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Hardware

Wireless Wearable Linux Media Computer 47

Posted by Hemos from the super-cool dept.
Number Five writes "Art+Com announces UrbanJunglePack, a wearable Linux computer designed for jounalists that uses a camcorder and microphone to record photos, sound, text, and video, which can then be transmitted back to a base station using a built-in wireless phone. " It's ready for testing-I'm willing to test.
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Wireless Wearable Linux Media Computer More

Wireless Wearable Linux Media Computer

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  • Umm.. I wouldn't recomend keeping it on your belt.. Not if you plan on having any kids, that is..
  • Thats what i would like to have.

    A cellular phone embeded in a digital camera or
    any wireless system to upload your pictures
    to a server no need for memory cards.

  • There will be another Linux-based multimedia wearable demoed at
    SIGGRAPH this year. It will do location-based context awareness,
    real-time video processing, and hardware-accelerated 3D graphics. Cooler still,
    it fits into a nicely tailored vest/jacket combo, and will use an
    embroidered fabric keypad (conductive thread/capacitive coupling)
    for input.

    Unlike the wearable in this story, it isn't currently set up to
    broadcast video back to a base station. Instead, the video input is
    used in conjunction with a small head-mounted camera to do object
    recognition for annotation (assuming we get the vision code ported in
    time). Since the demo will run in-doors, we are using IR beacons
    rather than GPS for the location data, since the chance of getting a
    clean GPS signal inside the LA convention center is zero.

    As the user wanders around the exhibition floor, the wearable will
    annotate the environment with 3D and 2D content, and relay information
    back to a base-station using 10Mbit wireless networking. Annotation
    will include web pages, which the user will be able to brows and
    navigate using the fabric keyboard. The system weighs slightly more
    than a laptop, but the weight is distributed throughout the
    ergonomically design vest; the only obvious sign that the user is
    wearing a computer is the HMD, which in this case is full-color VGA
    resolution.

    Attribution time:

    The demo application is "City of News" by Flavia Sparacino, much of
    the hardware hacking is being done by Steve Schwartz, and I'm working
    on the localization system so that the wearable knows where it is (and
    hopefully what it's looking at). Sandy Pentland heads up the Vision
    and Modeling Group at the MIT Media Lab where this work is being done,
    and we are also getting help from Thad Starner who was one of the early wearable pioneers at the lab before becoming a professor at Georgia
    Tech. Numerous other MIT students are also contributing to this
    project.

    More information on wearables at MIT can be found at The MIT Wearable [mit.edu]
    Computing Web Page, although this project does not yet have a
    link.
  • This is nice for news organizations. But notice that super-8 cameras and camcorders did not cause a tremendous expansion in availability of feature films, and have had only a small impact on news footage. Most people who go out to shoot pictures come back with snapshots and home movies. It takes an artist/professional to shoot footage that other people want to see.
  • >If you hooked this puppy up to the Sony
    >video goggles we've been hearing so
    >much about, turn

    The device uses the Sony video goggles. See their FAQ [artcom.de].
  • I have always wondered about this when it came to science fiction: Is it art imitating life or life imitating art?

    Do we do technical things because they are aesthetically pleasing or do these guys (Stephenson, Gibson, Sterling) have a certain way of percieveing things about society?
  • I think the product name must be the best product name in quite a while, espcecially with the example mentioned at the end of the article.

    I want to know who came up with the name Swiffer [swiffer.com]. Ugh.

    ~afniv
    "Man könnte froh sein, wenn die Luft so rein wäre wie das Bier"

  • old news (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I might be wrong but hasn't this already been used to report from the Love Parade in Berlin last weekend?
    Hm, if memory serves it worked fine in the test the day before and failed when they actually wanted to use it, because the mobile phone it used to connect couldn't connect. There were too many others who tried to use their phones. ;-)
  • Wow with Lucent's new advancements in Wireless bandwidth and advances in wearable wireless hardware the new century will bring new life to wireless. I guess it's a matter of time before we as humans will walk the earth much like the borg with Intel's internet tracking as our personal Borg signature.
  • All it needs is gratuitous laser pointers duct-taped all over it
  • Also see this link to Wired (http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/1 8982.html) Obviously MIT are the place to be for wearable computing... I liked the idea of using the walking motion for power generation.

