zerotouch invisible touchscreen

presented at the 2011 conference on human factors in computing systems, 'zerotouch' by texas A&M university's
interface ecology lab is a screenless, transparent multi-touch display that uses infrared sensors to detect user input.

'zerotouch' implements 256 IR sensors, so that user input is visualizable as points on a matrix of lines.
while the novelty of the device is the ability to move one's hands 'through' the screen and interact freely in the air,
'zerotouch' can also be mounted over a traditional computer screen, effectively turning it into a multitouch surface.

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in a drawing application demo called 'intangible canvas', colour selection is controlled via an iPhone or iPad program
while the diameter of the 'paintbrush' is based on the width of the object being used to activate the touch sensor,
whether a finger, arm, or head. while usable on tabletop, 'intangible canvas' also permits users to paint directly
onto the hanging screen as though it were a picture frame, and visualize their results on a projection screen ahead.

'hand + pen in hand command' is a game that involves the switching between using one-s hand and a stylus
to interact with the device, while 'artpiles' likewise incorporates both pen and multi-touch interaction
to create a simpler way for museums and galleries to browse through their collections.

the team's next steps will involve stacking sensing layers to incorporate depth coordinates and hover detection.

from  designboom