2011-05-06

PaperPhone a Thin Film Smartphone and Interactive Paper Computer

Thin-film flexible 'Paperphone' created


Researchers from the Human Media Lab at Canada's Queen's University have created a fully-functioning floppy E-Ink smartphone, which they also refer to as a paper computer. Like its thicker, rigid-bodied counterparts, the Paperphone can do things like making and receiving calls, storing e-books, and playing music. Unlike them, however, it conforms to the shape of its user's pocket or purse, and can even be operated through bending actions.

Press Release: Revolutionary new paper computer shows flexible future for smartphones and tablets | Human Media Lab :: Queen's University


The smartphone prototype, called PaperPhone is best described as a flexible iPhone – it does everything a smartphone does, like store books, play music or make phone calls. But its display consists of a 9.5 cm diagonal thin film flexible E Ink display. The flexible form of the display makes it much more portable that any current mobile computer: it will shape with your pocket.


YouTube - Paper computer shows flexible future for smartphones and tablets

PaperPhone is the world's first nextgen, thin film smartphone and interactive paper computer. It is based on a 3.7" flexible electrophoretic (E Ink) display that does not consume electricity when it is not refreshed. Thinfilm sensors allow the phone to respond to bending of the screen to navigate pages in ebooks, play or pause mp3s, make phone calls, or navigate apps. A flexible wacom tablet allows users to draw on the screen with a pen as if it were a sheet of paper.



'Paper iPhone' could be next mobile revolution - Technology & science - Innovation - msnbc.com

The new bendy computer is made of two layers: the e-ink display and a flexible printed circuit with five bend sensors.

"We have software that collects the values given by the bend sensors (location and direction) and then we convert that into gestures," Girouard told InnovationNewsDaily.

These gestures are then fed into a gesture-recognition engine trained to associate certain movements with certain instructions. For example, bending the bottom corner of the display down will move one contact down when navigating through a contact list.
[...]
The PaperPhone uses the same glare-free screen technology found in the Kindle, but it feels a little more like paper.

"Paper is basically what the Kindle is trying to replace, but paper is flexible," Girouard said.

Just like you would turn pages in a paper book, you can also turn pages on the PaperPhone, by bending the top corner toward you.

Labels: , ,