World-first: Biometric screen recognises fingerprints

A new biometric touch screen that identities people by their fingerprints could provide a new way of allowing people to securely interact with computers in public places.

Fiberio, developed by Christian Holz and Patrick Baudisch of the Hasso Plattner Institute in Potsdam, Germany, is the first touch-controlled tabletop computer that can identify multiple users from their fingerprints each time they interact with it.

The researchers say that a major drawback with current displays is that they emit light but cannot sense it.

This flaw makes it impossible for the screen itself to recognise a user via their fingerprint, unless a separate sensor is set up beside the screen.

“Fiberio is a touchscreen that simultaneously displays images and scans user’s fingerprints on the very same surface,” Holz told Techworld.

In order to reveal fingerprints, the screen has to produce contrast between the ridges and valleys of the fingertip.

This requires a ‘specular’ screen surface that reflects light like a mirror, said Holz.

In order for the screen to be used as a display, it also has to allow light from a projector to produce a visible image.

This requires the screen material to be ‘diffuse’ so the light can spread, said Holz.

“Unfortunately, specular and diffuse are contradictory requirements for such a surface. Fiberio now resolves this contradiction. The key that allows Fiberio to display an image and sense fingerprints at the same time is its screen material: a fibre optic plate,” said Holz.

The fibre optic plate is comprised entirely of millions of 3mm-long optical fibres bundled together vertically.

Each fibre emits rays of visible light from an image projector placed below the glass. At the same time, infrared light from a source adjacent to the projector bounces off the fingerprints and back down to an infrared camera below.

Security is one of the main issues around deploying public computers and the researchers addressed this by implementing an additional security layer, which authenticates users every time they try and do something to verify if the respective user has the authority to perform the task they are trying to complete.

“While previous systems can only authenticate users across an entire session (such as when logging in), Fiberio authenticates on a per-input-event level,” said Holz. “As such, Fiberio authenticates every single interaction, which makes it a lot more secure than existing systems.”

The researchers envision Fiberio being used as a large, shareable, interactive tabletop device in coffee shops or lobbies, allowing people to work or browse the internet on instead of having to bring in a laptop or tablet computer. Or customers at a bank could pass secure e-documents across a table and discuss them with a clerk.

The human computer interaction researchers built the screen in one and a half years with off-the-shelf components.

Screen Media Picks Up Todd Sklar Comedy 'Awfully Nice'

Screen Media Films has acquired the U.S. rights to Todd Sklar’s comedy Awfully Nice, which had its world premiere at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival. The distributor will release the film next spring in conjunction with a VOD release, preceded by a nationwide college tour of event screenings and interactive parties via Sklar's Range Life outfit, Screen Media president Suzanne Blech announced Tuesday.

The film centers on estranged brothers, played by James Pumphrey and Alex Rennie (who also cowrote the film), who are forced to travel to Branson together to renovate and flip the lake house they've inherited from their just-deceased father.

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It was written, directed and produced by Sklar, executive produced by Jason Krigsfeld and Joseph Krigsfeld of Brothers K Productions, and also produced by Michael Forstein, Adam Paulsen, Sklar, Maury Steinman and Brock Williams. It also stars Christopher Meloni, Brett Gelman and Keely Hazell and is based on Sklar’s award-winning short film ’92 Skybox Alonso Mourning Rookie Card, which also starred Rennie and Pumphrey. All three are repped by CAA and Principato Young.

The deal was negotiated by Blech and Seth Needle, manager of acquisitions and marketing, on behalf of Screen Media with CAA on behalf of the filmmakers.

Behind the Screen of the Versatile Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13

Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 $1,010.00(Lowest Price) The Yoga is perhaps one of the most usable devices on the market. It has a great keyboard, trackpad, and touchscreen, and can be used in multiple positions.

 



Ever notice the hinge on your laptop? Probably not. But if you take a closer look at the Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13, you’ll see how that humble little part can give this Intel® inspired Ultrabook™ the flexibility to do so much and do it so well.  Getting that piece just right was one small but essential part of putting together the Yoga.

 

Lenovo engineers thought hard about what a Windows 8 Ultrabook could be when they set out to build this PC.  Sure, it had to a have a bright, responsive touchscreen, a fast Intel processor, and extensive battery life. But that’s just a start.

 

Here’s a look at how Lenovo designers and engineers married form and function to create the strikingly versatile Yoga 13.

 

“We wanted to create something that could serve tablet and laptop users equally well,” says Tom Meredith, vice president of business group marketing at Lenovo.  The challenge is to do so without sacrificing the portability of the former or the functionality of the latter.  Developing the feel and durability of one component in particular was essential to the shape of the final product: “We paid a lot of attention in developing the hinge, to make sure it’s flexible enough to accommodate the different modes, yet sturdy to support each,” says Meredith, who was closely involved with the creation of the device.

