The Dragon Midi Controller

YouTube via PauloEgidioSilva
"A touch screen panel and real hardware encoderson a lcd screen - the ultimate midi controller for cubase!"
Reminds me of the SenseSurface
via CDM

SenseSurface 3D potentiometer

YouTube via sensecam
"A potentiometer on an LCD screen adds tactile feedback to music and video applications. Proprietary rotary sensor held on via magnet. Input via USB port. more www.girtonlabs.com Lyndsay Williams"


Yes, hardware knobs for your monitor.
"What next after the Mouse?
3 Dimensional control surface for PCs designed and built by Lyndsay Williams July 2008
What happened to traditional knobs for volume controls on computers? Replaced with + and - controls on the keyboard, not so easy to find in a hurry.

Imagine a control surface with real knobs, sliders, real switches for your favourite music player, video editor or game. This is SenseSurface, just place the unique controls on your application e.g. a music mixer, and ready to go.

Applications that would normally use a mouse or Qwerty keyboard can be now controlled with traditional knobs. The scroll bar on the right hand side of your computer screen can be controlled with a real slider button. SenseSurface can be used with most laptops with a USB input. The sensing knobs have a custom designed movement sensor to determine position within approx 180 degrees with a 10 bit digital output. The magnetic knobs can be removed and repositioned immediately by picking them up and moving to a different part of screen. A unique sensing x/y matrix is attached to the rear of the laptop screen to detect the control's position. The distance of the sensor from the screen can also be detected. The rotary controls are low friction and there are no screen finger prints as with normal touch surfaces. Linear sliders and switches can also be used on the lcd surface. The number of controls on the screen is only limited by the size of the screen." via Music Thing

Update via retrosynth in the comments:
"Studer already has a patent for a user interface very similar to this. It premiered on their Vista 8 console and has trickled down to other products as well. A picture of their implementation is here:" http://www.retrosynth.com/slideshow/namm_2006_jk/IMG_0095.jpg