ForcePhone Software Makes Any Smartphone Pressure Sensitive

This change in frequency is converted into commands for the software.

"You don't need a special screen or built-in sensors to do this".

Since Apple introduced 3D Touch with the iPhone, Android manufacturers have been working to produce credible alternatives on the side of the green bot. Emitted through the phone's speakers, the tone gets tiny shifts in its frequency as force is applied to the touchscreen or phone itself. The neat thing about ForcePhone is that it could virtually work on any mobile device that has a microphone and speaker, which most smartphones do.

But now a way to bring similar technology to any smartphone has been found. Researchers at the University of MI have found a way to add pressure-sensitivity functionality using ultrasonic waves. It requires special hardware to pull off, so it couldn't be enabled on all phones with a simple software update-or so we thought. However, it's not too high for the phone's microphone to detect. The pitch changes when the user presses their finger against the screen and the microphone will be able to detect changes in the buzz and translate them to commands for the software.

Yu-Chih Tung, a doctoral student in the U-M Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, said that he was inspired by the 2008 Batman movie "The Dark Knight" in which the Caped Crusader locates the Joker by turning all the smartphones in Gotham City into a sonar system as high-frequency audio signals bounce off buildings across town.

Calling ForcePhone "the next step forward from a basic touch interface", Tung said the low-priced technology could complement other gestured communication channels, as well as voice commands. He further added, "Our Sound-based solution can fill this gap, providing the functionality without making any hardware modification".

However, you'll still have to wait a bit until ForcePhone becomes available on phones everywhere.

"Everything is just software", he added. ForcePhone will be presented in Singapore at MobiSys 2016 between June 27-29 but details regarding a commercial release are missing.

Source: ForcePhone Software Makes Any Smartphone Pressure Sensitive