Three accelerometers are built into the back of the glove to sense the orientation and position of the hand, so that conventional hand-arm signals--long an important communication mechanism on the battlefield--can be used to send text commands to other soldiers' screens. A miniature computer built into the glove connects through a USB cord to the soldier's wearable computer system. Thad Starner, an associate professor of computing at Georgia Tech and one of the pioneers of wearable computing systems (he has worn one daily since 1993), says that RallyPoint's real innovation is sensors that are light enough for soldiers' use and can be sewn into a glove. The problem with most new soldier technologies is that people are trying to do too much, says Starner. Land Warrior, a wearable computer system built by the U.S. Army last year, was full of cords, batteries, and hardware that weighed almost 17 pounds. "It was an overkill of features, and the military stripped it down to its most essential parts," says Starner. "Soldiers are adapting the technology to their needs." Starner says that by incorporating new types of sensors, like the track-pad-style mouse, into the glove, RallyPoint is creating something novel. The next step, he says, would be to make the glove wireless and to design it so that it doesn't impede soldiers' tactile sensations. It's time that someone created something real and usable, and RallyPoint seems to have done just that, says Kortuem. |
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06/09/2008
Comments
judbarovski on 04/28/2008 at 8:05 AM
5
johnalphonse on 04/28/2008 at 9:52 AM
66
Jorgecab on 04/28/2008 at 11:28 AM
1
Monsterboy on 04/28/2008 at 12:09 PM
53
askmahesh on 04/28/2008 at 10:09 AM
4
The voice recognition is spotty in quite office environment.
Other small thing is security, when you are talking to a computer you are going to tell the enemy to close there ears ? It will easily know where you go just by listening to you.
Prediction where you are going to strike even by 2-5 seconds will mean difference between life and death.
So dude !....
Shiladie on 04/28/2008 at 10:58 AM
35
Something I'm concerned about with the glove is how durable it'll be. Will it be usable as an all purpose rugged glove, and continue to function as a control mechanism? or would it be put on and taken off as needed?
Brittany Sauser on 04/28/2008 at 11:41 AM
Web Producer and Technology Reporter
5
johnalphonse on 04/28/2008 at 12:57 PM
66
what this is moving toward is the sensors without the glove, wirelessly. they can be transparent, waterproof super-adhesive or somehow fingertip attachable, and thin enough to still pick your nose! we'll see this soon with video games © where you put the buttons on your fingers instead of your fingers on the buttons: ergonomic, customizable, and a heck of a savings on plastic.
jdoyleoss on 04/28/2008 at 2:56 PM
1
johnalphonse on 04/28/2008 at 12:07 PM
66
zig158 on 05/01/2008 at 4:06 AM
42