Qii will work with Apple, Android, Blackberry, Windows and Palm smartphones and tablets.

Pledge as little as 5$ to support Qii, as little as 79$ for an Earlybird "Basic" Qii (with a QWERTY keyboard but no pointer on the case) and as little as 99$ for an Earlybird "Delux" Qii (with a QWERTY keyboard and a pointer on the case).

If you are new to Crowdfunding, or you want to join the Qii Great Literature Project

see how it works at the end of this section.

Introduction to the Qii Concept

We’d like to introduce to you a new concept we call Qii (pronounced like “Key”). Qii is the world’s first, truly mobile, rollable touch accessory. It’s based on a flexible touch sensor that allows you to turn virtually any surface, soft or hard, flat or curved, into a full functionality user interface for your computer or your mobile device such as your tablet or, especially, your smartphone. And that turns your smartphone into a portable and usable pocket computer. With Qii and your imagination, any surface can be effectively turned into a touch surface and any “dumb” object can be turned into a “smart” object. Nanotechnology and organic electronics make it possible. The idea is simple, but the applications are endless. We've established the company Almakoer to get this to market.

The Qii QWERTY Computer Keyboard, our first product:

As our first Qii product, we’re offering a full QWERTY computer keyboard, including a number pad and function keys, wirelessly connected to your smartphone or tablet. Because its ultra thin and flexible, Qii is both full-sized and pocket-sized, so you’ll be able to effortlessly type and surf anywhere you go.

Qii has an anti fingerprint coating to keep it clean and a textured surface for easy touch typing. It’s dirt and water resistant, so you don’t have to worry about spilling and it’s easily washable with soap and water. And, since Qii’s rollable electronics are printed, it’s tough.

Qii’s case is also a touchpad, allowing you to point, tap and scroll for easy surfing and graphical editing (NOTE! We've now introduced a "Basic" Qii model without this function for our more cost conscious supporters). You can use Qii on most any surface, so you can check your email on your friend’s belly, update your Facebook on your pet, or write your next novel on your pillow.

Some keyboards claim to be rollable, but you can’t roll them up and fit them in your pocket. We use a new kind of flexible transparent electronic film together with a new kind of touch sensing technology that can sense both position and force to create a compact, portable and programmable touch surface.

While designing Qii, we intended to create a minimalist and fashionable product that seamlessly blends into everyday life. Qii has a stylish case and a striking transparent touch surface. You can use the full keyboard if you want, which has number and function keys, or, if you don’t need it, you can roll it out only partially, to access only the basic keys.

The Technology:

Our team has been working for years with our partners to bring Qii to life. Together we have developed new carbon nanomaterials, new manufacturing techniques, new, ultra-high transparency, flexible, bendable, stretchable, rollable and foldable films and unique touch algorithms to make Qii possible.

Today we have a functioning wired demo and we are making the whole electronics package coin sized. The flexible transparent touch sensor that you see is a real, working prototype. Starting from this, we now want to complete the design and manufacture a smooth and sleek wireless device that you link to your smartphone via Bluetooth.

The Work to Do

So the general concepts have been proven and we now have small enough electronics, but we still have to package all the components and get it manufactured and delivered. In practice, this means refining our touch technology and doing the final design, electrical and mechanical engineering to further slim down the electronics, test and optimize performance, and nicely package the whole thing in an elegant rollable case to really show off its absolute coolness and convenience. The remaining most critical (and time consuming and costly) items on our to-do list are to design and source the dedicated circuite board running our touch algorithm and the mechanical design and testing of the rolling mechanics and electrical linkages. With your help, we can get this done and put a Qii into your pocket.

Among other things, your pledge and support will help us:

1. Finalize the electrical and mechanical, designs with our design partners

2. Establish our customer service program

3. Refine the touch algorithm and software

4. Make the final manufacturing specification

5. Source our critical components (e.g. motherboard and rolling mechanics)

6. Choose our contract manufacturer

7. Purchase our components

8. Design, order and make tooling for our sensor and device production

9. Make our final sensor and device prototypes

10. Iterate, test and verify our prototypes and production lines

11. Obtain our global bluetooth certification

12. Secure the intellectual property

13. Deliver beautiful, tested, stylish and useful Qii’s to you

Compatibility:

Qii will work with Apple, Android, Blackberry, Windows and Palm phones and tablets according to each platform’s available QWERTY keyboard and pointer standards. Setting up Qii will be as easy as downloading the Qii app onto your smartphone or tablet. All software updates will be wirelessly transmitted to your Qii.

Customization:

Each Qii will have a sleek case, a rollable, flexible ultra-high transparency touch sensor film with the QWERTY keyboard app and a USB compatible charging port. But, for certain pledges, you'll become part of the design process. We hope we'll be making improvements to Qii, including new color options and new apps, according to your input.

Your Color:

For the Qii cases, two color options are already set: black and white. But, if you back the “My Color” pledge, we'll send you a survey when the project is funded asking you to vote for your favorite color. If your choice is the top one, we’ll send you a Qii in that color. If not, we’ll send you a follow-up questionnaire to ask which of the three available colors you'd like.

Your App:

Nanotechnology may make Qii possible, but its apps that bring Qii to life. Qii is infinitely customizable, with unlimited possibilities for downloadable interfaces and useful apps, allowing you to use any surface as a touch surface, including your existing computer display, car dashboard, couch arm rest or even your significant other.

We may be offering the QWERTY keyboard first, but Qii is fully programmable and, for certain contributors, that’s just what we’ll do. With your input, we'll be building an amazing new app for Qii. What will it be? We don’t know yet. That's for you to help decide during the project if you choose the "My App" pledge.

