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Gesture Recognition Without Batteries
An anonymous reader sends this news from the University of Washington:
"[C]omputer scientists have built a low-cost gesture recognition system that runs without batteries and lets users control their electronic devices hidden from sight with simple hand movements. The prototype, called 'AllSee,' uses existing TV signals as both a power source and the means for detecting a user's gesture command (PDF). 'This is the first gesture recognition system that can be implemented for less than a dollar and doesn't require a battery,' said Shyam Gollakota, a UW assistant professor of computer science and engineering. 'You can leverage TV signals both as a source of power and as a source of gesture recognition.' The researchers built a small sensor that can be placed on an electronic device such as a smartphone. The sensor uses an ultra-low-power receiver to extract and classify gesture information from wireless transmissions around us. When a person gestures with the hand, it changes the amplitude of the wireless signals in the air. The AllSee sensors then recognize unique amplitude changes created by specific gestures."
As someone who used to own a TV with rabbit ears, I claim prior art on the use of strange gestures and body positions to control devices.
How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
It's a receiver that doesn't require a power source, but to say change the channel on a TV, it needs to be connected to some sort of transmitter that DOES require a power source.
I suppose some killjoys will complain that the parts of the world most in need of low power tech are also those most lacking in the ambient signals needed to make this work. Pffft! This is simply brilliant.
so it works in a big open park in the middle of a city. it doesn't work at all in the middle of a farm, or between cities. It's sketchy on the street between two buildings. And it's intermittant in the underground parking garage.
tvision rabbit ears always worked well. they never needed crazy adjusting, nor aluminum foil.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theremin
This isn't exactly a new concept, just used in a new way.
I'm throwing things down on my breadboard as I speak.
Think about it this way, Radio waves are just electromagnetic waves like light. It's all around us. Our eyes can detect it bouncing off other things. This is just a eye that can detect the radio waves reflecting off of things. Astronomers do this all the time with radio telescopes, which I would figure these guys used a bunch of their concepts for this.
The really major part of doing this is knocking out the noise to be able to discern the motion. That, I expect, would have to be using doppler effect techniques. All of these things have been really been developed for meteorology, astronomy, radar, etc. This is just bringing the idea to the near field.
Looking at the oscilloscope is really very cool how well it's filtered out and is really only the motion signal.
As these devices get closer and closer to "invisible" technology, it starts to lend some credibility to the idea that someday humans will be able to be retrofitted with various ESP-like abilities...
Ok, break out your tinfoil hats *now*
I wish I had a good sig, but all the good ones are copyrighted
Without batteries? Bullshit.
A glance at the video shows it lighting a LED. Where does that power come from?
It's a very old idea. Passive Radar was first demonstrated in 1935
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...