Microsoft working on a more tactile touchscreen

Microsoft has patented a new technology it’s working on to create a more tactile touchscreen, reports Tech Watch.

The display uses pixel sized shape-memory plastic cells to produce what feels like a real texture on the screen, so the user can actually feel the lumps and bumps of an image.

According to an article on PC Advisor, the screen reacts to light, so when it detects a particular wavelength of ultraviolet light, it becomes more solid and sticks out slightly, and vice versa as it becomes softer when another wavelength hits it.

While it’s currently aimed at large tabletop displays, such as Microsoft’s Surface computer, eventually the technology could potentially be used to produce a touchscreen with actual keys to feel for typing, just like a real keyboard.