Smart glasses are the next innovation in the field of wearable smart technologies. They can bring the technology in our smartphones directly to our eyes and corners. In 2013, Google introduced the first smart glasses. Google Glass Explorer eventually became a commercial failure but since then. Numerous companies have launched their version of smart glasses, and this field is always growing and becoming more exciting. Stay up to date with technology.
What are smart glasses?
The term “smart glasses” refers to devices that bring technology to the screen, which you can display on the lenses. Either it is reflectable on it, or it can be a separate component that provides information to the user without distraction when you don’t need it.
Smart glasses work just like what you see in some science fiction movies. The purpose of smart cameras is to enable wireless communication with the outside world for the eyes. And have extraordinary features such as touchless control, volume control, and various lenses. Imagine being able to watch movies, browse the web, or read books wherever you are without being noticeable by those around you. This may seem strange at first glance, but it is a picture of the near future in any case!
What is the difference between virtual reality and augmented reality?
As smart glasses become increasingly closer to our imaginations of the future. Marketing teams use new words like MR, VR, AR, and XR to sell their products.
Augmented Reality (AR): Augmented reality creates an interaction between the real world and the screen of the user’s device. This image will be displayable on the user’s eye in smart glasses. The image of the real world you see in the camera can be adorn with virtual objects on the monitor! Imagine Pokemon Go or Harry Potter Wizards Unite. The only difference is that this game can only be seen by yourself and the Pokémon around you. Another example of augmented reality is Snapchat and its augmented reality project LensStudio.
Virtual Reality (VR): Virtual reality usually removes the outside world and takes you to a virtual world where you can interact with the objects and environments of that world. The various devices that work with VR are the HTC Vive, Google Cardboard, and the Oculus Rift.
Combined Reality (MR): This is likely to be the future of virtual reality and augmented reality. Combine both of these technologies. And it allowed you to see the real-world components of your surroundings and augmented reality elements in the other world. Microsoft is working on a combination of reality with a project called HoloLens, which allows users to view a virtual hologram in a fixed three-dimensional position in front of them.
What are the components of smart glasses?
For smart glasses to function similarly to smartphones and other devices, they must be easily control, have multiple sensors, and produce visual and audio outputs. Here are the practical parts of smart glasses and how they work.
Audio capability
Smart glasses can make calls or watch videos. This function, and many similar functions, require the audio output to be possible. Instead of using speakers, some smart glasses transmit sound through bone conduction to the cochlea (ear bone) rather than through the air. This involves sending vibrations from the spectacle frame to the cochlea through the skull and bypassing the eardrum.
Microphone
Most smart glasses have a small microphone that can record your voice and the sounds around you. This is essential for smart glasses that can control sound, call function, or record video with sound.
Processor
Like any other computer, smart glasses require a central processing unit (CPU). This processor is usually holdable in one of the frame arms, so it should be small. Usually, the CPU is similar to a smartphone processor.
Human-Computer Interface (HCI)
This is how a person controls their smart glasses. The human-computer interface must be applied to the glasses, meaning that common controls such as a touch screen or a computer mouse are inappropriate for communication. Instead, smart glasses can be controlled with one or more combinations of the following:
- buttons
- Speech recognition
- Gesture recognition
- Eye-tracking
- Remote control (via smartphones)
Lenses
Like regular glasses, many smart glasses can be equipp with different lenses. These lenses can be prescription lenses (for poor eyesight), blue light filter lenses for computer use, or smart lenses that darken depending on the ambient light conditions.
Camera
Many smart glasses require a camera. The first glasses, Google Glass Explorer, were attacked because they constantly recorded the activities of people around them. And posed an important legal and ethical problem for any smart glasses. The camera is useful for filming and analysis with glasses. So that with it, the use of augmented reality becomes possible. Some newer smart glasses do not have a camera and only have audio capabilities.
