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Tabletops - Horizontal Interactive Displays pp 249–275Cite as

Imprecision, Inaccuracy, and Frustration: The Tale of Touch Input

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Part of the book series: Human-Computer Interaction Series ((HCIS))

Abstract

Touch and multi-touch technologies have generated a great deal of excitement. In this chapter we focus on addressing the fundamental limitations associated with the use of touch as the primary input mechanism. We discuss seven problems facing the users of touch-based interfaces and offer a set of possible solutions from the available research so far. In particular, we address issues such as the lack of haptic feedback and hover, as well as problems with precision, occlusion, capture and physical constraints which plague this technology. We then describe two case studies from our own work, which provide complementary solutions to all of the issues discussed in this chapter. By discussing these projects in detail, we aim to expose the reader to the complexity of the issues at hand, to various design considerations, and to the intricate implementation details necessary for implementing such solutions.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    http://www.sony.com

  2. 2.

    http://www.apple.com/iphone

  3. 3.

    http://www.microsoft.com/surface

  4. 4.

    SMART Technologies: http://www.smarttech.com

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank various members of Microsoft Research and Microsoft Surface groups for valuable feedback. In particular, we thank Andrew D. Wilson, Patrick Baudisch, Bryan Beatty, Meredith Ringel Morris, and Jarrod Lombardo for their assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Microsoft Research, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA, 98052, USA

    Daniel Wigdor

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  1. Hrvoje Benko
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Correspondence to Hrvoje Benko .

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  1. Mosman St. 2/6A, Mosman, 2088, Australia

    Christian Müller-Tomfelde

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Benko, H., Wigdor, D. (2010). Imprecision, Inaccuracy, and Frustration: The Tale of Touch Input. In: Müller-Tomfelde, C. (eds) Tabletops - Horizontal Interactive Displays. Human-Computer Interaction Series. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84996-113-4_11

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84996-113-4_11

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