Electronic Eyeglasses Change Prescription On Command

There's a new breed of spectacles that modify your sight for every occasion. Developed by a company called PixelOptics, emPower electronic focusing eyewear does exactly what it sounds like: change prescription with help from a microprocessor that alters the transparent liquid crystal lense. The technology, which has been in development for years, doesn't come cheap--the glasses start at $1,250. Continue reading on Fastcompany.

Or watch the video to see how it works. Be warned...this video is very sales-y (aka, cheesy) since they are targeting eyewear companies, not consumers:

A suit that alters your world

Designer Maxence Parache has created Hyper(reality), which alters the perception of our environment using an augmented reality helment, an interactive glove and a Microsoft Kinect system. The experience allows you to navigate through a 3D environment as if you're in an entirely new world.

The experience is composed of a helmet with high definition video glasses, an Arduino glove with force sensors that controls the 3D view, and a harness for the kinect sensor. Designed and implemented for museum curation, Hyper(reality) allows the user to experience the architecture and various collections in an immersive and multi-sensory way.

Continue reading on Yanko Images from maxenceparache.com

Body monitoring for healthier living

Cnet's Nafe Needdleman discusses an emerging trend around the collection of data streams about what we do, how we feel and how we move called the Quantified Self movement. In this Reporter Roundtable episode, he explores how it applies to healthcare and interviews two entrepreneurs who are working on a subset of the quantified self movement: body monitoring. Both their companies have the goal of making us more aware of ourselves. The first guest is Monisha Perkash, CEO of Lumoback, which is an adhesive patch that you wear to track and measure your posture. She talks about how we're swimming in data and how we can turn the data into something that is truly meaningful to help us improve our lives.

"We're now wearing code. We can now extend the power of computing from our phones and computers to our own bodies as a platform for innovation." says Monisha Perkash.

The second guest is Jef Holove of Basis, which is a sensor array in the form of a wrist watch that monitors heart rate, temperature, sweat levels, and movement. He talks about Consumer-approachable idea of collecting data about your body and turning it into insight about your health that everyday people understand.

Needdleman challenges the ideas by asking about security, whether or not these types of solutions are truly useful for us, and what's next for Lumoback and Basis.

Watch the video on cnet »

A way finding aid for the visually impaired

[gallery] A group of students from Simon Fraser University have developed a concept to help improve the lifestyle of the visually impaired in a meaningful way through one of the most important senses for visually impaired: touch. Point Locus is a way finding garment. The project consists of an electronic vest that communicates with a GPS unit and a simple language of vibration signals that are fed through two vibrating pager motors located on the triceps. The vibrations provide directions that help you navigate through your environment.

The team developed the project by interviewing visually impaired members of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind. During the interviews, individuals with impaired vision expressed to the team a desire for greater independence. Currently, traveling long distances or through unfamiliar locations was an insurmountable burden, forcing them to ask for help from people with vision, or use transportation going directly to their destination. Such direct transport was expensive, and rare, making it unreliable. Visually impaired users are already able to navigate their immediate surroundings very well, but run into issues when it comes to targeting places, and being aware of where they currently are the farther they go.

With the team's solution,  the visually impaired will be able to perform long distance way finding, and travel to both far-off and unfamiliar places without assistance, while still using their familiar tools such as white canes and guide dogs to navigate through their immediate space.

Contnue reading on Point Locus Images from Point Locus

Adding fashion to wearable electronics

[gallery] From Nokia's fashion-focused L'Amour Collection that turned phones into hand-held jewelry done way back in '05, I've enjoyed watching companies and designers use fashion to differentiate their products. If you wear it, shouldn't it be fashionable?

Companies are turning to fashionistas to add a new spin to their wearable electronics. And who's better to do this now than Lady Gaga? A bit of an anomaly, Lady Gaga is able to straddle music, art, fashion, AND product design. Her latest foray into product design includes "Heartbeats by Lady Gaga".

Heartbeats embody the trinity of my human-being, with one additional vow: that SOUND matters. Wear heartbeats, love each other, and celebrate the art and lifestyle of music.

...says Gaga. The self-inspired design, including every detail developed with Lady Gaga, is both a unique reflection of her style and fashion sense as well as her commitment to the sound quality of her music and the way it's heard.

Continue reading on Tech Radar. Images from Gadget Nano, yellowchunymonkey.

Turn signal glove for cyclers

Cycling is becoming more and more popular, especially during summer months in the Pacific Northwest and in cities that are designed for biking. With the activity, however, comes danger. Just in Seattle alone, there have been a number of accidents and even deaths in the biking community. So naturally, I've been seeing a lot of technology-enfused gear that addresses safety issues, including this new product on Kickstarter from Portland, Or-based inventor, Jack O'Neal.

Inspired by Leah Buechley's DIY turn signal jacket, YouTurn is a patent pending motion-activated signaling system for cyclists. Using accelerometer technology, it reads the position of the riders hand in three-dimensional space, then activates one of two designated light patterns, quickly and accurately communicating the rider’s intention to nearby motorists.

More on Kickstarter Image from Kickstarter