Filed under: Accessories, Peripherals, Rumors, Odds and ends
New, Star Trek-ish Apple multitouch patent surfaces
Details of a recent Apple patent have just emerged, and they describe a potential new multitouch input method that sounds like it came right off the Starship Enterprise. The patent describes a large multitouch-enabled surface that will allow differentiation of input between all ten fingers at once, plus palms and wrists. In essence, once implemented this would enable a multitouch surface to act like one big keyboard and mouse combo – think the iPhone's keyboard (on steroids) combined with a Wacom tablet, and that's just the start of the possibilities such a device allows.
Naturally this patent application has people buzzing about the long-rumored tablet, but properly realized this device could easily be applied to any Mac as a one-stop replacement for the keyboard, mouse, and any other number of input devices. That said, this may just turn out to be one of Apple's many phantom patents – the company often patents concepts without ever bringing them to fruition. Still, the thought of one day being able to tap away on a glass surface that you can manipulate into any configuration you want? Make it so, Apple.
[via Engadget]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tony Ward said 8:18AM on 10-02-2009
The depth of sensitivity and adaptability here is astounding. I'm already entertaining sweet visions of working in Finale or Logic and moving effortlessly from typing to MIDI input, and not just via keyboard emulation; such a device could enable emulation of fretboards, wind instruments, percussion, even one-finger conducting patterns. I'm on board. My inner avocational graphic designer wishes to state for the record that he is also geeked out.
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SpinThis! said 10:39AM on 10-07-2009
Until this gets pressure sensitivity (and after touch), I don't see it gaining much ground with musicians. And people are forgetting how critical actual haptic feedback is in playing and typing.
It probably could replace the on-screen caps-lock logic keyboard though haha...
Jon (Aussie) said 8:56AM on 10-02-2009
Looks like that Mapple episode of the Simpsons where Steve was moving his application windows around with his hands :P
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Shunnabunich said 9:02AM on 10-02-2009
The iPhone's keyboard with shrunken testicles and a propensity to smack loved ones? Sounds...intriguing.
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Kris Browne said 9:09AM on 10-02-2009
This looks exactly like the input method from the Touchstream devices which used to come out of Fingerworks, who Apple tapped to work on their multitouch... The pioneers of multitouch really. What is new on the patent is integrating it into a device.
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doodad said 9:44AM on 10-02-2009
Ok, let's see...
This is a patent that emulates the Star Trek bridge command center (effectively conceived and designed over 30 years ago), using multi-touch technology (which dates back to 1982!) on a relatively large computer-based video screen (microsoft Surface, for one).
What happened to the "non-obviousness" clause with regards to patents?
While all this technology is fairly intriguing, I think that tapping away on a glass panel all day would be rather fatiguing without any tactile response. The occasional typing on my iPhone without any feedback is bad enough.
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SpinThis! said 10:42AM on 10-07-2009
Agreed 100%!
There's a reason why keyboards and mice are the dominant input devices—they're still measurably the most efficient way to get the job done. Interfaces like in Minority Report and Ironman *look* cool but that's just Hollywood, not the real world. Do user testing and those interfaces quickly fall apart if you have to use them 8 hours a day.
Aidan said 10:09AM on 10-02-2009
Well this would seem to be a fairly natural chain of evolution wouldn't it? First, Apple moving from a trackpad to include a trackpad you can tap for a left or right click, then the glass trackpad which doesn't even need a button, plus multitouch commands. You'd think the only way to take it further would be to somehow make it even larger and integrate keyboard functionality. Although, I have no idea how it could completely replace a keyboard even in the future, tactile feedback is a must.
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Dave said 10:11AM on 10-02-2009
somehow when i saw this i thought of Minority Report. cool idea tho
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ithinkergoimac said 11:05AM on 10-02-2009
The problem with this is that tapping your fingers onto a solid, non-giving surface is bad for them when done long term and can lead to problems. They found this out with those cool keyboards you can get for your PDA... the ones that shine the keyboard onto a surface and you type on the virtual keys.
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dL said 1:31PM on 10-02-2009
I think it would be interesting to see this combined with the previously rumored Apple tablet / iPad / netbook - a 10" touchscreen device that allows the use of both hands?
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inio said 3:44PM on 10-02-2009
Um, WTF? All the figures AI thinks are so amazing are pulled straight from the original FingerWorks patent: http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT6323846
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Christopher Miller said 4:26PM on 10-02-2009
This isn't new patent material: as Appleinsider points out, this is an expanded version of a patent application from 2008. In that one, there was a lot of detail about different embodiments of how the physical surface would interact with the user, including a soft skin that could variously include a roughened or bumpy area to guide the hands to home row and even miniature bumps that could rise and push up the surface skin in keyboard mode to provide tactile feedback for typing. There's a lot more there than today's and yesterday's shortish reports let on, and it is VERY interesting.
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Willie Stylez said 1:38AM on 10-05-2009
This is definitely not new tech! It is already being done by CircleTwelve with their Diamond Touch table! Its not only multitouch, its multi-user-multi-touch! It differentiates between users on the same surface, at the same time! I hate when some companies takes credit for things that have long before been done! http://www.circletwelve.com/products/diamondtouch.html
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drexciya said 4:18AM on 10-20-2009
perfect for 10/GUI !!!
http://10gui.com/
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