Tag Archives: Wearables

E-Tattoos Point to Another New Future of Computing

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Predicting the future is tricky business, but it is always interesting to see the ideas various people have. When looking at the “next thing” after smartphones, various predictions range from computers injected into our brains to flexible paper-thin devices. The one idea that seems to be the closest to practical application is the E-Tattoo. As you can see by the video, there are working models (unlike the computer in sheet of paper idea), and many people tend to be okay with the tattoo part (unlike inject-able computers – yikes!). Of course, currently there is nothing that is that spectacular about what these do, but the future could be different according to Chris Harrison at Carnegie Mellon University: “You’ll have these digital tattoo parlours which you can go to in 2050 and 5 minutes later you can walk out with the iPhone 22 on your forearm.” Well, let’s just hope that the iPhone 22 won’t just rub off in a few days, because I am pretty sure they will be just as expensive in 2050 as they are today.

The Next Frontier in Wearables is… Your Mouth?

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One of the biggest problems with voice-activated services – anything from Siri to Text dictation – is privacy. You don’t exactly want everyone in the room to hear your conversation with your significant other or your personal shopping list or whatever it might be. If you think the solution to that is mind-controlled technology, you are probably thinking too far in the future. Until then, humanity is probably left with more awkward solutions like HushMe – the “world’s first voice mask for mobile phones.” Yep, it is a muzzle-like device that fits around your mouth and claims to obscure your voice so that others can’t hear it. While you may balk at the look of it, I would be willing to bet that companies with remote work options will start requiring tools like this to protect privacy and trade secrets. It is usually these more awkward ideas that catch on than the more practical ones. Regardless of whether anyone wants one of these or not, I could also see the idea being integrated into full immersion VR headsets like the Feel Real Nirvana. Then implement Intel’s Merged Reality so that you can walk around in one of these masks – maybe make some models that look more like a Boba Fett helmet (or even maybe ones with interchangeable face-plates where you can 3D print a scan of your face for the front to really creep people out) – and VR will go mobile, immersive, and augmented. If you have ever dug into much Science Fiction, this is pretty much what most fancy futuristic helmets do anyways. We are just seeing the creation of that one part at a time.

Will Vue Make Wearable Smart Glasses More Practical?

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A few years ago, I made a technology trailer for a grad class. Justin Dellinger of LINK Lab was part of it, and he made a spontaneous joke in the video about how he had to get the prescription Google Glasses so he could teach his class. Little did he know he was predicting the future. Or maybe he did know? Either way, it looks like Vue is well on its way to funding a KickStarter to create more practical wearable glasses. And yes, you can get your prescription lenses in these. As the video above shows, the creators of Vue took the clunky nature of Google Glass into consideration, making their glasses stylish and practical (“Smart glasses – you can spot them a mile away”). Oh, and they removed the creepy camera. What is left might not win over those that loved Google Glass, but at least these glasses will be more practical. Which is good, because many people are starting to look at wearables and say “so what?” If the makers of wearables want to move forward, they have to move from clunky and distracting to practical and seamless. The Vue is a step in that direction it seems. The big question is will they tap into the AI capabilities of things like Siri more. or will you have to learn a whole new set of apps that make you do everything? What will they do with the data that is collected if they do tap into AI? What privacy issues will they create if Siri can know where you are and what direction you are looking? We will see as the KickStarter was looking for $50K and currently has nearly $1.4 million. Yes, million. A lot of people want this form of smart glasses. Did Google Glass ever reach $1 million in sales?

Visualizing Wearble Data: Is It a Good Idea?

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iFuTaqD4fM

Finding ways to visualize wearable data is sometimes a tough challenge. How exactly do yo visualize physical attributes when the meaning of those numbers are different for each person? Then there are the ethical considerations of what should you be displaying and where you should display it. So this article about displaying stress levels for everyone to see seems more concerning than intriguing (see also the video above about bio-wearables). Anyone that has used a stress monitoring device of some kind knows they are not always accurate. But even when they are, would you really want that information broadcast to people around you? Maybe you would, maybe you wouldn’t – we are probably all different. But there is also the very real concern of people that could see you are stressed and take advantage of that. Which I realize already happens without technology, but the concern over what data is being collected and who it is available to is a huge one to grapple with.

Will the Future of Augmented Reality be AR Contact Lens Connected to Your iPhone?

