[Am-info] Microsoft wins patent to exploit network potential of skin

[Erick Andrews]

I haven't read the patent, but I can say they've been UNDER
my skin for a long while.  On the surface (no pun intended) it
seems reminiscent of MS being accused to own the alphabet.

In such a scenario I think I should be able to charge a "transmission
fee".

Any comments on this? -->

http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/news/0,12597,1254911,00.html

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Fact or fiction - carrying a keyboard on your arm

David Adam, science correspondent Tuesday July 6, 2004 The
Guardian

Call it the ultimate wireless network.  From the ends of your
fingers to the tips of your toes, the human body is a moving,
throbbing collection of tubes and tunnels, filled with salty water
and all capable of transmitting the lifeblood of the 21st century:
information.

In what may seem a move too far to some, the computer software
giant Microsoft has been granted exclusive rights to this ability
of the body to act as a computer network.  Two weeks ago the
company was awarded US Patent 6,754,472, which bears the title:
Method and apparatus for transmitting power and data using the
human body.

Microsoft envisages using the human skin's conductive properties
to link a host of electronic devices around the body, from pagers
and personal data assistants (PDA) to mobile phones and
microphones, although the company is uncharacteristically coy
about exactly what it may have in mind.

In a statement it said:  "Microsoft hasn't recently held
discussions about this patent, and it does not currently map to
any particular Microsoft product that is either shipping or in
development.  That said, one of the objectives of the intellectual
property licensing policy Microsoft adopted in December 2003 is to
provide other parties with access to the fruits of Microsoft's
nearly $7bn annual investment in R&D - especially to innovations
that do not end up manifesting as Microsoft products."

According to the patent, the technology could usher in a new class
of portable and wearable electronic gizmos such as earrings that
deliver sounds sent from a phone worn on the belt, and special
spectacles with screens that flash up accompanying images and
video footage.

Linking electronic devices raises other possibilities.  Gadget
lovers could use a single keypad to operate their phone, PDA and
MP3 music player, or combine the output of their watch, pager and
radio into a single speaker.  At its most far-reaching, the
technology could combine with chips and sensors fitted around our
bodies and clothes to sense and react to the changing
circumstances of our everyday lives.

Chris Baber, an expert in wearable computers at the University of
Birmingham, said:  "You could tailor your technology in the same
way that you tailor your clothes.  Because you put different
clothes on for different occasions, if you didn't want to be
contacted by work people while you're socialising then your casual
jacket could tell your phone not to accept business calls.
Equally you might not want your phone to give you text alerts
about football while you're in an important business meeting."

The technology also raises the prospect of an array of sensors
fitted around the body to monitor health.  Earrings could read
pulse rate and a bracelet monitor the composition of your sweat.
Together with other medical information this would be sent via the
skin to a central chip and, when you shook hands with your doctor,
be instantly transmitted through your hand to theirs, and then
onto their computer to update your records before you even sat
down.  According to the patent, a num ber of different devices
could be powered from a single power source strapped to the skin.
And, already dominant in the world of computers, Microsoft has now
set its sights on the animal kingdom.  "It will be apparent that
the body may be that of a wide variety of living animals," the
patent says.

Different technologies can already link various electronic devices
to form a so-called personal area network (PAN), but Microsoft
says sending signals through the skin avoids problems that plague
existing techniques.  Unlike radio signal networks such as
Bluetooth, common on laptops, there should be no interference from
other sources, and it should be more secure because nobody can
eavesdrop.

The patent says the body could generate the power needed to run
its various attached devices in a similar way to self-winding
watches.

Most futuristically, it proposes that an area of skin could even
act as a keypad:  "The physical resistance offered by the human
body can be used in implement ing a keypad or other input device.
By varying the distance on the skin between the contacts
corresponding to different keys, different signal values can be
generated representing different inputs."  In other words, you
could type by tapping on your forearm.

Many experts in the field were surprised that Microsoft has been
granted the patent, as IBM has already demonstrated that data can
be transmitted through the human body, as well as between
individuals.  In 1996, the company unveiled a prototype PAN at the
Comdex trade show that allowed two people to exchange busi ness
card details to each other electronically with a handshake.  A
spokesman for IBM confirmed the company had filed several patents
in the area, but said its research has since moved on.

Some civil liberties groups have expressed concern over
Microsoft's move.  "Body parts, in this case skin, should not be
in any way patentable," said Jim Thomas of the ETC group, which
monitors developments in technology.  "There are big questions
here about whether individuals will be able to refuse this
technology if it is used in, for example, tracking devices."

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-- 
Erick Andrews