While Google Glass is on a temporary hiatus, researchers in the U.K. have developed a new augmented reality headset that just could be the headset that everyone wanted from Google Glass.
The device basically clips to the side of the wearer's glasses, and while it is still a prototype, the developers behind it want it to be used by everyone from surgeons to firefighters.
"Normally when we want to see things from our phones or our computers, we need a screen to look at. But this way, we could do away with a screen and just have the image projected directly into our glasses and into our eye," said John Nunn, a research scientist at the National Physical Laboratory in the U.K., in an interview with Motherboard.
There are a number of differences between this device and Google Glass, one of the main ones being that users don't need to look up to see images like they do with Glass. Instead, this device overlays transparent images over what the wearer is already seeing.
The device consists of a small display, a lens, glass plate and holographic glass splitters. Once the device is put on, a hologram bends the red, green and blue parts of light by 90 degrees, causing the light to reflect inside the glass, traveling over the eye of the wearer. Another hologram then bends the light again so that it is visible to the human eye.
Of course, this technology could be eventually used for much more than entertainment or day-to-day use.
"Say you have people with problems with their eyesight who can see colours and shapes, but who can't see edges very clearly. You could incorporate a camera on top of their glasses that scans the area ahead, finds the sharp edges then projects them through the glasses with red lines, so that the user is aware of any obstacles ahead," continued Nunn.
Augmented reality itself is a concept that is still very much in its early stages. Devices like Google Glass have been released to the public, but only for limited amounts of time and at very high prices. Virtual reality, by comparison, is moving along rather quickly, with a number of consumer devices on the market, and the highly anticipated Oculus Rift headset scheduled to be released next year. Most virtual reality devices, however, are currently geared toward gaming.
Augmented reality devices, however, could be used for a range of things, from navigating the streets with a maps application to getting a second opinion during surgery.
