A research team at Osaka University has developed a new control interface for touchscreens that flexes the content that’s displayed when you move your finger over the screen. In the process, the content is “distorted” to make it possible to view (and zoom in on) a wider space on-screen, while at the same time keeping an eye on the original position you marked with your finger.
To make the touchscreen switch back to “normal”, all you need to do is to move your finger back to its original position. In other words, the researchers are trying to simulate the feel of an elastic, flexible surface here.
The makers of the interface say that because it can be “easily added to any software”, the technology can theoretically be integrated into any existing touchscreen-based device.
Here is a demo video (shot by Diginfonews in Tokyo, in English):