Touted as a next-generation computer keyboard design, the Smartball keyboard revolutionizes the way people think about this particular computer peripheral. More than that, it integrates the game controller, remote control and mouse into one, making it akin to the One Ring that ruled them all from the Lord of the Rings franchise.
Designed by Laura Lahti, the Smartball keyboard is a soft, malleable balloon made of e-textile smart fabric that allows it to reposition its home base depending on where the user places his or her fingers. It also uses visual information to interact with the user, creating a more intuitive experience. One of the Smartball keyboard's most interesting features is it ability to feel like a rose petal, silk or whatever else it was programmed to feel like.
What's Driving This Trend
- Integrated Computer Peripherals
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Develop computer peripherals that combine multiple functions, such as keyboard, game controller, remote control, and mouse, into one compact and versatile device.
- E-textile Smart Fabric
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Explore the use of e-textile smart fabric in designing soft and malleable computer peripherals that offer a more interactive and intuitive user experience.
- Sensory Feedback Technology
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Incorporate sensory feedback technology into computer peripherals, enabling them to simulate different textures and provide a more immersive user interface.
Who This Affects Most
- Computer Hardware Manufacturing
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Embrace the integration of various computer peripherals into a single device, streamlining the manufacturing process and offering customers a more convenient and consolidated user experience.
- Textile Industry
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Collaborate with technology companies to develop e-textile smart fabrics that can be used in the creation of flexible and interactive computer peripherals.
- Virtual Reality (VR) Industry
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Apply sensory feedback technology to VR peripherals, allowing users to not only see and hear virtual environments but also touch and feel them for a more immersive VR experience.