    So how long until we can get one for less than the $6.5k xybernaut (http://www.xybernaut.com/F00005.htm). As has been mentioned by others if you plug a series of currently available items together this becomes MUCH cheaper.

    Then its "just" a question of getting the inter-operability between the items to work.
  • Here's a real application for a cheaper version of this device: I want to wear a recording device that captures voice-quality audio and basic b/w video, all day, every day at work. I want every event and conversation I have to be recorded and transmitted offsite, say, to a recorder in my car. 8-10 hours of recording a day at relatively low quality ought to be do-able, resulting in a couple of CD's a week. A flat-panel microphone & ccd camera (periscoped to look like a pen), battery and transmitter ought to fit in my pocket just like a pack of smokes.

    With the proliferation of monitoring technology being deployed throughout the corporate world, it only makes sense that the individual have a method of leveling the playing field. Imagine sitting in a project meeting when some inept program manager starts blamestorming you for something s/he screwed up. You say "Hold on a minute. Let's listen to what you told me 6 weeks ago at lunch about something else being a higher priority..." And just imagine the instant reduction or justified rise in sexual harassment claims -- load the mpeg file for that day, hit playback and watch the actual events.

    Paranoid, yes. But I can think of half a dozen instances last year off the top of my head when I would have loved to be able to correct someone else's rather liberal interpretation of reality. In some cases, it might be the only thing that would save someone's job. My employer watches and records me (email, phone, video of the premises, etc); why can't I watch and record them?

    Oh, fancy that. Corporate security's knocking on the window.

  • Sounds like a good idea - but, you would first have to mention the monitoring to those around you, I believe (something having to do with wiretap laws, I think).

    They make "lipstick" size cameras that are cheap, and also audio/video transmitters. Clip one of those to your glasses (or make a headband mount if you don't wear glasses) and an omnidirectional mike on your lapel, add the transmitter in your shirt pocket. Put the receiver in your car with the computer digitizing and storing everything.

    I know I have simplified this greatly (one question that comes up is how to get the transmission to your car if you are far away, or in a concrete style building - would 900 GHz work?), but you get the idea.

    I think something like this could be built for around $500.00 (US). I think you could even do a similar full version of the UJP for around $1000.00 - just don't use the latest/greatest tech.

    1. Use a pair of i/o glasses for the display ($300 on eBay).
    2. B/W lipstick camera taped to side of display (around $100, various distributors).
    3. Old Pentium laptop in a backpack - around $500 on eBay.
    4. Large HD for laptop - $300 on eBay.
    5. Linux - free.

    Notice that eBay supplies a lot of this, but you could also shop around at various used/surplus dealers for the stuff as well (one was offering the VictorMaxx StuntMaster for $60.00 - could be used as well). Also, you will need a way to get video in/out of the laptop for the HMD/camera - and the laptop will need multimedia capabilities. But the fact is, this can all be done CHEAPLY. It doesn't have to cost $30,000.

  • As one of the developers at Art+Com I can tell you it was not licensing costs which let us use Linux. It was stability, remote maintenance, ease of programming and configuration.

    Regards,
    Dirk
  • Oh, yeah. That too. :)

    But you have to admit. It CAN be an issue and will be an issue in the future for other people for very interesting niche projects. (The 'matchbox' web server comes to mind)..

  • The amateur radio community has been using realtime GPS coordinates in wireless transmissions for years now. Its called APRS and its on many platforms (I don't know if its available for Linux yet), including the PalmPilot. Kenwood now has a handheld tranceiver that has APRS capability built in. Just plug in your GPS, and away you go. As for video, just use Amateur Television. For digital stills you can use SSTV. Want to see what direction a camera is pointed? Just use an electronic compass, and configure your handheld computer to send the information as a directional vector. Want to send a short text message to the camera operator? Simply use APRS to send a short text message. This system is bidirectional in respects to its data path. APRS can be adapted for any wireless communication path (IE Cellphone, Commercial Radio, Amateur Radio, and Satellite). for more info checkout www.tapr.org. What? You're not an Ham Radio Operator? go to http://www.arrl.org for more info. My point being - don't let the marketing blitz lead you to think this is NEW technology, and it definately can be done for less than US$30,000! - Tallyman
  • of course, stephenson's snow crash predates virtual light.
    The concept of mediated reality is starting to become trendy. See a military application at:

    http://www.eetimes.com/story/OEG19990712S0054

  • In Star Trek 6, they used gadgets similar to this to film the crew boarding the Enterprise B. Now, it's a reality! Just like the Palm Pilot, the Tricorder, and other nifty things.

