Posted by Mike on March 6th, 2008 in Uncategorized, sensor, user interface

http://www.eurekalert.org/bysubject/technology.php

Magnetic levitation gives computer users sense of touch

Those wily computer geeks at Carnegie Mellon (who for my money, have it all over the MIT ubergeeks) have moved us all closer to a “perfect” machine interface with the development of a maglev feedback mouse. Dr. Ralph Hollis’s affordable mouse uses 6 coils of wire and a powerful PM (Permanent Magnet) to not only provide for 6 axis control but give tactile feedback to the user through one’s control hand.

Ok, let’s see where we can go with this. First, let’s talk about control. What does 6 axis mean to us? Have you ever flown a helicopter? A model helicopter? Have you ever imagined flying a heli? It takes, for a real heli, both hands, both feet, the left arm and wrist and fingers on the right hand to press buttons. The controls go something like this. The cyclic stick, the one between your legs is controlled by your right hand and tilts the chopper- right, left, nose down (forward), nose up (backward); your feet control the yaw of the chopper, nose right or left. The left arm lifts and controls the collective stick (the pitch of the rotor) and the left hand controls the throttle which is on the end of the collective.

Suffice it to say, it is a hell of a lot more complicated that flying a fixed wing a/c. Now imagine grabbing, with one hand, Dr. Hollis’s 6 axis controller, and flying in any direction, with tilt, yaw, role, pitch, slip, forward, backward, up and down, just by moving your hand; move up, down, forward, backward the more you push, the faster you go, twist left or right, tilt for banking, pitch nose up and down, stop and hover! Goodness, nothing could be simpler.

The sensor part is even more fascinating. Now imaging your controller telling you that the air is bumpy (by vibrating), or that the wind is a direct crosswind by forcing your hand sideways, just by resisting or vibrating or making it feel like your moving across a bumpy road.

This is truly a breakthrough device, and not just for interfacing with MS Flight Simulator you couch potato, but eventually for allowing us uncoordinated, would be chopper (boat, space shuttle, cruise ship, semi… you name it) drivers a much more controlled, safer ride. And much more intuitive, safer control over EVERYTHING!

Besides, remember the virtual interface in Minority Report? Well, here is the first alpha version. Don’t tell Bill Gates…