This article was published on June 24, 2011

You know what’s cooler than 4-finger input? 5-finger input.


You know what’s cooler than 4-finger input? 5-finger input.

Multitouch completely changed the input game and ushered in the shift from physical keys to touchscreen devices. A Japanese R&D firm is taking “touch” a notch higher by developing a new device that can detect all five fingers for input for a complete hand recognition.

“Amenbo” is Double Research & Development Co’s latest input device, which can sense the movements and pressure of each finger, and can even detect full hand motions. It outplays 3D image sensors such as the Kinect and commercial touch panels we see on touchscreen devices since it uses a special sensor for each finger, giving it the ability to identify which finger is used, whose hand it is, and detect how much pressure is applied.

The developers say that it can be used in a range of applications which require complete hand recognition — with 3D CAD manipulation as an example, which usually requires a 3D mouse and a regular mouse using both hands. This system, however, enables users to operate with one hand.

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