Skinput – The Human Touchscreen

So touchscreen laptops are now in the mainstream, with gesture-based control not far behind. However, some even newer technology could turn your own arm into a control surface…

Image Consultants

Microsoft have been spending a lot of time developing new HCI devices, and the native multitouch capabilities of Windows 7 is just one aspect of this research. In conjunction with Carnegie Mellon University, Redmond’s boffins have developed a system that allows the human body to function both as a screen and an input device.

The screen component is just a pico projector built into a wristband, but the input sensor is perhaps the most intriguing part of this prototype. Basically, it is an acoustic detector that can analyse the ultralow frequency sound generated when you tap on your arm, and use such data to determine exactly where on your arm you tapped…