Microsoft, Mitsubishi, and the University of Toronto are working on a solution, and it's called LucidTouch. Ars spoke with Daniel Wigdor, one of the researchers at the Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs (MERL), to get the inside scoop on what LucidTouch is, what problems the team has run into along the way, and what's coming in the future.
LucidTouch is currently the name for a prototype device that allows users to interact with an 800x480 pixel screen without having to touch the front surface. Instead, users can choose to manipulate objects by touching a sensor pad on the back of the device; this allows users to resize images and text, as well as navigate around any graphical user interface without their hands getting in the way of the display. To achieve this, LucidTouch displays a transparent version of your hands on its screen so that you know where your fingers are but can also see through them. If you want, you can touch the front surface for some tasks through a resistive touch screen and also use the back surface for others.
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