奇速英语

The next time you buy a new couch, you may not ever have to leave your old one to get a feel for the texture of the new material. Cynthia Hipwell is leading a team working to better define how the finger interacts with a device with the hope of aiding in the further development of technology that goes beyond sensing and reacting to touch. The ultimate goal of furthering this human-machine interface(界面) is to give touch devices the ability to provide users with a richer touch-based experience by equipping the technology with the ability to mimic the feeling of physical objects.

Hipwell shared examples of potential uses ranging from a more immersive virtual reality platform to tactile(触觉的) display interfaces like those in a motor vehicle dashboard(仪表盘) and a virtual shopping experience that would let the user feel the texture of materials before purchasing them. “This could allow you to actually feel textures, buttons, slides and knobs on the screen,” Hipwell said. “It can be used for interactive touch screen-based displays, which would certainly be being able to bring touch into shopping so that you could feel the texture of fabrics and other products while you’re shopping online.”

Hipwell explained that the “touch” in current touch screen technology is essentially more for the screen’s benefit than the user. With the emergence and refinement of technology, that relationship between user and device can grow to be more reciprocal(互惠的). She added that the addition of touch as a sensory input would ultimately enrich virtual environments and lighten the burden of communication currently carried by audio and visuals.

As research into and development of the technology continues to progress, Hipwell said she predicts consumers will begin to see early elements used into common devices over the next few years, with some early products already in development. “I think early elements of it will definitely be within the next five years,” Hipwell said. “Then, it will just be a matter of maturing the technology and how advanced, how realistic and how widespread it becomes.”