to mind, but a little extra hygiene never hurt anyone. (Cue jokes about Slashdotters) I'm more interested in the portable computing applications. Does this mean that we could sit down at Starbucks, whip out a PDA equipped with this device, and have the table surface become a full-sized keyboard/mouse arrangement? That would be sweet!

  2. vibration by TheSHAD0W · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I'd be interested in knowing what would happen when someone turned on the radio and they started playing GWAR...

  3. Corners? by SpeedBump0619 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Did anyone else notice that the video doesn't show then using the corners of the touchable region? I'm curious whether the system is reliable when one sensor is very close to the source of the vibrations.

  4. Space Invaders by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 3, Interesting

    "The whole surface of your desk could become your keyboard and mouse-pad."

    The video and descriptions show only a flat surface of a 3D object. All real objects are 3D, but few have empty flat surfaces across their entire working area.

    Will this thing work with the 3D surface of my cluttered desk? I doubt it will track the position of my fingertips on a piece of paper after I've picked it up from the desk, without sensors attached to the paper.

    When these sonar sensors can actually track objects inside a 3D volume, not just across a surface in 3D space, they'll have made a major leap in UI. Until then, I don't see how these sensors are different from the touchscreen bezels mounted on monitors for years, except they've figured out how to discard the frame, and supposedly do without calibration.

    --

    --
    make install -not war

  5. Idea by pubjames · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Couldn't you combine this with a projector to make a wall you can "paint"? Could be great fun.

    Great for kids too - finger painting on the wall without making a mess.