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Touch Sensitive Paper With Built-In Speakers

The Bongo King writes "There have been several stories about digital paper discussed here on the site recently, but an offering from Swedish research scientists has a new twist. They have made a prototype billboard of interactive paper with built-in flat loudspeakers apparently also made of paper. 'Touch sensors are made using a fine pattern of conductive lines in which the current flow is altered when a hand touches it. Laptop computer touchpads use the same principle. Speakers are made by printing electromagnets out of conductive ink and stretching the paper over a cavity like a speaker cone behind the billboard. The electromagnets vibrate in response to a current, creating a sound.'"

4 of 83 comments (clear)

  1. The Return of the Scroll by StCredZero · · Score: 2, Interesting

    If you have to have a battery attached to the paper, you might as well make it cylindrical, so you can roll the e-paper up. (Folding will probably not be so friendly to it.)

    The return of the scroll!

  2. Electromagnetism? Why not piezos? by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Speakers are made by printing electromagnets out of conductive ink and stretching the paper over a cavity like a speaker cone behind the billboard. The electromagnets vibrate in response to a current, creating a sound.'"

    Sounds like a lot of current and associated structure to get this to work.

    Why not just use plastic piezoelectric benders? Then the paper will talk even when being held in free air.

    (Or hasn't the patent on that expired yet?)

    --
    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
  3. Re:Enviromental by rowlingj · · Score: 2, Interesting

    No, Birds. Think of the birds! Birds sit on signs, crap on signs, nest on signs. Not any longer: Bird lands on sign. Sign detects small conductivity along top edge and blurts out annoying local species alarm call.
    But why stop at birds? everywhere you put the sign in train stations, the rear / underside could be sensitive to (say) rats and might squark some ultrasonic move-along signal.

  4. Re:Enviromental by lessthan · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Sorry, this is totally OT, but your sig drives me crazy. Morons have to die sometime, but a stupid idea can last forever.

    --
    Space Shuttle was a program that strapped humans to an explosion and tried to stab through the sky with fire and math