Microsoft's Skinput: Chris Harrison's Keyboard on Your Arm

With each new sci-fi movie I am amazed at the graphics and animation that thrills the many as we are lured into the director's fantasy and imagine ourselves joining in the adventure. Alas, a short time later the lights go up and we are projected back into reality

Well thanks to Chris Harrison, a third year Ph.D. Student in Carnegie Mellon's Human-Computer Interaction Institute, along with Microsoft researchers Dan Morris and Desney Tan we might just be close to entering a new dimension in100% non-equipment based technology.

Thus enters the Skinput, a name soon to be uttered by even the novice. "We strap iPods and other devices onto our arms. Why not utilize all the external surface area that is already with us?" said Harrison. And continuing, "What's great about skin, unlike tables, is that it travels with us." Appropriately named Skinput, this new technology will change how we think about our dimensions.

As cell phones and their respective keyboards continue to decrease in size the relationship between specific keys and an average person's fingertips becomes no longer efficient. Some companies have tried to counter with a stylus to remove the requirement of finger/screen interaction completely but consumers' still lack enthusiasm for the small input screens. Skinput will cure this imperfection.

While participating in an internship opportunity with Microsoft, Harrison (known for his forward thinking creativity) had an ingenious idea, why not extend the strike zone so-to-speak. Rather than shrinking images to fit within the confines of the modern smart phone (iPhone) perimeter why not expand the display area by using surrounding surface area. Voila! Skinput was born. The length of your arm is now the virtual keyboard awaiting your touch. Just as you would use a touch screen you now have the length and leisure of your complete arm to type or dial away.

The Skinput system has been in testing for the last several months and will take another few years before completely ready for consumers. According to creator Chris Morrison, Skinput accuracy is currently very good but not quite up to perfection for the technological savvy. The Skinput system takes a couple of minutes to learn the 'sounds' of a person's arm but once learned it can be used however the user wants.

I can just about bet that after the Skinput demonstration at the CHI 2010 conference in Atlanta, other creative minds instantly began thinking of other applications to create that would use the Skinput technology.

Some might say that if no device is eliminated, or yet another device added, like the skinput projector, then what advantage is the new skinput? The answer is yet to be defined. Futuristically this new dimension in technology, Skinput, is expected to open a whole new frontier with no material boundaries. Doesn't the thought of it just send shivers down your spine?

So how does the Skinput work? The skinput armband contains a pico projector. The user straps it on and a keyboard is displayed on their arm. The user taps the desired keys and the corresponding body part provides the sensors directions to recognize the desired command. With Skinput, the human body becomes the input device. An acoustic sensor in skinput can detect where the person is tapping because of the different body type densities. Bluetooth then translates and sends the desired signals to the skinput device for action.

Skinput technology opens the market for anything to be an input device. It is obvious that we must begin finding usable surface area from places in our environment.

First body space, next actual air space. Keep an eye on Chris Harrison, where he leads we should follow.

Source

Chris Morrison - Skinput Creator