Nano-projector passes test
Here’s another sign of progress on the tiny projector front. Explay has demonstrated a matchbox-sized device that can cast a focused image up to 35 inches big. The trick is, how bright and high contrast is it, for those of us with low vision, even outdoors? What will we project it on? Will we have to hold that also, or maintain a stable distance and angle from it, for those of us with impaired dexterity or mobility? These questions nano-fy our enthusiasm.
Explay’s Match-Box Size, Nano-Projector Engine Proves Successful in Tests
Mobile phone doubles as metal detector
Nokia has patented yet another mobile phone function: metal detection. It turns out that the coil embedded in your mobile phone for hearing aid compatibility can also be used to find metal. So now aging mobsters can check for hidden guns and get instructions from Tony Soprano, just not at the same time.
San Diego’s intelligent video system — too smart?
More than a dozen public cameras are automatically scanned by Cernium’s Perceptrak for certain image sequences that might indicate a problem. A falling person is one trigger, so we guess that’s good. But what about the Big Brother issue?
More navigating by mobile phones
In Tokyo you can get information about buildings and businesses by pointing your phone at them and pressing a button. Japanese carrier KDDI has launched a service that combines GPS, GeoVector’s electronic compass, and the Internet. It can guide you towards restaurants, hotels, tourist destinations, etc. With the right combo of additional features, especially speech output, we’ve got great support for people with visual or cognitive impairments. Or at least the Japanese do.
A face only a motherboard could love
Description of a computer that can sense user intention not by plugging directly into the brain but by emulating what people do: reading facial expressions. Could have some interesting potential not only for people with physical disabilities, but also for those whose non-verbal communication is clearer than their verbal communication.
Say “cheese”, you sleaze!
Subway commuters and school kids are beginning to use their mobile phone’s cameras to take a snap out of crime. Safety officials are responding with enthusiasm. Beware, you flashers and candy-handers!
This is a great opportunity for folks with visible disabilities, too often victimized on the streets, to defend themselves.
Mobile devices to get tactile touch screens
Some of the latest software for mobile devices includes haptic feedback — a physical buzz or pulse when you tap certain areas of the screen. This is designed to make you feel as if you’d pressed a real button. But until there is specific feedback on the digit you dialed or the function you activated, touchscreens still exclude many people with disabilities. File under “Close But No Cigar”.