Muscle tremor as an input mechanism

Abstract

We present the use of human physiological tremor, detected by a linear accelerometer, as a novel form of input for mobile devices. This allows the device to be aware if it is being held in a human hand, and in which posture. It also has security applications, as human tremor characteristics are individual. We describe two simple demonstrations of the use of tremor. One demo uses isometric muscle tremor as a proxy for a pressure sensor, and allows a user to ‘pump up ’ an onscreen balloon. The second demo simulates a mobile phone application, using muscle tremor to enable the device to be aware if it is currently held by human hand, and to stop ringing when picked up. Additional Keywords and Phrases: muscle tremor, accelerometer, input mechanism, pocket PC