Interactive Tabletop Shows Promise in Education
Classroom displays have changed a lot since the days of chalk and slate.
Schools can now choose from TVs, projectors and interactive whiteboards, depending on their needs. And although each of those display technologies offers unique benefits — such as brighter, high-resolution screens or the ability to record presentations — a new innovation from Sony’s Future Lab R&D program could give students and teachers even greater freedom to manipulate digital content.
Unveiled at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival this past March, the experimental projector uses depth sensors and motion-tracking technology to turn any surface into an interactive display, The Verge reports.
Sony representatives at SXSW showed off the prototype’s capabilities by placing a hardback copy of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland on an ordinary table. The projector recognized illustrations and text, which allowed the demonstrator to animate characters and passages with the touch of a finger.
Sony’s prototype might not have practical applications at the moment, but an article in International Business Times explains what the projector might one day mean for education:
It is not hard to imagine how technology such as this could change school classrooms into an inspiring, interactive table haven, teaching children about classic literature, geographical landmarks and ancient history in a hands-on, engaging manner.
Watch this video from The Next Web to catch a glimpse of Sony’s demonstration of the technology at SXSW:
SOURCE: The Next Web
