A US company based in San Jose, is developing technology that enables machines and computers to ‘see’ and react to objects in three-dimensions and realtime. Canesta has just been granted a further three patents for its breakthrough ‘electronic perception technology’.
Canesta's electronic perception technology was first applied in a 'projection keyboard' that enables a smart phone, PDA, or other mobile device to project a full-size qwerty keyboard with rays of light onto an adjacent flat surface. The user types on the projected keyboard as if it were physically there, and a Canesta chip built into the device translates the 3D finger movements into keystrokes.
One of the limitations of current tiny wireless devices is the user data input method. Keyboards take up too much physical space and handwriting recognition is not as efficient. An integrated Canesta keyboard solves this problem by enabling typed data to be input into the portable electronic device with previously unheard of speed and accuracy.
The technology is basically made up of two principal components. The first are 3D electronic perception sensor chips, and the second is image processing software. In a manner similar to radar, where the range to a remote object is calculated through various methods, Canesta's chips develop 'distance maps' to points in the image of a nearby object, and hand this information to an on-chip processor running the imaging software. That software further refines the 3D representation of the image before sending it off chip for application-specific processing. The chips do this repeatedly, generating over 50 frames of 3D information per second.
Since Canesta's software starts with a three-dimensional, 'contour-map' view of the world, provided directly by the hardware, it has a fundamental advantage over classical image processing software that struggles to construct three-dimensional representations using complex mathematics, and using images from multiple cameras or points of view. This significant reduction in complexity makes it possible to embed the application-independent processing software directly into the chips themselves so they may be used in the most modestly-priced, and even pocket-sized, electronic devices.
Future applications of the electronic perception technology will be the security and automotive markets. Realtime contour maps generated will greatly simplify intruder detection and facial recognition. In the automotive arena, one of the earliest applications of electronic perception technology will be occupant sensing for advanced intelligent airbag deployment.
In medical environments, a Canesta projection keyboard could be used in place of physical keyboards that rapidly collect biological contaminants and require constant attention to maintain sterility, or replace touchscreens that require frequent maintenance. In weight- or space-constrained military and aerospace environments, input devices could be projected into any convenient location, without weight, and requiring no space when not in use. In retail, OEM, or POS applications, vandal-proof, customised keyboards are possible.
In factories, hardware keyboards or other controls - even touchscreens - are frequently problematic. The technology could enable 'touchless' screens, or even pure 'gestural input' schemes, where the operator's hand or finger motions would be sensed and interpreted as actionable input. Such technology could also be used to assist disabled persons.
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