First
it was a roomful. Then it shrunk down to a desk top. And later it moved
to our laps, palms and our attire. Now it's over to Apple's Cook and
his team of tech evangelists to surprise us with what they have up their
'sleeve'. But the history of wearable computing is also a history of
several misses and a few hits. ET traces this history and offers some
glimpse of what one can expect in wearable computing
1961 | Roulette predictor
Operation:
A data-taker would use a cigarette pack-sized analogue computer with
four push buttons to indicate the speed of the roulette wheel
Inventors: Mathematicians Edward O Thorp and Claude Shannon
1967 | Wearable lip-reading aid
Inventor: Hubert Upton, electronics research engineer at Bell Laboratories, USA
Operation: The eyeglass-mounted display of the analogue wearable computer helps user read lips better
1977 | Wearable camerato-tactile vest for the blind
Inventor: CC Collins
Operation: The head-mounted camera converts images into a 1024-point, 10-inch square tactile grid on a vest
1977 | Algebraic calculator watch
Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard
Operation:
Of the 28 tiny keys on the watch face, four were raised for easy fi
nger access and two were recessed but could still be operated with the
fingers. The remaining keys were meant to be pressed with a stylus that
snapped into the clasp of the bracelet
1981 | Backpack-mounted computer to control photographic equipment
Inventor: Steve Mann
Operation:
This body-hugging device was actually a 6502 computer wired into a
steel-frame backpack to control fl ash-bulbs, cameras and other
photographic systems
1990 | Active Badge
Manufacturer: Olivetti Research, UK
Operation: It uses infrared signals from a small transmitter attached to the user's clothing to locate the person in a building
1994 | First wrist computer
Inventors: Edgar Matias and Mike Ruicci of the University of Toronto
Operation: Built from a modifi ed HP 95LX palmtop computer, it has a half-QWERTY keyboard, wearable in the wrist
1997 | The fi rst 'Smart Clothes' fashion show
Centre: Pompidou Centre in Paris
Organisers: Students and faculty of Creapole Ecole de Creation, Paris, and Prof Alex Pentland of MIT, Boston, USA
2013* | Google Glass
Supposed
to be launched by the end of 2013, this wearable computer has the
ability to take photos and record 720p HD video The side of Google Glass
is a touchpad, allowing users to control the device by swiping through a
timeline-like interface displayed on the screen An eBay auction of a
fake Google Glass was pulled out after bids went past $15,000, or Rs 8
lakh!
This yet-to-be-launched device is already facing bans in public places in some American states, owing to privacy concerns
iWatch
Tech
bloggers swear that the much-talked-about gadget from Apple will be out
late 2013 They describe it as a roll-up fl exible display wrist device
that connects to your phone to relay alerts, function as a remote, and
potentially much more Apple remains tight-lipped. "I don't want to be
more specifi c. We have some really great stuff coming in the fall and
all across 2014," said CEO Tim Cook in April this year
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