    This sounds like a pretty neat idea. The price tag, however, is a little ridiculous. It will be interesting to see if these things take off. But, the advantages of such a compact system are enormous. What a great way to gather data.
  • Maxheadroom, here we come...!
  • Seriously, this sounds like something straight out of Snow Crash. You know, the guys who are constantly uploading images and commentary to this great huge database in the hope that someone will use it, and pay for it?

    On the other hand, if this thing ever got to a reasonable price (it's currently listed at around $30K), there'd be a whole lot of geeks wearing these things to cons. I can just see it now....

    "Ok, this girl in the chainmail bra is just plain yummy! I hope all you geeks at home are getting a good look at this!"

    Of course, that's what *I'd* do, since I'm a lech. :)
  • I'll test one as soon as they get it working here in the states...(I might even be tempted to buy one if the price drops several tens of thousands of dollars (30Gs! Wow thats alot)

    s
  • Although that had nothing to do with the topic I thought that I would just thought I would clear that up

  • Re:Hm, I wonder... (Score:3)

    by John Fulmer ( 5840 ) on Thursday July 15, 1999 @10:47AM (#1800410)
    Linux is embedded in the device, not the user interface (which is JUST A PROGRAM). The UI would be more appliance-like, not a console.

    You know, I'm suprised at the number of people who equate Bourne shell==Unix! (or X==Unix for that matter). In systems like this, the OS is just there to handle the dog work of memory management, buffering, provide an environment for the UI, and communications.

    jf

  • ) (Score:1)

    by sl1200 ( 35411 )
    bah... what type of programer am I forget to close my parens...
  • I think they show Max Headroom reruns on Bravo on Saturday afternoons - I've seen it a few times recently. If anything, the series is even more relevant now than when it was made.
  • Yes, when I submitted this item at lunchtime today, I remarked that I couldn't understand how so much coverage had been written without mentioning Edison Carter's rig from "Max Headroom".

    Now it's found it way into /., and it still takes a comment from _sprocket_ to point the similarity out.

    Are we just the only ones old enough to remeber this show?

  • This reminds me of the Gargoyle's in SnowCrash.
    At least I think that's what they were called.
    Internet wired, video enabled data hounds.
  • Anyone planning on doing any kind of long term research on these reporters to see what happens to their brain while wearing these :-)

    I can see it now, surgeon generals warning: discontinue use when your head starts to feel warm.

    Spyky
  • Actually, what it really sounds like to me (from reading the pages on the UJP) is the glasses out of Gibson's Virtual Light

    One of their goals for this is to have you be able to stand on the street and look at a building, and have the UJP use your GPS and compass to identify the building and start mining (and displaying) information for you.

    The difference being, of course, that the glasses in Virtual Light weren't so much a computer that had this function. Their job was to provide an overlay on reality for the user with this mined information. That was the only purpose. And of course, that they were just glasses with nothing else attached :)

    -Todd

    ---
  • Neal Stephenson's predicted another development. Lots of you have probably read Snow Crash, his second big book. If not, know that he invented the term "Gargoyles", men who wire themselves up with infrared vision, microwave radar, network link for database searches, laser retina-scanners, and go around collecting intelligence on whatever they happen to see. Looks like this little thing is yet another step along the road to the bionic man.

    If you hooked this puppy up to the Sony video goggles we've been hearing so much about, turned them to "transparent", and wrote some custom code, you could get a HUD for your daily activites. Imagine: [[AUTOMOBILE APPROACHING - SPEED : 75 KPH - LICENSE NO. K7L 3N8 REGISTERED TO WILLIAM GATES - RETINAL SCAN IDENTITY CONFIRMED - RANGE : 76 METERS AND CLOSING]]

  • I wonder, though, if regular folks will begin to hold actual Gargoyles in as much disdain as the people in Snow Crash, did...

