Precautions against Covid-19 coronavirus are here to stay, but once you’ve sanitised your hands, put on a mask and made social distancing a habit, what more can you do?
This is where the new Air Touch Panel, produced by Hakuhodo Product’s, Inc, comes in handy. The device looks like it came straight out of a sci-fi movie, beaming a holographic display into thin air that can be operated just like any regular touchscreen. This technology eliminates the need for physical contact and can therefore help reduce the risk of contact transmission of coronavirus.
The Air Touch Panel relies on the Parity Mirror 300 invention developed by another Japanese company, Parity Innovations. The Parity Mirror uses some clever optics to project solid images in the air that are visible from any angle. The Air Touch Panel then supplements that with a motion sensor, which tracks your hand and finger movements, to determine where you touch the hologram.
This technology could be a game-changer for a number of businesses, especially in Japan, where just about everything has a touchscreen these days. The Air Touch Panels were initially being developed for entertainment purposes, but with the ongoing pandemic, the company pivoted towards making the technology available for a wider variety of uses.
The wait is not far off, either. The company has released the Air Touch Panel in early July, so keep an eye out for these holographic screens in a venue near you.
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