Leave it to the Japanese to take skin and improve it. They’re a very big consumer of science fiction media, and that seems to color their inventive drive, too. Researchers from the University of Tokyo have invented the most incredible digital display that I think I’ve ever seen. Japanese researchers have invented a flexible, thin digital display called e-skin. It’s thinner and lighter than plastic or glass, and is impervious to the effects of air and water. It seems tailor-made to be used in the medical industry.
As you can see, it looks just like real skin, except for all the science stuff. Unlike previous digital tattoo interface designs, this one isn’t implanted under the skin, it just sits on top of the skin like a bandage. Connect it to sensors and you’ve got a heart rate monitor with vital information. Or, maybe just use it as a fancy, skin-like mood ring! All you do is just plaster it over your skin and you’re all ready to be a cyborg. When you’re done, you just peel it off and throw it away.
“What would the world be like if we had displays that could adhere to our bodies and even show our emotions or level of stress or unease?” said University of Tokyo Professor Takao Someya, one of the researchers behind e-skin. “In addition to not having to carry a device with us at all times, they might enhance the way we interact with those around us or add a whole new dimension to how we communicate.”
Tags: e-skin, electronic skin, flexible displays, skin digital display, digital display like skin, japan, tokyo, university of tokyo, japanese invent e-skin, Takao Someya, wearable displays, e-skin flexible display, weird science, weird inventions