Handshake Communicates Digital Information

Shake hands with someone and you can tell volumes about them -- or so it may seem. Hands warm or cold, callused or soft, the handshake strong and vigorous or not. But such old-fashioned analog flesh-pressing may soon be surpassed by the exchange of digital information flowing through human touch. According to Alps Electric, the human body's electrical field can be used to convey digital information during a handshake, or for a number of security purposes. The company -- presenting at CEATEC Japan 2009 -- thinks this technology can be used for personal ID in mobile phones, home security and in vehicles. View Video

Illustration by Tom McKeith