Firm grows multi-touch see-through 'skin' for gadgets
Are you ready for an iPad that's curved to fit around your forearm? Or an LCD TV that's as interactive as an iPhone?
Displax, an off-shoot of Portuguese internet services company Edigma, reckons it can make these devices possible. It has developed what it claimed is the first multi-touch tech that can be applied to any material …
Can track 16 fingers? It is to provide aliens-compatibility?
There are two big drawbacks with large touch screens - finger grease and fatigue (try holding your arms half-stretched out in front of you for any length of time).
The first one will make sure that no one will want this capability on their big LCD TV because even a small greasy spot on the screen is extremely irritating (as anyone who has both a TV and children can attest).
The second will limit the use on big screens to specialised applications - CAD, perhaps, military (combat information centre screens) etc but not the mass market - that's just IMHO.
For small devices though sounds like an interesting development.
This sounds like an excellent thing for a tabletop/worksurface. Especially since the capacitive screen should (I hope) be able to ignore pint glasses, condensation, beer mats etc. while still allowing you to tap on the menu under the touch surface or request information to be displayed in the middle of the table (3D holograms may take a little longer!)
Imagine an architects drawing board, tilted at an angle, but with either a large LCD, or a video projector behind it shining onto slightly frosted glass. Use it for laying out magazines and web pages, sorting photos, pulling up maps etc.
Grease spots, of course if this wasn't a capacitive screen, you could just wear white cotton gloves while working ... but there are ways around that with conductors in the gloves ...
... but for any situation where you don't need a display behind the touch, then finger grease doesn't matter ... e.g. projecting a keyboard or navigation bar beneath an image so you can type in your destination in a kiosk, or required house details in an estate agents ... or tap away at your sleeve keyboard from proper old-skool sci-fi usage (or in a warehouse/restaurant or other place where you might have bare hands (capacitive touchscreen, remember?) and want to be able to capture data/selections without pulling out a pad.
Think you guys should take a look at the Visual Planet release (http://www.visualplanet.biz/news/display.php?id=37) - certainly the vip interactive touch technology. This technology has been around for years so not really big news
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Firm grows multi-touch see-through 'skin' for gadgets
Are you ready for an iPad that's curved to fit around your forearm? Or an LCD TV that's as interactive as an iPhone? Displax, an off-shoot of Portuguese internet services company Edigma, reckons it can make these devices possible. It has developed what it claimed is the first multi-touch tech that can be applied to any material …
This topic is closed for new posts.
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:43 GMT
Scott 53
16 fingers? #
That'll be handy. I assume they'll stop at 21 (or 20 for the women-only version).
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:43 GMT
Tom 7
Can I copyright this one... #
for my boss - the cylindrical touch sensitive phone iPrick.
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:43 GMT
shaunm
lets be honest about it.... #
sweet!!! doesn't really do this justice
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:43 GMT
Arthur the cat
How many fingers do they have in Portugal? #
"Displax said a 50in sheet can track 16 fingers"
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:43 GMT
JWS
Sounds interesting #
If it's as easy as it sounds to apply and cheap enough could well move touch tech on a fair bit.
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:43 GMT
Anonymous Coward
Displax? #
Need a new name if they want me to take them seriously!
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:44 GMT
Vladimir Plouzhnikov
Mixed reaction #
Can track 16 fingers? It is to provide aliens-compatibility?
There are two big drawbacks with large touch screens - finger grease and fatigue (try holding your arms half-stretched out in front of you for any length of time).
The first one will make sure that no one will want this capability on their big LCD TV because even a small greasy spot on the screen is extremely irritating (as anyone who has both a TV and children can attest).
The second will limit the use on big screens to specialised applications - CAD, perhaps, military (combat information centre screens) etc but not the mass market - that's just IMHO.
For small devices though sounds like an interesting development.
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 19:44 GMT
Eddy Ito
No multi-touch fore-skin jokes here #
16 digits??? Oh, I get it... 0x10, that's better.
Further conversions, 'displays from 1.27 to 21.4 Linguine in the diagonal.'
Posted Tuesday 2nd February 2010 22:53 GMT
Anonymous Coward
Base 16? #
"Displax said a 50in sheet can track 16 fingers, though it expects the technology to be able to detect more digits in due course."
Odd lot those Portuguese. Myself, I only have 8 fingers and two thumbs (THE THUMB IS NOT A FINGER).
(PS: Yes, I know.)
Posted Wednesday 3rd February 2010 18:35 GMT
Chris O'Shea
Why assume the screen is vertical? #
This sounds like an excellent thing for a tabletop/worksurface. Especially since the capacitive screen should (I hope) be able to ignore pint glasses, condensation, beer mats etc. while still allowing you to tap on the menu under the touch surface or request information to be displayed in the middle of the table (3D holograms may take a little longer!)
Imagine an architects drawing board, tilted at an angle, but with either a large LCD, or a video projector behind it shining onto slightly frosted glass. Use it for laying out magazines and web pages, sorting photos, pulling up maps etc.
Grease spots, of course if this wasn't a capacitive screen, you could just wear white cotton gloves while working ... but there are ways around that with conductors in the gloves ...
... but for any situation where you don't need a display behind the touch, then finger grease doesn't matter ... e.g. projecting a keyboard or navigation bar beneath an image so you can type in your destination in a kiosk, or required house details in an estate agents ... or tap away at your sleeve keyboard from proper old-skool sci-fi usage (or in a warehouse/restaurant or other place where you might have bare hands (capacitive touchscreen, remember?) and want to be able to capture data/selections without pulling out a pad.
Posted Wednesday 3rd February 2010 18:35 GMT
mego
16 fingers #
Thinking wildly out of the box, I assume this is so that more than one person can interact on the screen...
Posted Friday 12th February 2010 16:43 GMT
Jon of Monkeys
I was going to suggest the same thing #
Unless all the previous posters are deluded by the concept of social interaction.
Posted Wednesday 3rd February 2010 18:35 GMT
touchytouchy
Already out there?! #
Think you guys should take a look at the Visual Planet release (http://www.visualplanet.biz/news/display.php?id=37) - certainly the vip interactive touch technology. This technology has been around for years so not really big news
Posted Wednesday 3rd February 2010 21:08 GMT
Graham Bartlett
16 fingers? #
For full Norfolk compatibility...
This topic is closed for new posts.