Looks like the future as seen by numerous sci-fi films is about to become a reality. Japanese researchers at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology ( NIAIST) have developed a system through which you can not only see 3D images but you can then manipulate anyway you like. Theoretically it will be just like handling a 3D object in real space. So yes, other than motions sensors it also devices for haptic feedback.

In an addition to the rising wave of 3D enabled devices, NIAIST researchers have developed a way to manipulate those images as if they are actual 3D objects that are also extremely elastic. They call it the i3Space device and it gives the user control of a 3D image and provides tactile feedback through clips mounted on the users finger tips. These clips will vibrate when an object is touched and will then provide sensations of force when the object is being manipulated.

The NIAIST scientists developed this based on an earlier NIAIST project called GyroCubeSensuous which is a palm-sized device and was developed in 2005. It used a combination of gyroscopes and rotary force-feedback mechanisms to give users the sensation of buoyancy, draw and push.

Researchers can already see practical uses of the new i3Space project in surgical medicine and in gaming. They believe that using the device, surgeons can practice operations before they actually perform it. But earlier studies have shown that virtual image dependent surgical training can leave the surgeon slightly disoriented in a real life situation. So may be they should just stick to gaming and other forms of interactive multimedia.

The system’s motion detectors work through a 6-axis camera system that is arranged in such a way that there is absolutely no blind spot and every cubic unit of space is covered.

[via]