Senior Aaron Bitler and junior Brady Simpson probably didn’t foresee that living together would spark a technology business in their apartment.
And their majors wouldn’t suggest it either; Bitler is a communication major while Simpson is a history major.
During the summer break and throughout the school year, Bitler and Simpson built several multi-touch LCDs, or multi-touch liquid crystal display monitors, using a combination of commonly available parts such as wood and metal hardware and dismantled LCD television pieces.
An LCD monitor is a device that uses liquid crystals in front of a light source to project an image in full color. Multi-touch users engage the LCD by touching the screen to initiate an action instead of using a mouse or keyboard. A multi-touch LCD is a special monitor similar to the touch screens commonly found at gas station pumps or the self-checkout lanes at grocery stores. However, instead of being limited to a single-touch function with a finger to initiate a transaction, a multi-touch LCD allows for several touch points simultaneously.
Bitler was the type of kid who dismantled the family VCR to see how it worked and then reassembled it. So when he saw the Microsoft Surface promotional videos pushing its multi-touch software, he was intrigued. In the videos, Microsoft promoted a new method of computing that it believed was the next step for inputting computer commands beyond the mouse and keyboard. The software piqued his interest in constructing a multi-touch LCD screen.
Through online searches, Bitler found instructions and crafted a low quality multi-touch LCD screen. Unimpressed with his first finished product, Bitler decided to build the highest quality device his finances allowed. He began by dismantling his $500 32-inch LCD television for spare parts. Minus a television, Bitler now possessed the multi-touch LCD he had envisioned.
Bitler’s original goal was to use the device as an entertainment novelty during parties. Simpson liked how Bitler’s “toy” impressed their guests with demonstrations of how the multi-touch interface worked. After conducting his own research, Simpson saw the bigger picture of where this technology is headed. He proposed they create a firm that manufactures multi-touch LCDs. Simpson would handle the business affairs while Bitler was in charge of manufacturing.
“I realized that this could be a huge business venture and make a lot of money,” Simpson said. “After Aaron and I had visions of grandeur and doing tons of research, we thought it would be a great idea to start a company to build multi-touches.”
An early example of a multi-touch LCD in action was during the 2008 presidential elections when a CNN anchor stood in front of the broadcast network’s “Magic Wall” to cast election projections and illustrate results. The movement of the anchor’s hands prompted immediate computer reactions on screen, which looked like something out of a science fiction movie. His touch prompted quick on-screen animations as he manipulated a map of the U.S. in relation to election news. The technology cemented its place in popular culture when shows like “Saturday Night Live” parodied its use.
Pamplin College of Business instructor Jean Lacoste spoke during her Introduction to Business Information Systems class about multi-touch technology and played a Microsoft Surface promotional video during one of her lectures. She said computers are shifting from using a mouse to click an icon on a computer screen through what’s known as a “graphic user interface” to multi-touch.
“Multi-touch technology and Surface, particularly, has a lot of potential for the future,” Lacoste said. “Surface and the multi-touch has a natural user interface, which I think makes it more useful. The natural user interface has the same potential the GUI had.
“When we went to the graphic user interface, you didn’t have to learn how to type anymore, have to memorize these command strings, so now we’re going another step where you don’t have to use a mouse at all,” Lacoste said.
This computing trend inspired Bitler and Simpson to manufacture and sell multi-touch LCD monitors through their company, “3M8.” The company was officially recognized in Alexandria, Va., with the help of Simpson’s father, a practicing attorney who also serves as the corporation’s legal counsel.
While one roommate’s father helped with the legal aspects of the business, the other provided his craftsmanship. Bitler enlisted his father’s woodworking experience to design and build the frame that houses the multi-touch LCD.
But a physical screen cannot operate on its own. Multi-touch LCD is only useful when paired with complementary software that highlights its capabilities. Simpson knew this and saw an opportunity to contact software companies.
Based in San Jose, Calif., software company 22 Miles showed interest in the 3M8 product. Constant online and telephone communication led to a meeting in Norfolk. It concluded with 3M8 agreeing to send a prototype to 22 Miles for review.
“After our meeting was when we started seeing eye-to-eye with 22 Miles,” Simpson said, “and they started seeing there could be some profit in it for them without having to spend $15,000 for Microsoft Surface for their clients when they can spend a third of that with ours and at the same time give our company recognition and publicity.”
The unit 3M8 shipped to 22 Miles this fall arrived damaged, but the software company was impressed by the craftsmanship of Simpson and Bitler’s product.
Business is on standby as both navigate the waning weeks of the semester. Simpson and Bitler are settling damage claims with their shipper. They will fly to California during winter break to fix their damaged multi-touch LCD, and 22 Miles is going to further evaluate its software’s integration with 3M8’s hardware.
“We hope to get a partnership with 22 Miles ... so it simultaneously puts both our names out there,” Simpson said.
3M8 hopes that 22 Miles can take its product from its apartment floor to the market shelves.