I thought it was time for another off-topic post. If you know me, you know I have been following VR/AR for years and years. I blame TRON, Star Wars, and any number of science fiction authors. Someday, I don't know yet how or when I will get to work on this stuff full time. But, in any event here are a couple of recent updates that got my attention for various reasons.
Here is an AR business card that mashes up with Twitter.
http://artimes.rouli.net/2009/07/cool-augmented-business-card-from-toxin.html
and more...
As soon as you can see these augmented reality images easier without a phone, webcam and a computer, or other unwieldy device that isn’t supremely geeky the world is going to change a great deal very fast. Today those
http://www.vuzix.com/iwear/products_wrap920.html
devices still look kind of like this:
But, that's changing very fast. Here is a contact lens that was recently "installed" on an unsuspecting little bunny rabbit. It's a low resolution heads up display.
Then, of course, there is actually the concept of controlling things virtually and even in the physical world through a combination of AR and monitoring brain waves.
Neurosky is developing tools to translate feelings (brain waves) into actions. What if you were to:
- Hook it to your car cruise control
- Get the will it blend guy to wire this up to his blender, will it mind blend?
- An augmented reality enabled version of the little engine that could where the kid actually participates in getting the train up the hill
- An alarm clock you CAN'T turn off until you are awake and "think" the damn thing off
- Obvious implications for additional controls for video/console games
- A mind controlled vibrator (so obvious)
- A lawn mower. Lawn Mower man 2.0.
- A vacuum cleaner
- Bank Lock boxes that require you to be calm to open them
- Drunk/Sleepy driving accident/construction prevention (what are a drunks brain waves like anyway?) - Car says your asleep and calls you a cab.
Depending on how difficult it is to learn to use this device of future revisions of it, it clearly has many possible uses. Why just calm? Why not also allow it to do things based on other states of mind like rage, excitement, happiness, sadness. That could be interesting!
As is often the case porn, marketing, and gaming will lead the way. AR Strippers have arrived as well:
http://artimes.rouli.net/2009/08/ar-strippers-oh-my.html
Beyond Reality - AR Gaming is developing interesting AR games.
http://www.augmented-reality-games.com/
While the AR strippers are entertaining I suppose, the reason it is interesting is because if you imaging using a live feed in real time you see quickly that the future of video conferencing and phone calls in general could present a lot more of you than just your face and voice. In the future, it'll feel to the people that see you in their spaces real and virtual that you are there. Sometime well after that, it'll feel like you are there too. But, that's much further out probably becuase integrating senses other than vision and audio is quite a bit more challenging at the moment. We just don't understand the brain well enough yet.
Lastly, if you haven't picked up and read Rainbows End