IMAGE CAPTURE: Smart spheres target c...
28.08.09
Notable products include the Flee, a camera conceived by Turkish designer Hakan Bogazpinar ( www.behance.net/hbogazpinar ) that combines a digital camera and a Bluetooth receiver. Appearing somewhat like a shuttlecock, the ball can be programmed to take images at custom time intervals and transmit them to a mobile telephone.
Similar cameras, such as the Satugo camera conceived by Danish designers Eschel Jacobsen and Mads Ny Larsen ( www.satugo.com ), use an internal timer to trigger the ball’s camera in flight. Alternatively, the camera can be triggered upon impact with a surface.
“In the past, such technologies targeted consumer applications.” says Steven Hollinger, president of S.H. Pierce and Co. (Boston, MA, USA; www.sjh.com/res/inv/ball.html ). “Everything has changed with the advent of microchip accelerometers, gyros, and GPS modules capable of being packaged in an impact-resistant housing.” Hollinger has filed for patent protection and is developing a smarter sphere that crams more functionality and capability into his product (see figure).
Source: Vision Systems Design
