If only Leonard Nimoy were here to see a Star Trek fan dream come true. It would be nearly perfect, as the latest news regarding the Star Trek universe is certainly something Mr. Spock would applaud.
A team of Tel Aviv University researchers is bringing the Star Trek "tricorder" technology into reality, tapping smartphone technology to make it happen.
For those who don't identify as trekkies – or remember every single thing from the television series – the tricorder was a handheld intelligent device that could collect data in seconds. It helped manage the Starfleet, assisted the crew in determining whether something was dangerous and facilitated the navigation of unknown lands.
Researchers from Tel Aviv University's School of Electrical Engineering have meshed optical components and image processing software to essentially create a tricorder, or what's being called a powerful hyperspectral sensor that can identify an object's chemical components.
Working with a team of researchers at the Unispectral Technologies firm, TAU Professor David Mendlovic and his doctoral student Ariel Raz have patented an optical component for the tricorder built off today's microelectromechanical (MEMS) technology.
"The optical element acts as a tunable filter and the software – an image fusion library – would support this new component and extract all the relevant information from the image," said Mendlovic. The imaging works in both video and still photography.
All material objects feature a hyperspectral signature, sort of a unique distinctive chemical fingerprint. Data analysis software can assess the makeup of the signature to reveal what it's made of. The researchers claim the tricorder could prove useful across a wide range of industries.
"A long list of fields stand to gain from this new technology," said Mendlovic. "We predict hyperspectral imaging will play a major role in consumer electronics, the automotive industry, biotechnology, and homeland security."
The research team is eyeing a prototype delivery release in June and said the project received "excellent feedback" during its demonstration at the recent Mobile World Congress event.
Unispectral is reportedly in serious talks with some major smartphone makers, carmakers and wearable device manufacturers to move the tricorder toward market.
There's no doubt Mr. Spock would be very stoked and pretty impressed.
