Science: At last, the computer mouse that needs no hands
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The computer mouse has been around for 20 years. That's quite long enough, says a Californian firm which is now planning its replacement. Prepare yourselves for the hands-free mouse. It may be coming soon to a computer near you. Charles Arthur, Science Editor, investigates.
I thought Anthony Lloyd was wearing a black eyepatch when I met him. Except it was in the middle of his forehead, and both his eyes seemed fine. Then I noticed another eyepatch, this one on his wrist, attached by some wires to a small pack on his waist. Plugged into a nearby PC was what looked like a small radio.
The two "eyepatches", he explained, are the components of the hands-free mouse, whose signals are picked up by the radio. And to prove it he started playing "Quake", a computer game in which you use your mouse to manoeuvre up and down and around corridors, and click its buttons to fire a gun. Except that Mr Lloyd was just tilting his head slightly, and pulling an imaginary trigger. It looked even more realistic when he projected the screen image on to a wall.
"When I demonstrated this at a computer show recently, I ... had hundreds of kids who wanted to try it. They wouldn't stop asking. I left with a list a yard long of children who wanted one," said Mr Lloyd head of sales for BioControl Systems, of Palo Alto, California, which is marketing the device.
"The mouse has been around 20 years and it hasn't changed. But when you change the interface, you change the medium. That's happening already: people are increasingly talking about wearable computers. This is a 21st- century technology," he said.
The hands-free mouse works by detecting the tiny electrical currents on the surface of the skin created by the action of muscles by the nerves - rather like the heart or brain monitors used in hospitals.
Using software, those currents can be converted into instructions to move the mouse up and down and from side to side. The other "patch" on the arm can activate a mouse "click" if the forearm is tensed.
It should be on sale in the US for about $250 (pounds 150) next spring, and available in Britain from the summer.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments