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Apple Integrated Sensing Display?

Jotham said:
Close, but then you mention overlapping images and the need to stitch them back together. Alot of people are also mentioning lens, etc. I think the actual implementation would be alot simplier, especially considering how small it would need to be. Simply stick a single pixel sensor (CCD) at the end of a narrow tube so only light parallel to the tube (perpendicular to the surface as you said) can reach it. Now this doesn't record an image but just the color at that pixel co-ordinate - now do this for every pixel and you have a screen-resolution copy of what is infront of the screen -- no zoom ability and focus would be only good for close range (this think isn't going to do landscape photography), but no stitching, processing, etc to worry about either). Sounds ideal for video-conferencing.
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It's not even close to this simple.

If you do this with a single-pixel sensor behind each element, you'll get an array of pixels with a large (proportionally) gap between them. It will be like imaging something though a screen - meaning all kinds of alias effects. If you interpolate to fill in the gaps, you'll end up with a pixelated image.

If you put a more robust sensor (capable of imaging more than one pixel), it will improve, but now you're stitching together images again.

All of this ignoring, of course the fact that screen resolution is pretty terrible. Especially if you want to zoom the image (necessary if you don't want to force everybody to sit a precise distance from the screen in order to fill the image.)
Jotham said:
Side view:
______________________________
______________________________<--------------------------------light

This little tube sensor would be packed in the LCD array along with the standard Red, Green and Blue sub-pixels which make a single pixel, thus creating a display that can capture as well as display.

PS. If this isn't how they do it, maybe I should get to the patent office quick - though this is kinda the obvious way to do it.
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Go for it. But I think you'll discover a lot of really hard problems. Obvious isn't always viable.
 
shamino said:
If you do this with a single-pixel sensor behind each element, you'll get an array of pixels with a large (proportionally) gap between them. It will be like imaging something though a screen - meaning all kinds of alias effects. If you interpolate to fill in the gaps, you'll end up with a pixelated image.

If you put a more robust sensor (capable of imaging more than one pixel), it will improve, but now you're stitching together images again.
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*shrugs* If you have, say, a little 320x240 screen with 320x240 sensors you only get a 320x240 image (to show at the other end at 320x240) -- they sell content at that size already (320x240 being video iPod res), I'm sure videochat would cope.

shamino said:
All of this ignoring, of course the fact that screen resolution is pretty terrible. Especially if you want to zoom the image (necessary if you don't want to force everybody to sit a precise distance from the screen in order to fill the image.)
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the built in iSights doesn't zoom and can't be moved either.

shamino said:
Go for it. But I think you'll discover a lot of really hard problems. Obvious isn't always viable.
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oh, I'm sure Apple has alot of hard details to work through, not least being how to actually manufacture the damn thing reliably... was actually a (weak) joke on the state of the patent system where you just have to be first to file and not first to invent.
 
Apple Vision from 1984

Macrumors said:


Hrmpf.com and Macsiumnews posted information about a new Apple Patent which appeared on January 12th 2006 at the US Patent and Trademark Site.

The Integrated Sensing Display is a device which combines the ability to generate an image as well as capture an image.



Uses for the device listed include Portable Communications, Computer Monitors or Televisions, Telephones, PDAs, and Medical Devices. Possible uses described include the use of the combination screen for video conferencing as well as in PDAs or cell phones which "have very limited space for displays and would benefit if additional real estate were not used for a camera."

I just saw a clip of a video that Apple made in 1984 to promote the idea of computers used for instructional technology in education. In it a man is sitting on a park bench learning to read by reading aloud text on a digital note book that he is holding in his lap. The display "hears" the words as he reads and highlights them. When he gets stuck he asks for help and the display pronounces the word for him. When he completes the lesson the display asks "Would you like to go on to the next lesson?" and he says "No. I would like to read this," and circles a column in the sports page of a newspaper, places a newspaper against the display screen, presses a button and the display captures a column from the sports page, which the man proceeds to read with the same assistance as the lesson.

