The public was made aware of multi-touch screens from Steve Jobs and the iPhone but as with most Apple “innovations” the technology is not exclusive to one company. Touch interfaces started with ATM’s (the machines that dispense cash) in the 1980s but have continued to become a more reliable and common interface, encompassing larger surfaces with thinner hardware designs. As you go about your daily lives these touch screens are appearing everywhere (travel, self checkout, retail registries, digital photography, etc).
One technology company called GestureTek has been making multi-touch interactive hardware for years before Apple or Microsoft decided to invent surface computing. This video shows one of GestureTek’s multi-touch surfaces called Illuminate Display which can accommodate large group interactions using an array of cameras and touch sensors. As technology continues to become more affordable the ability to make everything interactive to the touch will flourish, replacing the standard passive Observation experiences provide by digital signage.
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