Tent Mode

The Yoga’s convertible design is right in line with the Windows 8 philosophy of adapting to both touchscreen and keyboard modes.  With an Intel® Core™ processor and Yoga’s unique design providing a great experience in both modes , users can get the most out of each app and game.  Like most convertible systems, the Yoga can play Angry Birds or read e-books in tablet mode, or send emails and plow through work in laptop mode. But the Yoga brings four total modes to the table, making it even more versatile.

 

Laptop mode is pretty straightforward, and tablet mode is the customary second option for a convertible Ultrabook.  The Yoga transforms to tablet in a unique way, though, starting by opening the screen, then continuing to rotate back until it’s flush with the device again, with the screen facing out.  Voila - tablet.

Stand Mode

The Yoga’s remaining options, Stand mode and Tent mode, both allow you to prop it up for viewing.   Meredith explains that, “stand and tent modes are great for consuming content, like watching movies, flipping through photos or listening to music.”

 

But they also provide a wealth of practical uses.  Suggests Meredith, “For example, looking up a recipe in the kitchen would be a great use of stand or tent mode.”  And that’s just the beginning.

 

The design team knew that the creativity of users would amplify the power of their design – it was part of the plan.  “We encouraged users to share the way they’re using the Yoga with us,” Meredith says -- and they certainly have.  Yoga 13 owners tell Lenovo that they’ve propped it up to read music, share videos, fix cars, and for a variety of activities that benefit from both hands and a little Ultrabook guidance.

 

Starting with a high performance Intel processor, surrounding it with a versatile concept, and then executing it with quality craftsmanship, the design team must have been aware that they had something unique.  And as Meredith knows, “no other convertible moves the way Yoga does.  It really fits the many modes of people’s lives.”

 

Follow me on Twitter @sajilpl

Kinect for Windows developer's kit slated for November, adds 'green screen' technology

Microsoft’s march toward a voice- and gesture-controlled Windows experience just picked up momentum. On Wednesday the company reiterated that a final version of its Kinect for Windows sensor would be available for retail customers next year, and teased an interim solution for people who just can’t wait: This November, Microsoft will sell a $399 kit that includes a developer’s version of the sensor along with a marker to buy the final version when it becomes available, Bob Heddle, the director of Microsoft’s Kinect for WIndows program, said in an interview.

 

Kinect for Windows is the commercial version of the Kinect sensor that Microsoft added to the Xbox 360 game console. The sensor bar, using technology developed by Israeli startup PrimeSense, allows the console to “see” and “hear” users and objects.

 

The same core technology used in the Xbox One Kinect will appear in the upcoming developer's kit. You shouldn’t expect to use Kinect for Windows to navigate Photoshop with a wave of your hand, because the technology is currently envisioned to appear only in business environments. “I would imagine that most consumers will see this in interactive retail screens, for example,” said Heddle in an interview in May.

 

Microsoft launched the Kinect for Windows program in February last year, when it first began making available a version of the Xbox 360’s Kinect sensor available for developer use. The retail price of that product is $249, but developers can purchase it from Amazon for $220. In all, Microsoft will ship three versions of Kinect for Windows: the old Xbox 360 sensor, the development version due in November that’s based on the Xbox One Kinect, and the “final version” available next year.

 

Both the older Kinect for Windows sensor and the new version employ an embedded “depth camera” to track users across a room, running skeletal tracking and other technologies to sense user movements. While the Kinect sensor was designed for playing games—for example, the "Dance Central" games use Kinect to determine if players are performing dance moves correctly—the Kinect for Windows sensor is intended for applications outside of traditional computing environments.

 

Image: MicrosoftThe new Kinect technology offers improved skeletal tracking. Microsoft has demoed Kinect for WIndows inside an 18-foot-tall animatronic demon, for example, and has used it to power a Barbie-themed “virtual closet” that allows kids to try on clothes. “Green screen” technology using Kinect has also been implemented by Personify. In this application, the user’s gestures navigate through a PowerPoint presentation—on top of which the user’s face is superimposed.

 

Microsoft plans to release the fourth major version of the Kinect for Windows SDK, version 1.8, in September. Probably the most interesting feature will be the ability to strip out the background behind a person and replace it with a background of the developer’s choice—Microsoft’s version of the Personify “green screen” option. Microsoft will also allow developers to program the Kinect Interactions—gestures that include “gripping” to pan the screen, for example—in HTML, Heddle said.

