A British firm has given a new lease of life to paper by combining traditional print with conventional electronics to create a touch-based interactive poster.
Novalia, which is raising funds to put the technology into production, has created a prototype that lets users play seven different drums on the poster by touching them. Users can also play them wirelessly through their iOS device by connecting an iPad or iPhone. The technology could drag the traditional printed word into a new dawn with outdoor advertising, publishing and packaging just some of the possible applications to benefit. “The future potential for this technology is enormous and unlimited,” said Dr Kate Stone, who launched the company. “Imagine being able to touch a shop display and the product information is instantly downloaded to your smartphone; a magazine you simply touch to personalise the cover; a printed advert with a built-in social media sharing button. Or what about a medicine-bottle label that reminds users to take their pills? It’s an unbelievably exciting field to be involved in.” The interactive poster is created by printing the graphics on the face of the paper substrate. On the reverse, touch sensors are printed on using electrically conductive ink. To this a small, simple circuit board is electrically attached. The circuit board monitors the capacitance of each of the drum sensors and recognises when the graphics are touched, in much the same way as the touchscreen on a smart device recognises touch.Dr Stone studied a PHD at Cambridge University and nearly bankrupted herself by buying an industrial printing press to understand the process and find out if combining electronics and paper in the way she wanted would actually work. Since then she has travelled the world researching modern methods of making the age-old medium of paper more relevant to today’s technology-driven consumer society and has been in demand for talks to leading companies and conferences along the way. Through her work with Cambridge University and ink suppliers, Dr Stone is also developing a unique graphene-based ink. Graphene is a novel substance composed of a single layer of carbon atoms, extracted from graphite, with flexible and conductive properties. The technology is on the verge of going into production, with Novalia setting up a crowdfunding bid through Kickstarter. Do donate or read more about the company and its technology, click here. Source: InAVate
