Futuristic Android Smartwatch Uses Forearm As Interactive Display

Futuristic smartwatches could be arriving in a not too distant future. Researchers have apparently developed a prototype of an advanced timepiece that projects an interactive display on the wearer’s forearm.

Over the weekend, Fossbytes reported about an extraordinary creation by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University and ASU Tech. Called LumiWatch, the unusual and undeniably futuristic smartwatch is designed to project information onto the forearm of the user. The projection acts like an interactive display and it spreads across a 40 sq cm surface area, which is about five times the size of a standard smartwatch display.

The LumiWatch prototype runs on Android OS and it is the first fully-functional projector smartwatch. It utilizes red, green and blue laser lights to project the user interface onto the wearer’s forearm. It houses a 7450mAh battery, which its creators claim is enough to run for a day with normal usage. However, continuous projection with 2D finger tracking reduces battery life to less than an hour.

One of the researchers, Robert Xiao, has uploaded a video showcasing the LumiWatch on YouTube. The clip shows how the smartwatch projects its interactive display on the forearm and how the wearer can smoothly interact with the projection. The video also shows how the LumiWatch’s projection is bright enough to be seen outdoors. Check out the clip below.

The LumiWatch is powered by a 1.2GHz Qualcomm processor and it is specifically running Android Lollipop version 5.1. It has 768MB of RAM and 4GB flash memory. It also has Bluetooth and Wifi connectivity like standard smartwatch devices. Its key components are the 15-lumen scanned-laser projection module and the 10-element time-of-flight depth sensing array.

The LumiWatch, which measures 2-inch x 1.6-inch x 0.66-inch, has an estimated cost of around $600. Pricing is expected to change when the device is released commercially. To learn more about the futuristic smartwatch and how it works, check out Xiao’s website.