Microsoft Surface: CAD data integration with personal devices?

When I published my blog article, Touch Wall: Manipulating CAD data with just your hands, I got lots of positive emails about the possibilities of manipulating CAD models using the Perceptive Pixel Touch Wall. In a word, Autodesk customers thought this was "cool."

Years ago when Microsoft introduced the Microsoft Mouse, I thought to myself "What are they doing? They are a software company. Why are they manufacturing hardware? Why don't they stick to software?" Although they did not invent the mouse, Microsoft did foster its widespread usage by incorporating it into Windows.

I am a regular reader of Ryan Stewart's The Universal Desktop blog. Ryan recently posted about Microsoft Surface. Microsoft is at it again - making hardware. I am also a regular reader of Mary Jo Foley's All About Microsoft blog. She too asks Do You Want a Surface Computer?

Microsoft Surface is a surface computing platform that uses a tabletop as an interactive surface. Microsoft Surface provides interaction with digital content through natural gestures, touch, and physical objects. Microsoft Surface is a 30-inch display in a tabletop that makes it easy for individuals or small groups to collaborate in a way that feels like what they do in the real world.

Like the Perceptive Pixel Touch wall, Microsoft Surface can simultaneously recognize movements such as touch and gestures; however it will be able to recognize actual unique objects that have identification tags similar to bar codes.

CAD software can certainly be integrated into Microsoft Surface. For example, Project Freewheel could easily allow you to pan, zoom, or orbit based on touch. As shown in my earlier post, designs can be manipulated by touching the screen. But what devices would you like to place on a table and have interact with your designs? Would you like to load a bill of materials from a design into your phone before visiting your supplier? I believe we are just scratching the surface with this concept.

At Autodesk Labs we're interested in cutting edge technology that pioneers new interfaces. Pondering new ways for personal devices to interact with design data is alive in the lab.

Check out the videos on the Microsoft Surface site. In a word, they're "cool."