Month: November 2013

Google Glass is a wearable computer with an optical head-mounted display that is being developed by Google in the Project Glass research and development project, with a mission of producing a mass-market ubiquitous computer. Google Glass displays information in a Smartphone-like hands-free format that can communicate with the Internet via natural language voice commands.

Voice activation

Other than the touchpad, Google Glass can be controlled using “voice actions”. To activate Glass, wearers tilt their heads 30° upward (which can be altered for preference) or tap the touchpad, and say “O.K., Glass.” Once Glass is activated, wearers can say an action, such as “Take a picture”, “Record a video”, “Hangout with [person/Google+ circle]”, “Google ‘what year was Wikipedia founded?'”, “Give me directions to the Eiffel Tower”, and “Send a message to John”(many of these commands can be seen in a product video released in February 2013).

Technical specifications

Android 4.0.4 and higher

640×360 display

5-megapixel camera, capable of 720p video recording

Wi-Fi 802.11b/g

Bluetooth

16GB storage (12 GB available)

682MB RAM “proc”.

3 axis gyroscope

3 axis accelerometer

3 axis magnetometer (compass)

Ambient light sensing and proximity sensor

Bone conduction transducer

 

When we think of augmented reality, we tend to think of Google Glass or Vuzix glasses that overlay pertinent information on the world we see. The technology supporting those glasses has transitioned over to everyday objects that can be used without wearing unappealing eyewear. For example, a Los Angeles smart space installation uses a digitally augmented table and book that allows visitors to use hand gestures to explore digital media.

The Multi-Surface Experience, put together by the digital signage firm The Hive and the architectural firm Gensler, serves as an eye-catching centerpiece in the lobby of Gensler’s Los Angeles office. The digitally augmented table was designed by architecture students from the California Polytechnic School in collaboration with Gensler. Its streamlined curves make it look like a ceramic gravy ladle when viewed from the side. The table itself is striking, but there are no electronics housed within its natural wood and HI-MACS overlaid structure. You also won’t find any electronics in the book, which showcases architectural works from Gensler.

The digital magic displayed on the table’s surface actually comes from a projector and Kinect sensor positioned directly above the centerpiece. People use hand gestures and tap buttons projected on the table itself to navigate the book, which shows information on a 4K Planar display mounted on a wall behind the table.

One of the unique aspects of this setup is that the digital interface is immediately oriented to the individual’s location, no matter where the individual stands in relation to the table.

The system uses a Canon REALiS WUX5000 to project the digital interface. Once the subject matter is selected, it is displayed on the Planar Clarity screen for review. The content from the book flows on the display using YCD/Wall software, while YCD/CMS is used in conjunction with The Hive’s specialized software for the actual interaction. As interesting and as cool as it looks, the technology is currently on display only at Gensler’s LA lobby.

You know that 3D printers are being used to “produce” everything from parts of weapons to prosthetics, but have you heard of its usage in recordable technology?

The application of 3D printing in restoring old recordings is unheard of. But 3D printers are simply revolutionizing the industry of sounds.

In this case, 3D printing technology has been applied to restoration. Researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBL) have used 3D scanning technology to restore some century-old recordings made by three notable inventors that include Charles Sumner Tainter (inventor of an early telephone transmitter), Alexander Graham Bell, and his cousin Chichester Bell. These three inventors collaborated to bring about what was considered high-fidelity for audio systems (notably their graphophone) back in the 1880s. The team experimented using various mediums for their recordings that included discs and cylinders made from beeswax and cardboard, brass, and glass. Finally, they succeeded in making a series of recordings (more than 200 of them) on glass-based discs, which were sent to the Smithsonian in an effort to preserve them. However, they never sent the playback device needed to listen to the discs which were then considered useless and left to decay.

Decay they did – until the research team from LBL got hold of them. They brought them back to life through restoration and were able to play the recordings 125 years after they were made. To accomplish this, the team employed the use of a 3D scanner, known as IRENE, to non-invasively scan the discs and create a high-resolution image. They then processed the digital image, which pieces together the damaged disc and removes errors. The Lab used specialized software for calculating and recreating the engraving method (in this case, a stylus used to etch the glass/wax) to reproduce the audio into a digitized format. The team was successful at recovering the audio from six Volta Graphophone discs – it is looking to restore and preserve a host of early recordings from the Library of Congress. While giving new life to old technology, using 3D scanning is certainly impressive, 3D printing is capable of converting the latest technology in audio into a medium which very few still use.