Qii can become a musical instrument, an armchair mouse, a drawing pad, a control panel, a gaming controller or a body energy field guide. The uses are limited only by imagination. For instance, musicians could use Qii as a xylophone or drum kit. Artist can use it as a drawing or painting pad. If you're a gamer, you could bring Qii onto your laptop display to turn it into a touch screen or separately as a unique gaming console. With the “My App” pledge, we’ll send you a survey asking you for new Qii app ideas. Our personal favorite is the 89 key piano keyboard (it goes to 11!), but we’re open to your ideas as well. Want your table to become a teaching tool for your nephew? Want to turn the arm of your recliner into a guitar? Want a massage pad instead of a bongo? Maybe you're itching to turn your front door into a sounding board or a questionnaire. Qii can transform any passive surface into an active and interactive surface so think touch and interaction everywhere and anywhere.

RISKS AND CHALLENGES:

We have world class expertise on sensor materials, hardware and algorithms, nanotechnologies and electronics prototyping. We see minimal technical risk to complete this project and deliver a working device. All the basic technology has been demonstrated and mock-ups and demos have been produced. But now these must be refined and made manufacturable. We have been through this before and we know the challenges. We see the following risks ranked from high to low:

Shrinking the electronics to be smalls enough:

By far, the biggest risk we face is the ability to reduce the size of our sensor module. We do not have the in-house expertise to get this done alone, but we do have much expertise in partnering with manufacturers to get this done with us. In the worst case, we will make the “electronics box” a bit bigger based on a more incremental improvement of our current system. Thus, even if it all goes wrong, we will still be able to deliver a slightly larger version of the product.

Finalizing the algorithm for the keyboard:

The current algorithm has been proven for medium aspect ratio form factors (5:1 aspect ratio rectangular sensors), but needs to be modified for higher aspect ratios as in the roll-out keyboard (approximate 10:1). We see little risk, but there are possibilities for glitches which we’ll have to work through.

Getting the internal interfaces to perform reliably:

This product has moving and bending electronic interfaces to transmit power and information inside the device. The mechanics involved are minimal, but there may be certain interfaces (e.g. rotating or flexible connections) that will likely require multiple iterations to perform reliably. We may still have to do some inventing!

Finding a matching manufacturing partner:

We have much experience cooperating with OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) worldwide to arrange production, managing small and large consumer electronics projects, introducing new products to market and organizing distribution. We know the time and costs involved with all these activities. We have made our best estimates of what it will take to get this new product to market at the lowest price and fastest pace. We have no illusions of the challenges involved. This is why we have set the funding threshold so high. Even so, in order to stay in our budget, we will need a low cost and experienced manufacturing partner who is also willing to do a relatively low volume first production run. However, we feel this project/product is simple enough and interesting enough to have multiple bidders (assuming we reach a critical mass of orders). The bigger the project becomes, the easier it will be to make our manufacturing deal.

Adapting to variations in Bluetooth standards:

The Bluetooth "standard" for keyboard interfaces is not 100% standard. We realize that there will be tweaks and adjustments for each platform and so there may be unexpected problems once the product is in your hands. But, we’ll be getting your feedback and upgrading the software continually to make sure the glitches are minimized.

Noise (e.g. electromagnetic interference / antenna effects):

Different environments have different electromagnetic backgrounds which may alter the sensor performance. As above, there may be unexpected problems once the product is in your hands and in your environment. Even the biggest brand names experience such issues in the field. As above, we’ll be using your feedback make sure any such problems are fixed ASAP.

Securing the Qii Intellectual Property:

Delivering the “My App” reward:

We have our own preliminary opinion of what “My App” could be and we know how we’d do it, but we want to get real customer pull to see if there is a better, cooler or more in-demand option. As we don’t know what it might be, we can’t yet guarantee we can do it. We’ll need your input and understanding so our abilities and your expectations are matched.

*The Qii Great Literature Project:

Since the Qii is for doing real stuff, not just short tweets and SMSs, we’re having a collective story writing project to promote our Qii campaign. You may have noticed in the video that David was typing the first sentences of the very first great Qii literary work with his Qii. In honor of the great literary dog, Snoopy, it begins with his famous first line “It was a dark and stormy night.”

We're now asking you, our loyal Qii fans, to complete the story, one sentence at a time. Look closely at the video to see the lines already written at the project launch. These were thought up on the spot when we were recording the video ... so it already has at least one major inconsistency that you, the writers, will have to figure out how to resolve.

With every perk and every Qii “perked”, you have the right to submit one more line to the story (perk 10 Qiis means you can contribute 11 lines).  Then, at the end of every campaign day, we’ll then add the your lines to a storyline in the order received (with some editing rights in case things go really off the rails) and update the story online. After the campaign is over, we’ll publish your collective work!

Here are the existing storylines.

NOTE: Please submit your new lines via the "Comments" section of the Qii Indiegogo campaign site once you've made your pledge. When you submit a line, make sure to give the previous few lines along with your new lines so we know where it fits!

*How crowdfunding works:

For those of you new to crowdfunding, below is a simple explanation.

1) Fundseekers (we) submit a project (the Qii) with a description, the funding target, the time to reach the funding target (the time limit) and the various available pledges and perks on the crowdfunding site (in this case www.indiegogo.com)

2) Individuals (you) pledge amounts to the project for specific perks (for instance a black or white Qii keyboard)

3) If sufficient funding (the funding target) is pledged in the time limit, the fundseeker produces and ships out the perks to pledgers

4) Nothing happens (i.e. the project is not started) unless there is sufficient funding (the funding target) pledged in sufficient time (the time limit)

5) If you pledge and the funding target is not reached in the time limit, the pledge is immediately returned to you and the perks are not produced or shipped.

6) If you pledge and the target funding is reached in the given time, then we work our butts off to make sure you get your perk within its target delivery date

Simple, yes?