    Though, like you other folks, that was the first thing I thought of. :) Now to get my copy of SC back from the "friend" who has stolen it!

    Sam Jooky
  • Although I believe that this is a great idea, I don't know how easy it would be to use. Unless everything comes pre-configured with an easy to understand interface it might not do so well. Linux itself, I have to admit, is not intended for the occasional computer user, most people find it difficult to use the first time around (especially if you have been shielded inside Windows all your life and have never been in a console environment). Most people prefer to use a easier OS like Windows. If they did start making these portable computers they would have to take that into account before they would become popular.

  • "UrbanJunglePack" damn do I need one of those.
  • So far, this has brought up allusions to several sci-fi portrayals of these things:

    1. Edison Carter's SatCam in Max Headroom (my all-time favorite sci-fi show, but a bit too close to reality for the network folks, I suppose...)

    2. the Gargoyles from Neil Stephenson's Snowcrash (maybe I'll have to read that someday...)

    3. The vid-capture things that were shown in the Star Trek movie where Admiral Kirk returns to the bridge of the Enterprise.

    I'd like to add fourth, which certainly predates all three: the "newstapers" as described in Larry Niven's Future History Series (I don't recall which book, but possibly one or more of the Ringworld series.)

    Are there any that predate Niven's work?

  • The REAL Value of Linux/Open Source (Score:3)

    by John Fulmer ( 5840 ) on Thursday July 15, 1999 @10:58AM (#1800423)
    This is a great example of what I have been seeing as the true destiny of computer systems.

    Here you have an advanced system developed by a reletively underfunded organization. They apparently have hardware experience, and some development experience, but needed an OS for their system. Licensing a commerical OS for this would be very expensive for development and the limited number of systems they want to build. The cost per unit would probably have to be almost half again what they are currently asking just to pay for the the embedded OS and break even. Using an embedded version of Linux, however, severely reduces the development and manufacturing costs, and makes this possible.

    Linux, Open Source, and free software allow people and companies to do this. It makes the OS a very inexpensive commodity and enables development for things that would not be economicly possible otherwise.

    Ain't world domination grand?

    jf
  • This really reminds me of the Gargoyles that worked for CIC in Snow Crash (If you haven't read it do so yesterday). Very fun stuff, kinda scary though, if you're that paranoid.
  • As the article mentioned the device's first public test was at the "Loveparade", the massive open air techno party in Berlin, Germany.

    The test failed because it relied on cell phone communications to transfer data.

    With so many youngsters sporting cell phones (the "Loveparade" was visited by 1.5 million people), the wireless communications network in the event's area went down...

    Sources: Report at Heise Newsticker [heise.de], more info and pictures at Telepolis [heise.de].

  • A reporter's POV (Score:3)

    by gavinhall ( 33 ) on Thursday July 15, 1999 @01:23PM (#1800426)
    Posted by Mike@ABC:

    This could be pretty cool, but they could stand to do a little miniaturization on it. If I walked up to someone wearing that behemoth and started asking questions, they'd probably call a cop.

    Seriously, though, getting data to and from a person in the field is damn tough, especially audio and video. These folks could be on to something. If they could just build off of Via or Xybernaut's tech, though, they might save some space. Gotta keep the Linux, though...Windows boot up time is a drag when you've got breaking news.

  • That's EXACTLY what I was thinking. I just finished Snow Crash last night. Reading this the only thing that came to my mind was "wow, the world's first gargoyle" now all we need are the head mounted displays, millameter radar, infared processing in real time, and retinal scanners. I know I'd be intrested in getting one when the price drops and the features show up....
    -Ted
  • There was a breif piece on the (New Zealand) news last night about the police force in Australia (I think) getting the same sort of technology.

    As near as I could tell, all the gear, including a little camera, was built into the hat--it looked like a cross between a blueberry imac and an old-fashioned policeman's helmet.

  • Pictures and Story for Urban Jungle Pack (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Here is a nice story about the Urban Jungel Pack from Telepolis (german). It was testet on the Love Parade in Berlin :-)
    Andre
    http://www.heise.de/tp/deutsch/inhalt/co/5069/1. html

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