3 ms·

I had a similar idea. Since we have a lot of old Disney films on VHS, I would like to be able to put the box in a place and have the system and play back the HD

I had a similar idea. Since we have a lot of old Disney films on VHS, I would like to be able to put the box in a place and have the system and play back the HD version from my media center. I investigated RFID/NFC tags, but what would also be cool would be a kind of ultra flat scanner. I imagine something purely optical, with no moving parts. You have a glass plate, maybe a few cm high, that you put the object to be scanned on, and the light is reflected into the plate on to a small CCD sensor hidden on the side or somewhere else. It doesn't have to have a great resolution, just enough to distinguish different movies. I tried googling, but it seems something like that doesn't exist (probably the achievable resolution is too bad for real world usage). Its a bit unfortunate, I'd like to bring back a bit of physicality to my computer interactions.

nickloewen 9y ago
Perhaps you could read the barcode on the box?
- captainmuon 9y ago
  I'm trying to avoid a barcode reader "gun", or hanging a barcode reader from a cantilever. Ideally, I just want a flat platform, or something that can hold the box. I'm pretty sure it should be possible to make a waveguide from properly shaped plexiglas and mirrors, so that you can hide a sensor below or in the side, and have it focused on the plexiglas surface. However, I can't figure out the geometry. I guess if I actually built the project, the RFID tags would be the best option.
  - nickloewen 9y ago
    That makes sense. I agree that RFID is probably the way to go. What I was thinking of was closer to what you are describing though, or to a supermarket style in-counter barcode reader. I don't know if there's a minimum barcode-to-reader distance, but I suspect you could hack something up by building a box around one of these types* of readers. Another downside to the barcode approach is also that it requires correct alignment. Maybe you can get greater convenience from RFID. On the other hand, the RFID approach means you don't have to modify the boxes at all. Because the code should hold some semantic meaning, you could maybe even set it up to download the requested movie on demand, so that you don't have to build your own database... Regardless, it's a fun idea! * https://www.amazon.com/Barcode-Omnidirectional-Hands-Free-Supermarket-Adjustable/dp/B01MSJPPJU/ref=sr_1_85?s=office-electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514007050&sr=1-85&keywords=barcode+scanner https://www.amazon.com/Barcode-Omnidirectional-Hands-Free-Su...

nickloewen 9y ago

Perhaps you could read the barcode on the box?

captainmuon 9y ago
I'm trying to avoid a barcode reader "gun", or hanging a barcode reader from a cantilever. Ideally, I just want a flat platform, or something that can hold the box. I'm pretty sure it should be possible to make a waveguide from properly shaped plexiglas and mirrors, so that you can hide a sensor below or in the side, and have it focused on the plexiglas surface. However, I can't figure out the geometry. I guess if I actually built the project, the RFID tags would be the best option.
- nickloewen 9y ago
  That makes sense. I agree that RFID is probably the way to go. What I was thinking of was closer to what you are describing though, or to a supermarket style in-counter barcode reader. I don't know if there's a minimum barcode-to-reader distance, but I suspect you could hack something up by building a box around one of these types* of readers. Another downside to the barcode approach is also that it requires correct alignment. Maybe you can get greater convenience from RFID. On the other hand, the RFID approach means you don't have to modify the boxes at all. Because the code should hold some semantic meaning, you could maybe even set it up to download the requested movie on demand, so that you don't have to build your own database... Regardless, it's a fun idea! * https://www.amazon.com/Barcode-Omnidirectional-Hands-Free-Supermarket-Adjustable/dp/B01MSJPPJU/ref=sr_1_85?s=office-electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514007050&sr=1-85&keywords=barcode+scanner https://www.amazon.com/Barcode-Omnidirectional-Hands-Free-Su...