Posts
Minority Report PC Becomes Reality
Say goodbye to your mouse! Five years of closed development at Microsoft has now resulted in a ground breaking technology called Surface Computing. It's not simply just another device with a touch screen - it's a bridge between the real and the virtual world. Surface Computing allows you to have a superior level of interaction with data like never before. No mouse. No keyboard. No wires. Just you, your fingers and your hand gestures.The idea is nothing new, but it's never been more than a prototype until today. Surely some of you have seen the film Minority Report, but only last year a working concept was showcased as in this demonstration:
Now picture this - being able to paint with a real brush, play cards with your hands, and pay your bills just by putting your credit card on the surface of the display. This new technology is the brainchild of Stevie Bathiche and Andy Wilson. Microsoft's "Surface" uses a 30 inch table top like display with a touch screen for you to interact with it. Five infrared cameras mounted inside, detects the movement on top of the screen, electronic devices with a WIFI connection and other objects nearby. A digital camera is placed on the table top and the photos "magically" fall out into the computer. The photos are then dragged near the mobile phone, and they are instantly uploaded into it. The following video should give you a better understanding of how this works:
Microsoft's move is the first attempt to commercialize the dream and put the technology into mass production. Still, will it be affordable for the average tech geek? At this point in time with a price tag of $10,000 - I don't think so. Like all new technologies, this one has a long way to go before the prices drop down. Though, Intel's vision of the near future where devices work seamlessly together, might be nearer than we think. What's more, this technology could only become a reality for us all with the kind of capital investment Microsoft has and will put in this effort. Can't wait to see one of these babies in my house one day!
Let your thoughts pour in.
This post was written by Shankar Ganesh from Shankar Ganesh's Tech Blog. If you are interested in contributing to the thinking process and become a guest writer on The Thinking Blog, find out more information here: be my guest!
Now picture this - being able to paint with a real brush, play cards with your hands, and pay your bills just by putting your credit card on the surface of the display. This new technology is the brainchild of Stevie Bathiche and Andy Wilson. Microsoft's "Surface" uses a 30 inch table top like display with a touch screen for you to interact with it. Five infrared cameras mounted inside, detects the movement on top of the screen, electronic devices with a WIFI connection and other objects nearby. A digital camera is placed on the table top and the photos "magically" fall out into the computer. The photos are then dragged near the mobile phone, and they are instantly uploaded into it. The following video should give you a better understanding of how this works:
Microsoft's move is the first attempt to commercialize the dream and put the technology into mass production. Still, will it be affordable for the average tech geek? At this point in time with a price tag of $10,000 - I don't think so. Like all new technologies, this one has a long way to go before the prices drop down. Though, Intel's vision of the near future where devices work seamlessly together, might be nearer than we think. What's more, this technology could only become a reality for us all with the kind of capital investment Microsoft has and will put in this effort. Can't wait to see one of these babies in my house one day!
Let your thoughts pour in.
This post was written by Shankar Ganesh from Shankar Ganesh's Tech Blog. If you are interested in contributing to the thinking process and become a guest writer on The Thinking Blog, find out more information here: be my guest!
20 thoughts:
Pay by credit card simply by placing it on the table? Not quite. Unless the credit card number is accessible to the computer (i.e. you have it saved in it--at businesses they likely won't), then it won't be able to pay simply by laying it down.
Video #1 is NYU prototypes made from funding from Apple Computers for Apple (they hold a patent on multi-touch using the method NYU implimented).
Vid #2 is Microsoft's technology, essentially the same thing (at least from what they show in the video), the difference being the cameras are on the other side.
NYU/Apple's version has the projector and camera on the back side, using Frustrated Total Interference to highlight what is touching the glass, while Microsoft's version (again, from the brief showing in the video) uses cameras on the user side of the screen to detect objects. In either technology, if you placed a credit card on the screen, there would be no way to read the credit card number off the card unless it was Microsoft's version, the card was up, nothing was blocking view, and the camera was high enough resolution. But they again, in that case you wouldn't even have to place it on the table, but show it.
But then again, most banks, etc are doing autopay so you can pay bills automatically anyway.
The buzz surrounding NYU's creation was last year, but I believe there are cheaper, easier and thinner ways to do the same thing (but only time will tell).
After seeing this,
One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man. seem like microsoft surfaces overrides it...
This is so cool. If they can make those surfaces completely waterproof in a way that water or any liquid for that matter this technology would be great for kitchen tables. You could work in the computer or surf the internet or even blog while eating dinner with your family.
