HP Labs India

HP Labs India Targets “The Next Billion Customers

SDA India
April 07, 2006

HP Labs India researchers will demonstrate technologies this week at its California office which it says will help grow rapidly expanding economies like those in India, China, Russia, and Brazil. The technologies adapt to the needs of multiple non-Western languages, unique infrastructures, and indigenous cultures and customs, says HP Labs. The goal, in the words of HP Labs Director Dick Lampman, is to help HP reach “the next billion customers.”

The technologies to be demonstrated include the following:

The gesture keyboard. Traditional keyboards, based on the Roman alphabet, do not work for many of the world’s languages. HP Labs India claim to have created a stylus-and-tablet solution that is easy to use yet has all the benefits of electronic data processing and storage.

A pen-based application for filling out forms for business, government and education. According to the company, the forms can be completed by hand in remote locations using a variety of devices. The “digital ink” can then be transmitted to a central location where the handwritten input is converted to machine-readable text for processing and storage.

Print-supplemented TV broadcasts. HP Labs India says it is developing technology that delivers print material synchronized with TV programming.

Secure paper documents. In many parts of the world, the company says, public services are being extended to remote areas through Internet cafes instead of using regional government offices. HP Labs claims to have a solution based on a barcode printed on the document that incorporates a digital signature which will authenticate the transmitted documents.

Click here to read the article at the SDA India Website