more thoughts on computerized glasses

The computerized glasses that Claire makes for Sharon are able to do something that we can only hope will eventually be a feature of the glasses that will be on the market:

Promotional image via Magic Leap

From the third book of Sharon of Two Salems, page 40:

“How many fountains do you think have ever been here in City Hall Park?” she asked Ellen, taking her glasses off to get an unobstructed view of the park without words and names of things floating everywhere.

“I think your friend knows the answer to that better than I do,” Ellen laughed, jostling her baby as she talked. “Claire, is that something you’ve come across in your studies—how many fountains there were here?”

Claire cleared her throat a little too loudly, causing Sharon to look over at her. That didn’t even sound human, she thought.

Claire stared at Sharon and tapped the corner of her thick, horn-rimmed glasses.

Oh, she wants me to put my glasses back on. As Sharon did so, she turned back to Ellen and said apologetically, “I’m really blind without these.”

The second they were on, Claire said, “In 1842, the Croton Fountain was built there.” She pointed to a plaque set in the stone walkway, not far from where they stood. Immediately a colossal fountain appeared in Sharon’s glasses.

She stepped back and stifled a gasp. It partially enveloped a side of the present-day fountain, was much larger, and had spectacular jets of water. It looks like a painting, though, Sharon thought, and the water isn’t moving.

It'll be one thing to have text displayed in the first version of Google Glass, but what about images displayed related to the location one is at? And not only just that, but also having the images "stay in place" (relative to the landscape) as the wearer moves his/her head around?

I found this on Gizmodo: "How Magic Leap Is Secretly Creating a New Alternate Reality." At the time the article was written last November, they were already speculating this kind of visual phenomenon (the animation above is from Magic Leap).

The writer, Sean Hollister, says:

If the results of my digging are correct, this is what Magic Leap intends to build: a Google Glass on steroids that can seamlessly blend computer-generated graphics with the real world. A headset packed with fiber optic projectors, crazy lenses, and loads of cameras. An augmented reality that you'll actually believe in.

Having this kind of functionality would revolutionize museum tours, and turn outdoor environments into museums as well (as happened for Sharon in the excerpt above, when a painting of the fountain that used to exist is superimposed over its original location). Conceivably, voice commands and eye movements could make the tour interactive.

Go to Magic Leap's website! The images they have there are SPECTACULAR. To be honest with you, I can't wait!