Hello:
Sounds okay with me. Humans must adjust or perish, just like all other speciee.
I hope it's scratch resistant.
@Justin: Thanks for the additional info!
I'm not sure about the first video but in the second it mentions that there are infrared cameras at the bottom of the screen. That means if you place your credit card face down, the camera will read the name, number.. etc engraved on it. So imagine like it is shopping online except you only fill in the security code (from the back of the card) and perhaps a password if you also have it.
Also I think what Shankar meant to say was "pay receipts by credit card" say in a restaurant instead of "paying your bills."
Hey Ilker- I am trying to get mobile. This thing won't fit in my backpack or wallet.
@Robert: We are anti-social enough... why can't dinner be family time?
@Ilker: The problem with that is most glass is opaque to IR and it reflects most of it back so the cameras will not be able to see through the glass very well. As I understand it (assuming the two use simialr same scientific principals) the item (such as a cup or fingers) touching the glass causes IR to be absorbed rather than reflected (in the case of Microsoft's table) or reflected back to the camera (in the cse of NYU/Apple's display), so there is a hole or a bright spot in the 'image' the camera sees. The difference, if I am understanding correctly, is Microsoft's table would see a glass (due to 'darkness' in the imag so it just aplies shape recognition, whereas the NYU/Apple display sees a bright spot due to the item reflecting, so NYU's display cannot work with glass cups as they draw the light, not reflect, while Microsoft's can as the drawn light is detected as 'missing'. Regardless, unless you press the credit card tightly, there would be little contact to the glass for it to read the card--it's not just an image capture through the glass.
But I'm only trying to point out the difference in principals, and, again to my understanding how the credit card reading isn't likely, not trying to argue, so please don't misunderstand me as attempting to argue; I'm not.
:-)
@Justin: How sure are you that it is glass? Could be plastic or another suitable material..
Actually, plastic is even more opaque to IR. Unless it is the red tinted like for remotes or certain acrylics, but acrylics are easy to break. Either it is reflecting off the backside of the glass - essentially a mirror, or it is travelling inside the glass and then out. The mirror is what I think MS is using, the 'fiber optic' method is essentially what Apple is using. In the image on that page, if you touched the glass where the light reflected, you would dim the light and it would change angle significantly, thus shining a bright spot a camera would see. This page explains it visually well and here is what the camera sees. While in MS' design, the above image would be like a mirror - bright/white, and the fingers touching would be dark. More technical information can be found on this Wikipedia page.
"PMMA allows infrared light of up to 2800 nm wavelength to pass. IR of longer wavelengths, up to 25,000 nm, are essentially blocked. Special formulations of colored PMMA exist to allow specific IR wavelengths to pass while blocking visible light (for remote control or heat sensor applications, for example)."
I think the Microsoft "coffetable" is more cool looking than actually useful. I would need to see more practical ways that is could make a meeting more productive. Maybe it can, but that thing is sooooo big! Imagine lugging that around on an airplane! LOL. (I wonder if it fall fall the way of Apple's "Newton" :-))The iPhone - way cool. Wish I could get one. Although it would be nice if it could hold as many songs as a "regular" iPod. The good think with all this is that it will all eventually lead to better technology for everybody. All in good time.
Comprehensible, good title!
Kinda like a giant iPhone.
A Nice technology from the Microsoft. Also a good title "Microsoft Surfacing". This technology is surely going to take over the world in a few years. Yes, It is similar to a iPhone but much more than it, in functionality. Its a machine or a device that can do millions of work and can ultimately save time,manpower, travelling cost, etc. Down the years, it may be possible that a person or businessmen, handles all its transcations and business controls with it and thus reducing the manpower and time.
male enhancement products that really works for you visit http://www.male-sexual.com
categories processes victims evolutionary ccigchamber grindrod bphs myilibrary stirring cafe iasc
servimundos melifermuly
story elaalrl tomorrow cutting fill vials guard relation securely predicable iwjs
servimundos melifermuly
[url=http://www.ile-maurice.com/forum/members/wetter-vorhersage.html][b]wetter schottland[/b][/url]
[url=http://www.ile-maurice.com/forum/members/wetter-vorhersage.html][b]anton wetter[b][/url]
Genial dispatch and this mail helped me alot in my college assignement. Gratefulness you on your information.
Approvingly your article helped me truly much in my college assignment. Hats off to you dispatch, will look forward in the direction of more cognate articles in a jiffy as its sole of my choice question to read.
What do you think? Post your thoughts..