I also read an interview recently with Wozniak who said that the original concept for the Macintosh (while he was still at Xerox?) was that it would be a notebook with no keyboard but an interactive display, which is what evolved into the GUI when they discovered mouse technology to avoid the problems with touch screen displays.

It sounds like the patent is designed to implement a technology to fulfill part of this vision.
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Give me business card scanning on my display and I'll buy today. There is no way to really explain how cool it would be take a person's business card, lay it face down on the edge of the display and have all the information dropped right into Address Book. Along with a regular iSight camera (with better far-object focus and a real lens for better light capture) to grab a pic of the person's face, this could be revolutionary.

-------

Touchscreen interaction with the computer is an old topic, yet one that has yet to reach its full potential. If Apple really want to replace my keyboard with a touch screen, then they should be really forward thinking with it. By this I mean copy the Nintendo DS. There is already a market for the standard convertible tablet with a full keyboard and a rotating screen. There is also a slate market where the keyboard is gone entirely and you just get a fancy touch keyboard on the screen (which takes up precious space). Option three would be to replace the keyboard area in the convertible with a second touch screen. Imagine it as the most customizable keyboard ever made (beating even the OLED keyboard that we know is coming).

Having a laptop with two screens opens up a lot of GUI possibilities: For Photoshop there are innumerable panels that could be opened up on the lower screen, freeing up the upper screen for full screen editing (like the full-screen modes in Aperture and iPhoto). Imagine a closeup of a region of the image centered on the lower screen where it is comfortable to edit with a stylus (or by hand). The full image would update in real-time on the upper screen as you fine tune the settings. The upper screen wouldn't even have to be a touchscreen at all (although it probably would be). If Apple replaced the hinge so the whole system could lay flat (they'd have to move some of the internals around to make the top and bottom roughly equal in size but not in weight).

I'm really looking forward to what Apple does with this, even if it "just" leads to a standard tablet or new Newton.
 
ViewScreen.... Instant scanning possible???

Macrumors said:


Hrmpf.com and Macsiumnews posted information about a new Apple Patent which appeared on January 12th 2006 at the US Patent and Trademark Site.

The Integrated Sensing Display is a device which combines the ability to generate an image as well as capture an image.

The patent was filed June 21, 2004.
Click to expand...

I read the patent details. If such a device woud comprise the whole screen, it would mean also instant scanning of documents or pictures... WOW. Lay your doc on the keyboard and close the lid, DONE.

CIAO
DeVizoardofOZ:p
 
Jobs, Steve Jobs

I really love all of the things that might be realised with this technology.
But I think that it will initially be just good at shooting from very close range, and that includes, handwriting on your screen, scanning documents, fingerprint taking (for all those paranoid mac users out there) and off course multiple touch screening, maybe even Minority Report interface (would really look good in aperture)
When the technology really takes off, we might see face to face videochat, eyeball tracking, advanced interface options (like Sony's eyetoy for PS2)
And as for the secret governement agencies: Stealth technology might be possible (I almost read this entire threath and I was amazed I didn't find it) like the Aston Martin Vanish (Die Another Day). Indeed, it would never be transparent from close range, since the perspective would be all messed up for the viewer (actually a way to show something is invisible in movies) BUT even the current Stealth technology only works for certain areas (like some of the sattelites that are supposed to be invisible in Scotland and Canada (concentrations of sattelite spotters))
So chameleon like vehicles might be possible, although this is really far fetched.
 
did anyone connect this patent to the multi-touch?

i mean, with all the isights coming out i doubt theyll need to integrate a true 'camera' into the screen. maybe these little cameras can be the sensors for a multi-touch screen???
 
put it in an a4 mac tablet to scan in documents and i'd be very happy student as i can write on handouts in my mactablet, of course they have to make a mactablet first but if they do please include this.
 
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