Sci Fi Gadgets: HUD Glasses

Do you remember the opening sequence of Mission Impossible 2 – the almost impossible rock climb that Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) does, and the cool glasses that he wears thereafter? In the movie, the glasses show him a video, and provide him the information for the next mission – impossible on a virtual screen. A similar glass had made an appearance in an earlier movie – True Lies – where the Arnold Schwarzenegger character uses it to catch his daughter stealing money from his wallet, and then use the same glass to fool a spy following him.

For a long time, imaginative sci fi writers and movie makers have visualized similar types of eyeglasses – also called Head Up Display (or HUD). Truth is, HUD has been around for quite some time – for example, fighter planes have extensively used the technology to assist pilots – for whom it provides a lot of tactical information. HUDs have also been adapted for civil aviation, and some passenger car models have also used it in a limited way.

For years, scientists and designers have been working on HUD glasses that could be widely adapted for general users, but mostly they were unwieldy and impractical devices, and limited in application by the technology of the day. But now, with rapid advances in display technology, the HUD device has actually become practical to make – and apply for various purposes. The usage for HUD glasses varies – from hi tech manufacturing to medical sciences to gaming and movie watching – the HUD glasses are being in a lot of areas. Indeed, HUD glasses and its offshoot – augmented reality – where the inputs of the real environment are augmented with extra data.

The recent announcement by Google regarding the development of Google Glass – a project to develop a HUD based “wearable computer”, that is expected to become available for users by 2014. Sergey Brin, Google co-founder announced its debut in a dramatic press conference, where sky divers wearing the Google glasses were connected, and the resulting footage was displayed. Since then, the technical community has been abuzz with excitement regarding the product, and Google Glass has got extensive coverage.

Vuzix is a company that has been making the HUD glasses for some time, and selling them with limited success. The current generation of Vuzix HUD glasses is capable of displaying 2D and 3D visuals, and equipped to shoot and transfer 1080p videos. This HUD can find possible uses in medical sciences and Search and Rescue missions – where GPS fed info can be used to pinpoint the exact location of survivors, and then guide rescuers with minimal risk and in quick time.

Epson Moverio BT 100

Brother, the reputed printer making company, also makes a HUD wearable glass that uses a monocular LCD screen to project information such as instructions to workers in real-time, and can be used in manufacturing and medical applications.

Movie watching and gaming is another area that is attracting a lot of HUD glass action. Epson Moverio BT-100 looks like bulky sunglass from the outside, and packs a number of features in its frames. Wear it, and virtual effect you get is like an 80 inch screen at about 17 feet. You can enjoy 3D movies on it – imagine watching movies on a huge, 80 inch 3D TV – or simply surf the web. The device is connected to a control module, which can be used to navigate through the interface.

Sony HMZ T1

The entertainment giant, Sony, has also got a finger in the HUD glass pie – and its acclaimed HMZ T1 device seeks to provide a full fledged immersive 3D viewing and gaming experience. Wait till you hear its humongous display output – it is equivalent to a HUGE 750 inch screen that is set 65 feet away – a true cinema like experience. To complete the picture (pun intended), HMZ T1 also gives out a 5.1 surround sound output.