The iPad As a Shape-Recognition System 100
An anonymous reader writes with an interesting use for the iPad: "The guys over at the Volumique blog have a different idea as to how to tackle apps for Apple's devices. They aren't just thinking about a digital activity on such devices, they are experimenting with using physical objects through Apple's multi-touch screens. Imagine being able to buy the playing pieces for a board game, but then loading up an app on your iPad for the actual board. The pieces would be recognized when placed on the iPad's screen, it would even recognize which direction they were facing. This may sound like an impossible feat unless you use a much more expensive device like Microsoft Surface, but Bertrand Duplat and Etienne Mineur at Volumique already have it working."
Surface (Score:3, Informative)
Microsoft Surface is also much larger (the size of a coffee table or so) where it might make sense to put objects on it. Board gaming on a Surface would be quite an experience, but with an iPad you'd be covering most of the display unless you stuck to just a few playing pieces. You also have to fit the entire board on the screen, as it won't be able to scroll with pieces on it. The example given in the article, Monopoly, just wouldn't wouldn't work at all.
NOT FAKE ! (Score:1, Informative)
it's not fake. It can only work for one object at a time though. It's pretty simpe... there are two contact points on each object that simulate the touch of a finger. the distance between the points indicates the type of object. and the angle between the points indicates rotation of course ! But they can't scale this up... from what I can tell, one object at a time is a hard limit. But this is a software limitation probably, not a hardware limitation.
Re:Weight or shape-based? (Score:4, Informative)
As for the chess pieces etc I imagine they could organize the conductive material in the chess piece to indicate direction, but for stuff like the coloured paper, no f'n way. Paper will certainly not trigger any sort of touch response, and there is absolutely no way to sense color.
I personally have a feeling the whole source material is a hoax.
Already in the works (Score:3, Informative)
You mean an RPG game like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n94E3IeBquY [youtube.com]
And a cheap DIY Surface like this: http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/maximum_pc_builds_a_multitouch_surface_computer?page=0,0 [maximumpc.com]
-Rick
Re:Possible hoax (Score:4, Informative)
Because maybe you're trying to watch a Flash video of this iPad on an iPad?
Re:Fake. (Score:5, Informative)
And just in case they do delete it:
http://omploader.org/vNWRveg/ipawn.gif [omploader.org]
Re:Possible hoax (Score:3, Informative)
They got Flash to work on the iPad?
The second one is clearly fake (Score:1, Informative)
On the second demo, notice that the thumb on the bottom part of the card is ALWAYS right over the home button? And notice that they don't show the app quitting? I suspect they're just tapping the home button, which the app is capturing and showing a static image in a fixed order. FAKE.