3D display could soon bring touch to the digital world

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems and the University of Colorado Boulder have developed a soft shape display, a robot that can rapidly and precisely change its surface geometry to interact with objects and liquids, react to human touch, and display letters and numbers – all at the same time. The display demonstrates high performance applications and could appear in the future on the factory floor, in medical laboratories, or in your own home. Imagine an iPad that's more than just an iPad--with a surface that can morph and deform, allowing you to draw 3D designs, create haiku that jump out from the screen and even hold your partner's hand from an ocean away. In a new study published in Nature Communications, they've created a one-of-a-kind shape-shifting display that fits on a card table. The device is made from a 10-by-10 grid of soft robotic "muscles" that can sense outside pressure and pop up to create patterns.