Wearable computers: The next generation -7

Extra sensory perception: Sensor-laden fingertip tubes

We spend a lot of time touching keyboards, mice and screens, but John Rogers of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign wants to bring the interface directly to the finger. That's the idea behind his prototype finger tube (PDF). Micro-thin sensors on the surface detect things like acidity, and layers of gold circuitry melded into its thin silicone material process the data.
When it finds what it's looking for, the circuit transmits a small electrical signal that feels like a tingle to the wearer's skin. Rogers is working on integrating the finger-tingler into surgical gloves that, with the help of an MRI or X-ray image, could guide a surgeon to a hidden tumor or injury.

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