A pointing device, such as a mouse, touchpad or the pointing stick, has become an essential component of the modern computer system. As the number of portable computer users steadily increases so does the need for a compact and highly portable pointing device. The problem evident with existing pointing devices is that an increase in the portability of the device often …
Monthly Archive: June 2010
Jun
25
A new kind of Embedded Computer
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a device that allows a user to transform virtually any surface into a multitouch computer. The name of this new technology is Project LuminAR, which is basically an embedded computer in a lamp. The LuminAR bulb contains a pico projector, a camera, and a computer with …
Jun
22
USB-Related Power-Up Issues with the Symbol DS6707 Scanner
Recently, users of Project54 have reported that the USB devices connected to their in-car computers at random would not power up correctly. Typically, a system reboot would solve the problem and power up the devices, but this situation is not ideal. The police officers using the Project54 application need all USB devices to …
Jun
10
An advance in Mobile Display Technology
Below: A pico projector made by the Microvision company In the near future we could see a revolution in mobile display technology. Miniaturized projectors called pico projectors will replace current projector models and will make displaying media from mobile devices much easier. With this advance in technology, our mobile media will no longer be limited …
Jun
03
Gesture-Based Computing
These Lycra gloves are part of a new MIT prototype for a new gesture-based computing system. Graduate student Robert Wang and Associate Professor Jovan Popović developed this system that improves upon other techniques that use interfaces that adapt to human movement, such as the Nintendo Wii. Lycra gloves made of irregularly shaped patches are part …