Conductive ink based page detection for linking digital and physical pages

This paper describes a working prototype of a page detection system for paper stacks, the kind that would be used in digital paper applications. Polymer conductive ink is applied and embossed on the back of each page in a way that causes the resistance of the ink to change when the paper is bent, making a resistive strain guage. In use, a detector circuit identifies the active page by noting the highest page in the stack not exhibiting a resistance change. In volume, this method provides an inexpensive, simple solution to page detection. The person uses the paper pad naturally, not needing to tell the system when a new page is being viewed. With this technology the physical world meets the digital domain in a smooth and transparent manner for the user. Copyright © 2012 ACM, Inc.