Challenges of making smart glasses display
The most challenging part of developing smart glasses so far has been the display. Let’s look at some augmented reality display technologies in smart glasses. There are two main types of displays for smart glasses. The first is the curved mirror screen, and the second is the waveguide screen. A curved mirror works by placing an image on it that reflects light directly to the viewer’s eye. The problem with the curved mirror approach is that the device has to be raised, and the image is less sharp or sharp. Waveguides, on the other hand, are a collection of newer technologies. These include:
- Differential waveguide
- And holographic waveguide
- Reflective waveguide
- Virtual Retina Display
The waveguide works with the projected bending light in front of your eyes to display a visual field (including three-dimensional augmented reality objects). Light is transmitted through a piece of plastic or translucent glass, which is designed to reflect light along with the material. It is then projected in front of the eye along the waveguide and finally places an image directly on the eye.
One of the problems with waveguides is the limited field of view they provide. The HoloLens waveguide, for example, provides a field of view of 30 to 50 degrees, while normal human vision is about 220 degrees. Some claims about waveguides with a field of view above 100 degrees, but none of them have yet passed the theoretical proof stage. The main problem is that increasing the field of view means increasing the waveguide’s size and the glass’s protrusion.
Another challenge is the sharpness of the images. Smart glasses should have a high-resolution screen to be realistic and specify details (such as text). The challenge is that, unlike a screen that you can see directly, smart glasses have a sophisticated optical system that can reduce the resolution. In addition to other problems such as color accuracy and real-world distortion, creating a high-quality display is challenging.
What can smart glasses do?
Smart glasses have been in the news for many years. One of the milestones of smart glasses in 2012; There was a time when Google announced the development of Google glasses and the unveiling of the Microsoft HoloLens.
Smart glasses are a product that still needs to evolve and be further developed. Given the potential of these computing devices, there is no doubt that they will be used in more applications or daily. Smart glasses, like regular glasses, can do many different things. Some glasses change the lens according to the external environment, some allow us to take pictures of what we see, publish them on social networks, and others we can define as a small version of our phone screen. The
Like other devices, not all smart glasses models use the same technology. We can find models with various cameras, GPS sensors, wireless modules for data transfer, buttons, microphones, and more. The user can communicate with the system in different ways depending on the model of the device, such as sound, signs, or swiping fingers.
What are the uses of smart glasses? The
Smart glasses have a promising future and can have many applications in various fields:
- These glasses are slowly appearing in the industry and helping employees be more efficient and improve their work every day. The use of smart glasses in complex assemblies in factories allows the operator to see the parts that need to be done to perform the process and how to do them. This leads to significant improvements in quality, efficiency, and production cycle time.
- In the realm of security, thanks to capturing images through smart glasses, we can compare them to a database at any time to find what we need. Chinese police use this method to find and track down suspects.
- A very special application of smart glasses was an application created by a firefighter named Patrick Jackson, which allowed the user to see the designs of buildings at any time or to find a fire hydrant nearby.
- In the streets and with the help of augmented reality, by focusing our eyes on an institution, we get all the information available and related to it on the web, such as criticisms of its performance or the like.
Another example of the use of smart glasses is the issue of advertising. For example, just by looking at the advertising poster of a movie, we can see the trailer.
- Voice commands are an essential part of smart glasses devices, as our voice controls many smart glasses. Some of the features that come with it include making calls, taking photos or videos with a simple voice command, or making requests with assistants like Google Home.
- One of the applications that attract the most attention is the possibility that people with limited or blind eyesight can read texts or recognize obstacles in their path with the help of smart glasses.
- The image quality provided by smart glasses means that they can be used for training and provide remote consultation for medical care. Over the past few years, smart glasses have become important in this area. A notable event occurred in 2013 when a group of Ohio Medical School students witnessed a first-person computer room operating room surgery.
- We can find smart sports glasses, many of which focus on the cyclist responsible for monitoring the activities we perform and displaying them on the screen.
- Other notable applications are safe driving, which allows the driver to detect when a person is asleep, provides a variety of applications for companies, and provides inventory control, accident management, or remote support.
The future of smart glasses with augmented reality
Smart glasses have come a long way since Google’s first attempt. There are now dozens of smart glasses manufacturers, and this technology is advancing very fast. With the new unveiling of the development of these glasses, which offers a better field of view and clarity than the previous glasses, the future of augmented reality looks exciting.