Geek Chic

Published: 28 March 2001 y., Wednesday
IBM in the jewelry business? Dutch electronics maker Philips selling street wear jackets? American high-tech start-ups creating space-age shades? Yes, yes and yes. AT THIS YEAR’S CeBIT, IBM is showing studies of wearable computer add-ons such as a silver necklace with a hidden microphone, a lady’s display watch, earrings with speakers, and a ring whose elegant turquoise stone doubles as a nifty scroll-point mouse. Last year, Philips got together with jeans maker Levi Strauss for a limited edition of “wearable electronics garments” — jackets with a GSM mobile and an MP3 player in special pockets, with a small remote control on the front flap of the jacket and a microphone in the collar. The two devices work together, with the music turning itself off when you talk on the phone. (Available only in Europe, all 800 jackets quickly sold out). And about half a dozen companies are working on special glasses that use sophisticated optics to create screen-size images in front of your eyes. One of the more intriguing developments in the industry is the push by some of the biggest companies into what’s become known as “wearables” — computers and accessories we can use on the go, while we’re busy doing other things. Wearables are already widespread in industry, where workers often need access to information but also need to keep their hands free. Workers building aircraft use head-mounted displays and speech-input devices for complex assembly tasks, which frees them from referring to lengthy manuals. British Airways in experimenting with a crew of roaming check-in attendants at Heathrow’s Terminal 4, outfitted with keyboards on their forearms and a mini-display on a headset. Bell Canada sends its service technicians out to fix phone lines wearing a small computer in their pocket, a keyboard or touch-screen strapped to their wrist, and a helmet equipped with an optical display and a digital camera that beams pictures of trouble spots back to the maintenance center, wirelessly. Having quick access to precise instructions while they’re up on some telephone pole lets workers do more work in less time, says Daniel Butler, an executive at Fairfax, Virginia-based Xybernaut, maker of the wearable system BA and Bell Canada use.
Šaltinis: NEWSWEEK
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.

Facebook Comments

New comment


Captcha

Associated articles

The most popular articles

What's the future for EU's online library Europeana?

You can now access books, journals, films, maps etc from across Europe via the EU's online library, Europeana. more »

Letterman details alleged extortion

Late night chat turned serious when comedian David Letterman admitted he had sex with female employees and was being blackmailed for $2-million (USD) over the affairs. more »

Energy efficient tyres to slash fuel bills, CO2 emissions

Last Thursday (1 October) saw an agreement that will lead to the introduction of more efficient tyres for cars and lorries that will cut fuel bills and CO2 emissions. more »

EU Job Days 2009 – job seekers and employers all over Europe seize the opportunity to meet

The European Job Days are taking place around the EU over the next fortnight, with a centrepiece event in Brussels on 3 October. more »

Financial crisis affects women even more than men

Women, especially migrant and/or poor women, have been harder hit by the financial crisis than men, MEPs heard on Wednesday. more »

Greener, leaner city travelling

New EU plan to make local transport efficient and sustainable. more »

Polanski to fight US extradition

Hollywood heavyweights and European cultural figures are rallying behind jailed film director Roman Polanski. more »

Andrei Sakharov - the man behind the prize

By the time of his death in the Moscow winter 20 years ago, Andrei Sakharov had built an international reputation as a nuclear physicist, human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner His fears over the implications of his work led him to call for peaceful coexistence and later for human rights in the USSR. more »

10 nominees for 2009 Sakharov human rights prize

The ten nominations for this year's Sakharov Prize, the EP's prize for defenders of human rights and democracy, have now been put forward and will be officially presented at the end of the month. more »

Lithuania will contribute to promoting women’s leadership in the world

President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė attended a meeting hosted by the President of Liberia Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and the President of Finland Tarja Halonen on Peace and Security through Women's Leadership. more »