Fujitsu Laboratories is working on something truly remarkable; something you would think is only possible in Tony Stark's workshop. This tech is all about accessing and copying data from paper or other objects in the real world. You might be saying to yourself, "how does this work?" Well, it's not simple.

According to Researcher, Media Service System Lab at Fujitsu Laboratories Taichi Murase in an interview with Digi Info TV, paper and other objects could turn out to be more like touchscreens:

"We think paper and many other objects could be manipulated by touching them, as with a touchscreen. This system doesn't use any special hardware; it consists of just a device like an ordinary webcam, plus a commercial projector. Its capabilities are achieved by image processing technology," says Taichi Murase.

This technology allows for extracting information from a piece of paper as data by selecting it with your finger, similar to how one would select data on a touchscreen interface.

The technology Fujitsu has come up with is able to measure the shape of objects in the real world, along with automatically adjusting the system for the camera so it would become touchable. When all is done, users would have the abiity to touch curved or flat objects with relative ease.

"Until now, gesturing has often been used to operate PCs and other devices. But with this interface, we're not operating a PC, but touching actual objects directly, and combining them with ICT equipment," Murase continues. "The system is designed not to react when you make ordinary motions on a table. It can be operated when you point with one finger. What this means is, the system serves as an interface combining analog operations and digital devices."

Another cool thing about this system is how it is able to work not just by touch, but also by gestures.

"For example, we think this system could be used to show detailed information at a travel agent's counter, or when you need to fill in forms at City Hall," Murase says. "We aim to develop a commercial version of this system by fiscal 2014. It's still at the demonstration level, so it's not been used in actual settings. Next, we'd like to get people to use it for actual tasks, see what issues arise, and evaluate usability. We want to reflect such feedback in this system."

What we want is for this technology to find its way to market and become a mainstream product. That would be quite interesting.