Researchers from Dartmouth College have developed contact-sensitive object-recognition technology that can be incorporated into textiles like tablecloths.

The technology, dubbed Capacitivo, was incorporated into a tablecloth prototype by weaving electrodes into the cloth and adhering it to a textile substrate. When an object is placed upon the tablecloth, the electrodes notice capacitance changes in the electrodes affected by the presence of the object on the tablecloth.

The 12 in x 12 in tablecloth is connected to a laptop that runs a deep learning system. An item placed on the tablecloth, fruit, for instance, would be analyzed according to its impact on the tablecloth and the corresponding laptop and deep learning system would identify the fruit by listing its specific name on the laptop’s display. According to the research team, the system correctly identified the fruit with 94.5% accuracy during testing.

The developers of Capacitivo intend to use the technology for meal preparation applications. In the case of fruit, for instance, the system could potentially communicate recipes via smartphone or other connected devices that call for that specific fruit.

A paper on the research, Capacitivo: Contact-Based Object Recognition on Interactive Fabrics using Capacitive Sensing, was prepared for the upcoming User Interface Software and Technology Conference. For more information on Capacitivo, watch the accompanying video that appears courtesy of Dartmouth College.