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"Body Talk" Could Control Gadgets
Fragglebabe writes "The BBC reports that we could soon be controlling our gadgets using small movements of the body, such as a nod of the head. In order to make this possible, 'Audio cloud' technology has been developed by researchers at the University of Glasgow. They say that 'audio clouds could make using mobile devices on the move safer and easier'. According to the article, 'the researchers have developed ways to control gadgets, such as personal digital assistants (PDAs) and music players, using 3D sound for output and gestures for input.'"
inflatable dolls!
So what happens if I start headbanging during my morning drive to work?
I am NOT a man!
I am a free number!
sure we can see the advantages for disabled people but for the able bodied this seems like a solution looking for a problem
there must be some bored execs about
... that nasty, inflammatory mail towards i appear to have sent is the result of my coughing! The mail reader thought i was composing a mail!
Tsuyoikoto ha taisetsu da ne, dakedo namida mo hitsuyousa (Strength is an important thing, but tears too are necessary)
medics will have a hard time diagnosing Parkinsons..
I don't read your sig, why do you read mine?
HCI has not really had any new ideas since the mouse. It is great to see people working on practical ways to interface with mobile devices. I'd love to try this one. I bet using it would give me lots of ideas for new twists on the principle, and for useful applications.
I think we've already proved this concept is silly with the Sharp's V603SH.
Now I can't get this stupid song out of my head. It's the eighties all over again;
Let's get physical, physical,
I wanna get physical, let's get into physical
Let me hear your body talk,
Your body talk, let me hear your body talk
Take the cheese to sickbay, the doctor should see it as soon as possible - B'Elanna Torres, "Learning Curve"
Sure this could be useful, I can see some great uses for disabled people (e.g. it could make using certain devices easier for people who lost their finger(s)).
/. recently?).
/insert a favorite gadget here/.
"The whole thing is about trying to make it more natural and using the right way to control something at the right time."
I think this paragraph sums it up nicely. I always fear these smart phones (PDAs, gadgets or even PCs), because once they start guessing what you want them to do it's fine 95% of the time when they get it right. But those 5% can become a real nightmare (if they take away some low level control from you).
Could be also a bit hard to use for old people with hand tremor (or Parkinson's disease). But I guess you can filter this low amnplitude tremor out (wasn't there an article about a smooth mouse on
So I say yes, but please give me a full backup option to control my
Walking down the street twitching like an epileptic trying to get your PDA to tell your phone to dial your mom.
From (dead) medialab Europe MindGames section, the Relax to Win game.
Philip McDarby, Daragh McDonnell, Rob Burke A racing game in which each person controls a dragon that moves quicker as they relax. The race is competitive and stressful however the person most relaxed wins. Possible applications of this research are in the treatment of stress, anxiety disorder and attention deficit disorder.
AFAIR, their aim was to actually provides games for teaching humans how to control some physiological signals, in order to enable better (simpler, more natural, ... ?) Human/machine interfaces in the future.
Z.
It looks like you want to shag that pretty blonde over there.Would you like be to help with that by
(a) Suggesting some useful chatup lines
(b) Preparing your love pad while you are doing your stufmuffin routine
(c) Adopt a more realistic attitude and explain why that girl would not have sex with you if you were the lasst man on earth
Do not try to read the dupe, thats impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth
What truth?
There is no dupe
Admittedly, I didn't read the article, but I don't think I have to to know this is a bad idea because I've heard it all before.
How the hell is linking tiny gestural movements to PDA/mobile control going to improve control for people "on the go"? Whether, walking or driving, if I'm actively moving from one place to another, my body needs to be involved in the process. If I have to control head motion while driving or walking to control a PDA, my awareness of my surroundings will be worse.
This whole idea of controlling devices with formerly incidental motions is like a recurring bad dream. Wake up. This idea is bad. It will not work. While we can consciously control these motions with severe training, the default state is that the brain does these things automatically. Any communication medium that forces the user to laboriously reprogram their own brain so that formerly automated behaviours have to reside under exclusive conscious control are impractical.
The most successful user input devices (ie. cars, telephones, pencils, keyboards) have always focussed on elements of interaction that are under direct control in the context of the use of that device (ie I don't control my feet while walking, but I do while sitting in a car, because the walking program isn't engaged)
controlling our gadgets using small movements of the body
Can you imagine, what if you could control a device by simply touching it with our finger? We could call it a "button."
D. Adams, 1979 The hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy. chapter 12, first paragraph.
See also: Charade: remote control of objects using free hand gestures (1993)
"Laypeople will see a new idea and wonder 'Why?'.
A scientist will see a new idea and wonder 'Can I get funding for doung this?'"
Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
This last one is key: tense gestures (just as tension in the voice) carry the fact you really want something done, and thus disambiguates your gestures.
More at: Charade: remote control of objects using free hand gestures
Folks,
n s.
we've been hearing about control of gadgets, faucets and light bulbs using heat, remote control, computer control, nodding, winking, clapping, voice control and other electronic marvels for as long as I can remember (ie the mid 1970s).
Yet, we're still using light switches whose fundamental design hasn't changed since Edison. We still have doors that open or close (instead of slide to one side a la "Star Trek") manually using something we old-timers call a "door handle". We still open a faucet which is entirely mechanical in design.
Face it, these hyped-up-but-never-deployed electronic marvels are poor quality alternatives to straightforward mechanical design, and always liable to go wrong (especially during a power-outage).
We'll still be using the same stuff in fifty years - just get over it. There are more compelling uses for technology than these solutions-for-problems-that-don't-require-solutio
Tubby or not tubby. Fat is the question
so by the time i finish my morning walk, i have had downloaded premium ringtones, deleted some apps, ordered truckloads of food, and conspired to bomb the white house. all unknowingly, seemingly.
...if the accelerometers in your phone sense that you are weaving between lanes, then it provides a mild electric shock and hangs up. If you go around a traffic circle more than 360 degrees, it cuts the ignition and calls the local constabulary.
Oh, and if you download a polyphonic ringtone based on an Abba song, it shocks you to death on the spot.
*Steve Nods*
*Device in pocket starts playing music loudly, he reaches for it with his left arm*
*arm movement triggers cell-phone ringtone demo system*
"BAH!" yells Steve.
*Vocal command automatically dials 911, police are dispatched*
"Calm down, Steve! You're only making it worse! Stop!"
*Voice command "Stop" recognized on Steve's computer, closing all programs*
"Noooo!!"
"Help!"
*Police department dialed a second time, ambulances dispatched*
"We can't stop it!! It's too laaaate!"
"hey, could you pass me a paper towel? er.. I mean... DEPLOY ABSORBTION PANEL!"
Fighter pilots have head tracking on HMD (helmet mounted displays) that make it easier for them to target enemy aricraft.
They're available commercially too (for flight sims, etc), bit pricey though...
http://www.vrealities.com/logitech.html
Coding Monkey.org - Spanging the heavy spade of truth into t
Just think of the abuse you could do to users!
"To start the application you have to wave your arms like a chicken and jump up and down"
"No no! VIGOROUSLY shake the handheld.. your not doing it fast enough"
"No! Don't do that! If you move all the files will be deleted! And don't even think about sneezing! You don't want do delete everything on the network do you!?! Stay absolutly still in that position till I find a solution"
Oooo the power! Bwhahahahaha!
Warning, comments may not have been passed by the sanity department of my brain.
Let's see: Cellphone Headsets: talking when nobody is around. This tech: gestulating wildly for no apparent reason. I've seen some early adopters around here (pushing shopping carts for some reason); now I know what they were doing!
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