We knew we'd be seeing 3M Touch Systems' monster capacitive display once again, but we had no idea just how massive this year's iteration would be. Taking up residence in a corner of CES Unveiled 2013, the company's latest multi-touch prototype now measures in at 84 inches, far surpassing its 46-inch predecessor, with 100-inch versions waiting in the wings. This particular touch table now supports Ultra HD resolution (4K) and was shown running a software demo currently in use at Chicago's Museum of Science. As you may be able to tell from the accompanying gallery, those floating images aren't of the crispest quality, but that's because the files aren't fully high-res. Of course, tech of this kind isn't necessarily intended for households -- not yet, anyway -- it makes for a more natural fit in commercial environments (think: airports, car dealerships or wireless retailers). At present, the table here on the showfloor is calibrated to support 40 individual touch points, but a company rep assured us it could be configured for up to 60, allowing for large groups of people to interact simultaneously. While touch tabletops of this kind are still quite rare in the wild, expect to see them crop up more commonly in the near future. Check out our gallery below and stay tuned for a video demo.
Sarah Silbert contributed to this report.
Filed under: Displays
Creating a truly multi-user, multi-touch display is a tricky prospect. How do you know who's who short of turning the screen into one giant fingerprint reader? Chris Harrison, Ivan Poupyrev and Munehiko Sato at Disney Research have suggested in a paper that fingerprinting on a capacitive touchscreen isn't far off -- it's just what we need to fingerprint that matters. Rather than look for physical ridges, the scientists' method sweeps through AC frequencies to find the exact electrical impedances of fingertips in contact with the screen. Different bodies, different clothes and even different shoes give everyone a unique signature that lets the screen identify specific people, even when they each have multiple fingers in play. The researchers propose that the technique would work well in collaborative workspaces, personalized devices and security, but let's not forget that this is Disney we're talking about: it's placing a strong emphasis on the prospects for shared screen gaming without the limitations we know today. While any practical use is still some distance away, it's easy to see future tablets and tables that are designed from the start to encourage a little socializing.
Filed under: Gaming, Tablets, Science, Alt
Disney Research develops capacitive touch that detects multiple users through their fingertips (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Parents who've already purchased Archos' 7-inch Child Pad may be feeling somewhat miffed, as its screen's been upgraded from resistive to capacitive just two months after launch. There's no such thing as free multi-touch, so you'll have to fork out another ten bucks on top of the original asking price for the new version of the ICS slate, bringing the total to a cent under $140. Other internals are identical, so customers can still expect a 1GHz ARM processor, 1GB of RAM and 4GB of expandable storage, with some exclusive chipmunk-based content to boot. Just remember to let the kids have a go once in a while.
Filed under: Tablet PCs
Archos Child Pad gets capacitive screen upgrade, minor price hike to $140 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 13:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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