infrared

Inventor and engineer Jason Giddings hopes you have a few extra bucks to back his idea for a multitouch mouse and keyboard concept made entirely out of glass and metal.

The combo looks like the input device used on the Gibson supercomputer in "Hackers," but Hal and the Plague would probably be more psyched to use Giddings' wireless peripherals.

The glass surface of the keyboard and mouse shrug off food crumbs and most liquids, and both use Frustrated Total Internal Reflection (FTIR) technology with the help of an embedded camera to pick up infrared light reflected off the inside walls. Proprietary software then picks up the location of the tap and engages the appropriate key press.

Did I mention the software is open source? Yep, that means any developer can potentially manipulate it beyond the functionality of other multitouch peripherals like the Apple Magic Trackpad and the Optimus Maximus keyboard.

You can see visual mockups of the keyboard and mouse set at the Kickstarter donation page, but Giddings still has a long way to go before he reaches the $50,000 goal needed to build prototypes and enter preproduction.

Pledge $10 for a chance to submit your ideas on what to name this thing--the winner will receive the first production model! More concept photos after the jump.… Read more

NASA this past weekend offered up tours of its recently souped up airborne telescope, built inside a modified Boeing 747 aircraft. The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA, is the world's largest airborne observatory.

SOFIA carries a telescope with a 100-inch reflecting mirror that conducts astronomy research not possible with ground-based telescopes, NASA said. It's normally housed at NASA's Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., but CNET got to see it Friday at a press event at the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif.

Ames Research Center Director Pete Worden said SOFIA is … Read more

Now you can hang wall decor that also warms your home. The LAVA Design Infrared Glass Heating System from WarmlyYours employs heat conductive glass technology that radiates heat evenly in multiple directions without combustion or forced air circulation.

The LAVA panel looks like a rectangular canvas or tile and comes in four models, ranging in heat capacity and price from 250W at $1,299 to 1000W at $2,299. WarmlyYours reps claim "homeowners may be able to lower the ambient room thermostat temperature by 2 degrees, saving up to 12 percent on their regular heating expenses."

It works with electricity, so there is some energy cost, but no moving parts means less dust and other allergy triggers. The device emits heat in three dimensions, but amazingly remains cool to the touch and therefore safe for houses with children.

WarmlyYours is presenting the panels at the ongoing 2011 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center and positioning the panels as more than just enviro-friendly heating sources. They want to offer them up as room decor elements alongside a line of radiant electric heating solutions for any flooring surface and bathroom spas. For example, buyers can combine a LAVA panel with a LAVA bath bar (for hanging and warming towels) or a mirrored LAVA panel with light bars. … Read more

Correction, 4:05 p.m. June 23: The headline and this story have been changed to reflect that this was a newly published patent application, not a patent.

A newly published patent application indicates that Apple is apparently tinkering with the idea of a sophisticated infrared system for the iPhone--one that could help in Cupertino's quest to become BFFs with the music and movie industries.

What's really going on here is basically a way for an iPhone to receive data about its surrounding environment. The entertainment industry could come in if, for example, a band--or more likely, its record company--doesn't want a concert to be recorded illegally. They could place infrared transmitters around the stage, which, when picked up by an iPhone camera pointed at them, could trigger a disabling of all recording on the phone.… Read more

For months, we've known that Microsoft's Kinect could help make video games fun. But who knew that it projects such beautiful light?

Until San Francisco Bay Area artist Audrey Penven and some friends started taking pictures of themselves playing Kinect games, no one. But when Penven looked at the images, she realized she was on to something special.

In normal light, you can't even see the light put out by the Kinect, Microsoft's new motion control system for the Xbox 360. But with the help of a roommate's camera, which is modified to shoot infrared, … Read more

When Sony's latest e-readers were introduced recently, a lot of people wondered whether the touch-screen interface would be improved after previous attempts met with complaints of screen glare, contrast issues, and only so-so responsiveness. We expected it would be better, but were surprised by how well the touch-screen technology worked. So, what's the secret sauce?

Well, what's interesting is that Sony didn't use its own technology but actually licensed it from another company called Neonode. We're not saying that Sony never does this, but the company does take a certain pride in developing products with its own proprietary technology.

The latest Sony Readers, including the Pocket Edition PRS-350 ($180), Touch Edition PRS-650 ($230), and Daily Edition PRS-950 ($300), use a customized version of Neonode's optical touch-screen technology.

Neonode says its patented touch-screen technology, zForce, "supports high resolution pen writing in combination with market leading finger navigation including gestures, multitouch, sweeps and much more. zForce uses no overlay (like resistive and capacitive touch screens) on top of the e-ink display thus creating a 100 percent clear window free from reflexes and parallax effects and produces a true paper like experience."

The company also adds that its zForce technology is energy efficient and reduces the power consumption for so-called "low-power consumption" mobile electronics devices.

Neonode is a Swedish company that's been around for a while and even made some mobile phones, including the Neonode 2 in 2007. Back in 2008, the company filed for bankruptcy and many thought it had died but it's now become solely focused on licensing out its infrared-based touch-screen technology. … Read more

No, you are not reading The Onion. A computer program created at the University of Central Florida that directs a robotic arm to grab objects with just one touch was deemed by many participants in a pilot study to be "too easy" to use--a finding the designers had not anticipated.

"We focused so much on getting the technology right...We didn't expect this," says developer Aman Behal, an assistant professor of engineering and computer science at UCF.

The computer program directs the robotic arm into action based on voice command, touch screen, computer mouse, or … Read more

Just about everybody gets excited about the first picture from a new camera, and NASA is no exception to the rule.

In this case, the "first light" image came from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, aka WISE, which NASA sent into space last month. Just last week, the agency popped off the space telescope's "lens cap," a cover that shielded the optical gear from the travails of lift-off and from the spacecraft's own heat.

WISE does like things chilly, says NASA--really, really chilly:

The closer you can come to feeling like a real rock star in Guitar Hero or Rock Band the better, right? As long as you don't have to deal with the occasional drug overdose or huge bills from angry hotel managers, life is good. Now, two dudes on the Internets bring us slightly closer to living our fantasy.

YouTube user adderd019 posted a video of what is believed to be the world's first light beam gaming guitar. The guys took a gaming guitar, removed the strum bar, and replaced it with a single infrared beam, projected by a … Read more