Could Google Glass one day be controlled by laser-projected virtual keypad?
Google Project Glass is a pretty awesome, albeit uber-nerdy, concept that may or may not revolutionize mobile computing. But how, exactly, does one interact with the Android-based headgear? The most logical methods include voice control, gestures, or perhaps pairing with a smartphone, but a new patent application shows an intriguing method that Google could implement.
Yes, a laser projected virtual keyboard. As if wearing Google Glass couldn’t get any dorkier, the device might eventually beam forth an intangible keypad that can be interacted with on multiple levels. Aside from basic typing, Google proposes that the keyboard could perform different functions based on the way it is projected on a human hand, providing easy gestures for quick (quasi) hands-free input.
The specific technology needed to accomplish such a task isn’t new, but as Google presents it the current generation of laser-projected keyboards would need some major refinements. For this reason we doubt we will see the feature in the first iteration of Google Glass, but it very well could make future releases. Google, after all, is no stranger to releasing half-baked concepts to the public. I can see it now: Google Glass with Laser Keypad (beta).
[via UnwiredView]