Samsung Galaxy Glass Patent Plans To Turn Fingers Into a Keyboard

rjmarvin writes "Samsung looks to have found a way around voice commands for smart glasses by projecting an augmented reality keyboard onto users' hands. Galaxy Glass wearers' thumbs are used as input devices, tapping different areas of their fingers where various keys are virtually mapped. According to the August 2013 patent filing with the WIPO and South Korea's Intellectual Property Office, Samsung states that voice controls are too imprecise a technology, which are too heavily impacted by the noise levels of the surrounding environment."

Comments

How about glass that doesn't break within 3 months

[ackthpt]

I find typing on a flat surface doesn't work, as my fingers are curiously all of different lengths.

Prior Art?

[Gryle]

I've seen laser projection keyboards for many years. Can someone with some technical know-how tell me why this isn't prior art?

Re:Prior Art?

[ackthpt]

Sorry, but ST:TNG has informed me people will still be typing on solid surfaces, over 300 years from now.

Re:Prior Art?

[Verdatum]

Projecting specifically onto the fingers in the realm of augmented reality, thus requiring tracking the fingers' position as they move, and then gauging when each portion of the fingers is touched for the sake of alphanumeric input is a specific innovation. And it certainly extends beyond laser projected keyboards.

It is at least a kinda clever idea, unlike many patents we hear about on /.

Re:Prior Art?

[Anonymous Coward]

It is not a case of prior art for the same reason as it is not a banana. It is not a laser projection keyboard. You did not read the article.

Re:Prior Art?

[ljw1004]

I can. Here's the first step. (1) ignore the slashdot summary. (2) read the "CLAIMS" section of the patent. (3) then post about it.

In this case, what's being claimed is not a laser, is not a projection, and is arguably not even a keyboard.

The next level of odd

[e_armadillo]

Before cell phones people walking around and talking to themselves stood out as probably unstable. But now, not so much.

Will we soon see people walking around, talking to themselves, and fidgeting in the air and think nothing of it?

Different prior art: finger counting

[DrYak]

Two things mentioned by others:
- The device is NOT projecting a virtual keyboard with a laser that you can tap with your fingers.
Instead, it lets you use *YOUR* finger as a keyboard and you tap them with your thumbs.
- "Projection" is a poor choice of a word. What the device do, is that it superposes a visual aid on the glasses' HUD to help with the tapping. But you're basically tapping your thumb against your fingers (the glass just puts some labels as augmented reality to help you).

So you see that this patent has absolutely nothing to do with virtual keyboard.

Instead, it's got a much more older prior art:
This way of data input is *VERY* closely related to ancient for of finger-counting in base 12 (probably has been used historically in most culture which count in "dozens") where you count phallanges with your thumb.

According to Wikipedia: apperently this method is still used around in Asia, so no surprise that a korean company is trying to turn it into a data input method.

I forsee some issues

[RivenAleem]

"No Officer, I was trying to do ctrl-alt-delete."