Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Augmented Vision Part II – Feeling air

Today there are intricate models of air-flow, even in urban areas. Furthermore, based on the current weather measurements, there are extremely detailed pressure, humidity and temperature information of almost every place on earth. Wouldn’t it be great to actually see and experience them un-filtered?

I suggest to have an augmented reality device, e.g. Google Glass, that can present the current atmospheric situation at the place you are now. Seeing the actual air-flows, humidity and pressure variations, temperature gradients. This information can instantly connect a person to the surrounding environment.

It can also help scientists and researcher understand their models of air-flow. By combining the augmented reality not to models, but rather to in-place sensors, one can “go around and measure the flow of air with one’s own eyes”. That can be a unique experience and I propose one that can introduce new appreciation and sensation of the environment and its intricacies.


Another option to augment vision is with another sense, for example tactile information. There was a recent work where computational vision increased the sensitivity of movements, ones so minute that could not be seen by the naked eye. One can do this with air-flows, in the same context of walking and seeing air-flows, one can combine a wearable bat (see my previous post), such that detection of minute air-flows and winds are increased and are felt via wearable vibrators on the cloth. This can create a fully immersive experience: seeing air and feeling its flow.

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