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The headline pretty much says it all: “Apple to meet with augmented reality contact lens firm EPGL, discuss possible iOS support.” Articles like this are a sign that innovations are going mainstream. Or at least attempting – many still don’t make it there. The biggest problem with augmented reality is that you have to hold a phone in front of you to experience it, turning your body into a wandering, distracted safety hazard (see Pokemon Go). or you have to buy an expensive pair of AR glasses like Google Glass (or not anymore – oppps). But would AR contact lens be more or less distracting? Probably depends on the design of the user interface. Or maybe they are just a temporary step towards having computers implanted in our heads? See the first few minutes of the H+ video above for what that would be like, and then the rest of the video see how scary it could become.

Making Virtual Reality More “Interactive”

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One of the problems with virtual reality is that it is virtual – the things yopu see and interact with are not really there, so you can’t reach out and touch them. Which generally makes most VR experiences pretty passive – even adding a joy stick makes VR more like a game than a simulation. Of course, many companies are working on ways to add touch to virtual objects. One recent company is Dexmo, which adds an exoskeleton to your hands to enable simulated touch. While the set-up looks clunky, the idea that it is recreating the shape and consistency of virtual objects could be very useful in medical, educational, and manufacturing realms, among others. Apparently, no price is given, and the manufacturer wants to wait until VR software begins programming touch into their games and simulations. But this is still one step closer to Star Trek Holodecks (or at least the immersion suits described in Ready Player One).

Gloves That Can Translate American Sign Language Into Text or Speech

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uY-MyoRq4c

One of the weaknesses of the different translation apps and services is that they are for spoken languages. Sign languages are a major language that they can’t translate. That may be changing in the future after two undergraduate students at the University of Washington invented SignAloud gloves, which are designed to translate American Sign Language into speech or text. Of course, American Sign Language is not universal, and it will probably take a while to work out the many different forms of ASL alone. But like with all new technology, the first versions always evolve into better and better tools. Hopefully this will continue beyond the experimental phase.

Universal Translators are Becoming a Thing… Maybe?

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6SFbSD63IQ

Fans of science fiction are probably familiar with the universal translator – the futuristic device (usually not seen on screen) that allows people to all magically speak and understand English. Well, technically, people/aliens are speaking their native language and hearing other languages translated into their own language. We all knew it would only be a matter of time before this would happen in real life, and it seems that day is getting closer. Pilot is a device that fits in your ear and uses your cell phone to translate what you hear into the language you choose. Well, it’s more complicated than that, and still has many limitations, but the idea is there and should only get better in the future. Will it ever get to Star Trek levels of cancelling out the speaker’s language and replacing it with the chosen language in their natural voice, all while using holograms to make their lips look they are speaking the translatee language as well?

Virtual Reality Evolves Into The Holodeck

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Last week, my colleague Justin shared a link for a video game that uses heartrate monitors and other bio sensors to detect a players mood to adjust what is happening in the game itself according to the player’s emotions. Interestingly enough, I had also read about Virtual Reality glasses that were connecting to bio sensors to detect heart rates as well as Virtual Reality glasses that had built in eye motion sensors. So we are seeing VR connect with other tools like wearables and drones. Other senses are probably not far behind – olfactory devices that recreate smells? Atmospheric devices that help us feel wind and rain? Haptic gloves that help us feel virtual objects? The question becomes – will we keep connecting devices to VR headsets, or expand VR into a immersive environment like a Holodeck? Only time will tell, but I could image a spherical room that has a 3-D high-res screens wrapped around as a bubble. The user climbs in from the bottom and is sealed in with an omni-directional treadmill. They put on a an inexpensive set of 3-D glasses that covers their entire field of view. The screen creates the 3-D environment all around. Olfactory devices create smells, while atmospheric devices embedded in the screens recreate humidity, wind, etc. Sensors in the screen also detect movement. Lasers create sensations of touch when interacting with 3D virtual objects. Could all be down the road and expensive, but you never know. Someday, they will figure out how to convert light into matter and holodecks will be born, but I guess we are seeing the early phases now? You never know.

Turn Your Body in a Computer Display

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Using the human body as a computer display of some sort is not a new thing (as there was always someone in elementary class that would jump in from of the projector on film day and shout “look – my tummy is a TV!”), but current work in this area is fascinating. A new article circulating today (I believe Dr. Peggy Semmingson was the first one I saw posting it) talks about an incredibly thin organic display being applied directly to our skin. The initial idea would be to measure and display various aspects of your health. Maybe someday it would display your emotional state and even communications. While privacy will need to be addressed (you don’t want a display of your feelings or heart rate on your should for all to see at all times, right?), still an interesting idea. I’m also a fan of the idea of the Cicret display band in the video above (which I believe Justin Dellinger brought to my attention). It just projects your cellphone display on your arm, and then tracks where you touch. It probably can’t give you the same health information as the skin display, so both could work together.