BYU's Spilling creation takes handheld displays to tabletops

If you've ever tried to manipulate an Excel file (or similar) on a 320 x 240 resolution display in the palm of your hand, we totally understand your pain. Thankfully, a few dutiful individuals at BYU have concocted a snazzy way to get handheld imagery onto tabletop displays, and there's even a video to prove it. To demonstrate, the team utilized a Sony VAIO UX, which was mounted on a conductive frame that "established an electrical connection between the user's grasp and the unit's feet." Once the UX was placed on a larger display, it then beamed its images out and even allowed users to scroll around or reposition the output by simply touching the display and / or moving the UX. Granted, the actual technology behind all this "Spilling" is more complicated than we've room to mention, so just do yourself a favor and peek the (slightly monotonous) video in the read link. [Warning: Video link has been known to crash browsers, view at your own risk]

[Thanks, Brian W.]

[Peter @ Oct 18th 2007 8:59PM]

That guy in the video had NO emotion. I almost fell asleep!

[Porfuse @ Oct 18th 2007 9:31PM]

thats cool though, cant wait for things like this to be mainstream :D

[DickHardknocks @ Oct 18th 2007 9:26PM]

Just think of the implications this technology could have for my porn collection.

Oh My GOD... I'd finally be able to zoom in and out of nipples by virtually tweaking them.

[charonzen @ Oct 18th 2007 10:13PM]

Probably not what the fine, upstanding folks at BYU (of all places) had in mind!

[willyboy @ Oct 18th 2007 9:51PM]

Those Excel sheets look like a lot of fun....

[Jonathan A @ Oct 18th 2007 10:17PM]

Wasn't expecting my school to pop up on engadget tonight...

[RJRibeira @ Oct 18th 2007 11:31PM]

Yeah me neither

[remrof @ Oct 18th 2007 11:20PM]

this has no practical value whatsoever.

[Ryan Peterson @ Oct 19th 2007 12:41PM]

Exactly. I can't think of a single time when I've had to strain my eyes to try to work on something on my handheld. It would be totally pointless to have, say, public access points or a shared conference table where I could stretch my proverbial legs and actually get some work done instead of spending the whole time scrolling. No benefit whatsoever.

[ramv @ Oct 19th 2007 12:35AM]

its all fake, its a proyector from the top, your can see the reflection on the hands of the two guys and even on the PC.

[Jonathan A @ Oct 19th 2007 12:48AM]

I can't for sure dispute what you are saying, but as a BYU student myself i can tell you that if it were fake and anyone at BYU were to find out, those kids would be kicked out so fast for putting out a false story like this. BYU has a very strict honor code.

[SteveO @ Oct 19th 2007 2:06AM]

Of course its projected from above... the sensors on the bottom give location information to (I think) an external pc which updates the projected image, along with what looks like an extra neat bit of code so they don't project onto the VAIO screen.

[Richard Lai @ Oct 19th 2007 6:47AM]

Well done BYU! Really like this project. Hopefully someday this will no longer require a projector (or at least make it a rear-projection like the Microsoft Surface).

Oh, and perhaps speak to Microsoft about this and maybe they may get this technology integrated into the Surface?

[D @ Oct 19th 2007 9:28AM]

Isn't this the same technology the feds used to catch kevin mitnick? Something like catching the gamma rays off the screen to reproduce the image from a range of up to several miles. Amazing what they were able to do even back then.... imagine what other tech they arent passing down to the masses.

[Nabil @ Oct 19th 2007 3:26PM]

Can't believe my alma matter is on Engadget.....that's awsome.

Anyways, The handheld isn't beaming out any images. The projector on top of the table is, but this is still very neat, and not an easy task to accomplish.