Skinput Brings Touchscreens to Human Skin

Mobile touch technology may be leaving the screen in the form of Skinput, a device that displays a touchpad on human skin, designed by Microsoft researchers and Carnegie Mellon Ph.D. candidate Chris Harrison.

Early iterations consist of an armband and pico projector, which displays a touchpad on a user's hand or forearm. Biosensors then identify and register human touch through bone and soft tissue deviations.

Skinput's developers claim the device leverages the available space on all users, acting as a response to the increasingly cramped mobile device touchpad and keyboard. The ultimate goal, they say , is for a Skinput-powered bracelet or small armband to offer all the capabilities of a smartphone, with a user's hand taking the place of the screen.

Harrison previously developed a way to turn common tabletops into touch-enabled surfaces using similar technology.

Video Demo of Skinput
The team behind this innovative input system has released a video of Chris Harrison demonstrating it:

Source: Chris Harrison