 

Microsoft will also leverage the improved Kinect sensor found within the Xbox One to improve KinectFusion, its technology that can “scan” an object in 3D by waving the Kinect sensor around like a magic wand, creating a virtual, computer-generated image of the object in 3D. The older KinectFusion technology scanned only in black and white, while the latest version will apply color textures that the sensor “sees,” Heddle said.

 

There will be limited quantities of the developer kit in November, Heddle said, and signups begin Wednesday. Microsoft hopes to engage with the developers who have the most interesting ideas. “They’ll have to describe what they’re doing with it. We want people who are really committed to development,” Heddle said.

 

 

While the Xbox 360’s Kinect sensor used technology from PrimeSense, the new version is entirely Microsoft-owned, with knowledge gained from two companies that Microsoft acquired, Canesta and 3DV Systems. “We wanted to own this technology down to the silicon,” Heddle said. “We’re invested in this area for the long term.”

 

Twitter: @sajilpl

 

 

Screen Australia Commits $13.7 Million to Film, TV Projects

Screen Australia has approved $13.71 million (AUS$15.5 million) in funding for three new feature films and five adult TV drama series, one telemovie and three children’s series, the national film agency announced Wednesday, marking a return to direct investment after a six-month hiatus after it had committed all its annual direct funding for projects in those genres by February.

The agency said the funding will trigger nearly $74.3 million worth of production

Feature films given the greenlight by the agency include writer/director/producer Robert Connolly’s kids-focused feature, Paper Planes; Ruin, a low-budget drama set in Cambodia from Amiel Courtin-Wilson and Michael Cody and emerging director Ariel Kleiman’s arthouse drama Partisan.

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Screen Australia chief executive Ruth Harley said, “It’s great to support a feature film for child audiences from such an experienced director as Robert -- exciting new distinctive films from rising Australian talents.”

Paper Planes is about a young boy from a small outback town who dreams of competing in the World Paper Plane Championships in Japan. The writers are Connolly and Steve Worland, producers are Maggie Miles and Liz Kearney. Connolly and John Maynard’s company Footprint Films will distribute the film in Australia and Arclight will handle international sales. The film will shoot in Western Australia later this year.

Ruin, a fable of violence and love in modern-day Cambodia has been written, directed and is being produced by Courtin-Wilson and Cody, who collaborated on Hail. XYZ is handling international sales and Madman Entertainment will distribute in Australia.

Partisan, a confronting tale about a vengeful man raising his children to attack the world that wronged him, is the debut feature from Ariel Kleiman and will star Oscar Isaac, who was recently seen in the Coen Brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis.

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Penned by Kleiman and Sarah Cyngler, Partisan is being produced by Anna McLeish and Sarah Shaw at Warp Films Australia. Madman Entertainment has signed on as local distributor and Protagonist Pictures is handling international sales.

TV dramas receiving direct funding include the previously announced The Gallipoli Story, a four-part mini-series produced for Foxtel, being produced by Matchbox Pictures and Sam Worthington’s FullClip Productions, about three journalists sent with Australian and British troops to Gallipoli in 1915, and how their quest for the truth helped change the war’s course. The mini-series is produced by Penny Chapman, John Schwartz and Jacquelin Perske and is written by Perske, Shaun Grant, Cate Shortland and Stuart Beattie. Worthington, Penny Win, Michael McMahon, Michael Schwarz and Luca Scalisi are executive producers on the project.

An eight-part series for Network Nine, Love Child, is a character drama set in 1969 in Kings Cross. The series is produced by Playmaker Media’s David Maher, David Taylor, Sarah Lambert and Sue Seeary, written by Tim Pye, Liz Doran and Sarah Lambert and will be directed by Shawn Seet, Shirley Barrett, Geoff Bennett and Ian Barry.

Southern Stars’ John Edwards and Imogen Banks meanwhile will produce Party Tricks, s a new six-part series for Network Ten written by Michael Lucas, about a woman’s campaign to be the next State Premier and the complications that arise when her ex-lover is announced as the new leader of the opposition.

The Seven Network meanwhile has commissioned a telemovie from Screentime based on the true story of the investigation that led to the arrest of serial killer Ivan Milat, Catching Milat, while the ABC will air eight part series, Anzac Girls and SBS cult comedy series Danger 5 will receive investment for a second season

Children’s TV drama investments include series two of the 26-part live-action adventure In Your Dreams, produced for the Seven Network by Noel Price; a mockumentary children’s comedy series about what happens at snack time in the primary school playground, Little Lunch, produced and written by Robyn Butler and Wayne Hope and directed by Hope; and the second series of live action kids drama Mako: Island of Secrets from Jonathan M Shiff for Network Ten and ZDF Germany.

With Australian broadcasters and TV drama producers clamoring for funds as local dramas continue to rate exceptionally well, the agency said it will run just two funding rounds this financial year.