New ultrasonic technology developed by Japanese scientists, allows people to touch things that aren’t actually there. The device creates a virtual environment where objects that you can see on the screen come to life as waves of ultrasound in mid-air. “Sound is a pressure wave.” States Professor Takayuki Iwamoto. This means that although you can only see the object on a screen, inaudible sound waves create a focal point which your hand will perceive as a solid object. A camera conveys information to a computer which reads where your hand is, tracks its movement and ultimately tells the computer where to concentrate the output giving you the sensation of touching the surface of the virtual object.

Virtual environments and the quality of digital pictures, graphics, sound and gaming capabilities are all proof that the future is now. But this amazing technology is something that we’ve been dreaming about since “Back to the Future” came out in theaters. This has been experimented with, but always required a special glove, exoskeleton, or device in order actually be able to interact with or feel virtual objects. The ultrasonic waves will allow users to “touch” objects with their bare hands.

Gas bubbles being pushed upward by ultrasonic force.

The team is working on a final product that provides a more solid feel of the contours and textures of objects. They are even looking into combining the technology with 3-D modeling software for use in video games. The inventors are mostly interested in applying this “virtual feel” tool to gaming. Users can grab an object with two hands and more than one person can touch a virtual object at once.

Currently, the device is still in the prototype phase and only exerts a small amount of force to the focal point, but an improved version should be available to the public in the next year or two. One of the major issues that they are facing with improving the solidity of virtual objects is that if too much ultrasonic waves are produced or scattered, the result can be permanent damage to the ears of users and nearby onlookers. Ultimately though, once perfected the use for this kind of technology could perhaps be applied to the medical field as well. Imagine being able to touch your baby before it’s born. The possibilities are endless.

Art and science are not so difficult to associate with one another since there is so much technology involved in creating art. But the marriage between art and science is about more than just the creation, it’s about inspiration meeting functionality. Artists have been taking queues from science for years. Art consistently meets science in the techno-colored photographs taken of the universe as it expands. It can be found in the way that cells, micro organisms and ice crystals form the most precise yet masterfully chaotic of patterns. A certain aesthetic beauty can even be found in the MRI of a human brain.

Model of Human Heart formed from MRI Images.

Recently, science has found compatibility within the textile industry. The University of the Arts in London and a few Nobel Prize winning scientists and research fellows from Central Saint Martins College have combined forces in order to form Nobel Textiles. Each artist has been paired up with a scientist for inspiration and will put their work on display at London’s Design Festival on 14-21 September 2008.

Nobel Textiles

This is a truly unique event. Five textile designers and five scientists have been formally paired up, neither one really knowing much about the other. The result is some of the most innovative and functional textiles that have been created in a long time. A few of the artists-scientist couples include:

Rachel Wingfield is introducing “Metabolic Media.” She takes her inspiration from studies in ATP energy conversion done by John E. Walker, and more recent work done in the areas of architecture, agriculture, sensor technologies and geotextiles. Using lace and weaving techniques, she hopes to create small structures from all new composite materials that will enable and promote urban gardening. Examples will include specially designed stakes for plants to grow along and even small collapsible greenhouses which can save space, protect plants and enable gardens to grow virtually anywhere.

Rachel Wingfield's "Metabolic Media" inspired by John E. Walker

Rachel Kelly inspired by Tim Hunt’s “Now You See It – Now You Don’t” report delves into how Cyclin B appears and then disappears leaving a memory imprint on the DNA of cells. He made this discovery through the study of sea urchin eggs. Rachel is focusing on a unbounded circular theme. She will be using new specialized drawing and printing techniques on a medium of paper lanterns and transparent wallpaper.

Rachel Kelly inspired by Tim Hunt.

Philippa Brock’s work is motivated by Sir Aaron Klug’s research on viruses. Klug discovered that a three-dimensional virus model could be created based on information obtained by studying two-dimensional viruses. Philippa Brock has been experimenting with the creation of three-dimensional textile structures by folding and weaving two-dimensional pieces upon themselves.

Philippa Brock inspired by Sir Aaron Klug.

Kristin Von Glasow has created a documentary on the scientist-designer collaborations which can be viewed from the Nobel Textiles website. The festival will be held at the ICA and Saint James’ Park.