The researchers at the global network of labs, established in 2008, aren’t only concerned with theme park thrills. They’re on the bleeding edge of some of the most exciting interaction design happening anywhere today. Aireal, a device that lets users feel ghostly objects created purely with puffs of air, is their latest wonder.
If you’ve ever played with one of those plastic air cannons, you’ll get the general idea. Aireal is basically a miniature, computer-controlled version of the same thing. It’s a small box, made largely of 3-D printed parts, that fires tiny vortices of air at users, generating objects that feel like they’re there, even though they aren’t. At a point when motion-sensing technologies like Kinect and Leap Motion are encouraging us to wave our hands in front of our screens like lunatics, Aireal could provide the real, tangible, physical feedback that makes it all feel utterly natural.
via Wired
Image: Disney Research
