A technology, developed by Paris-based Ros Kiri Ing and Mathias Fink, can turn any rigid surface into an interactive interface for electronic systems. Sensitive Object uses one or two inexpensive accelerometers to detect finger taps on, say, a shop window or a keyboard drawn on a blackboard.

A computer chip calculates the exact origin of each tap and translates that information into mouse clicks and keystrokes. The system can work with a surface as large as four square meters, and the number of “keys” can reach 544.

The technology has already been tested in a Paris shop selling lamps where 8 tactile buttons, designed as small white circles, were pasted on the interior of the window shop. Passer-bys can, with a simple touch, activate the different lamps.

Via Trends < Technology Review.