Thermal touch is the wave of the future and is frickin’ awesome

New prototype shows promising future for marketers, consumers

With the growing popularity of wearable computers, more developers are looking at ways to expand and fine tune technology in this field. There are several answers for this situation on the market currently, touching buttons or controls connected to the heads up display (HUD), much like the Oculus Rift or Google Glass; also, the use of voice commands and depth-aware gestures are popular. The problem with these gestures are they can be unnatural (especially in public), noisy, and inconvenient.

Metaio Thermal Touch makes any physical object a touchable object, making the world a touch screen. Metaio works by using a thermal camera to track the heat signature you finger leaves on objects you touch.

This heat signature can then be used to trigger actions on any digital content you interact with in conjunction with your HUD. For example, if you are flipping through a magazine and see something you like; you can use your finger to “click” on it, leading you to the product page, so you can purchase it.

Also useful in daily life

This is also useful for maps, parking garages, and various other avenues you navigate in your day-to-day life. It also has the potential to shape future models and 3D developments, as they can be augmented with a simple touch, making collaboration a breeze.

Anything you can see and touch can become interactive; while touching physical objects in public is still going to look a bit odd, at least you are interacting with the “real world.” giving you a sense of being grounded. This technology is the first of many that will help shape how HUD devices are used.

Check out the prototype

While Metaio is still a few years away from market-ready technology, the prototype is very promising as it gives users a hassle-free way to interact with their technology.