New technology lets smart devices track your finger in mid-air

Scientists, including those of Indian-origin, have developed a new sonar technology that allows you to interact with mobile devices by writing or gesturing on a tabletop, a sheet of paper or even in mid-air.

An app, FingerIO tracks fine-grained finger movements by turning a smartphone or smartwatch into an active sonar system using the device’s own microphones and speakers. Since sound waves travel through fabric and do not require a line of sight, users can even interact with a phone inside a front pocket or a smartwatch hidden under a sweater sleeve.

Researchers at University of Washington (UW) showed that FingerIO could accurately track two-dimensional finger movements to within 8mm, which is sufficiently accurate to interact with today’s mobile devices.

“You can’t type very easily onto a smartwatch display, so we wanted to transform a desk or any area around a device into an input surface,” said lead author Rajalakshmi Nandakumar, doctoral student at UW. “I don’t need to instrument my fingers with any other sensors – I just use my finger to write something on a desk or any other surface and the device can track it with high resolution,” Nandakumar said.

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