Ultrasound makes hologram keyboard touchy-feely

[Nipuna]

[media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQWCXN7lIwU[/media]
Now thin air can be a touchscreen. Yasuaki Monnai and his team at the University of Tokyo have created a virtual screen you can feel. Called HaptoMime, it uses reflective surfaces to create a holographic display.

"It's like touching a toy keyboard," says Monnai. "You only have to reach out your free hand onto the floating image."

An infrared sensor detects when a person tries to touch it, at which point ultrasonic vibrations are focused on to the fingertips, giving the impression of physical contact. Changing the ultrasonic pressure gives a range of sensations, from the feeling of wind to a rigid surface.

The floating image is sophisticated enough to let users play a virtual piano or read a 6pt Times New Roman font easily in mid-air, says Monnai.

He believes secure password entry at ATMs could be the first of many applications. Other possibilities include browsing the web, checking for recipes with wet or dirty hands, or enabling doctors to interact more freely with interfaces during surgery. It would also eliminate the risk of shared interface in public areas spreading any infection or disease.

HaptoMime was presented at the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST) in Hawaii earlier this month.