- Mojo Vision took advantage of CES in Las Vegas to unveil its prototype of connected lenses.
- First intended for the visually impaired, they should then also be useful for businesses and the general public.
- With this technology, the company wants to replace smartphones.
For Mojo Vision, the world is ready for connected lenses. This American company presented its prototype at CES 2020, where several media were able to test it using an augmented reality headset. Its goal is to reduce our dependence on screens. For example, you could look in the corner of your eye to activate an interface telling you why your mobile phone vibrated instead of taking it out in the middle of a conversation. “We want to create a technology that allows you to be yourself, that allows you to look like yourself. It doesn't change your appearance or make you act strange when you walk on the street, "co-founder Mark Wiemer told American media Wired .
The company wants to allow invisible computing. "Mojo has a vision of invisible computing where you have the information you want, when you want it without being bombarded or distracted by data when you don't want it," said CEO Drew Perkins. Called Mojo Lens, these lenses are equipped with a tiny screen for displaying text information, detecting objects, controlling an interface or even seeing in the dark. They are primarily intended to help the visually impaired by displaying improved overlays of the world, by refining the details or by zooming in to allow them to distinguish objects.
The memory of Google Glass
These connected lenses can also be useful for businesses and the general public. They should be ready in two years for the visually impaired. The others will have to wait a little longer. “Lenses are even more complicated than connected glasses, explains Grégory Maubon, independent consultant in augmented reality. It is necessary to miniaturize, to solve the problem which is today almost insoluble of the battery, but also to find the good energy for that, to store it and produce it. Since it is extremely complicated, it is easier to restrict the scope of use and to first target people who have a specific need and who can find a clear benefit: improving vision. ". But will the world be ready to put connected lenses on the eyes at that time?
Many technology companies have been wanting to replace the smartphone with connected glasses or lenses for several years already. "The objective of moving from smartphones to connected glasses is to free your hands and not see the world through the small window of the smartphone," explains Grégory Maubon. However, the first attempts did not work. The shareholders of Google still remember the bitter failure of its Google Glass in the 2010s. Operating on a smartphone, they allow the use of applications installed there, including the giant's services like Maps or Calendar. It is also possible to receive notifications for text messages and emails, take photos or film with the integrated camera. Google Glass has however proved to be impractical, in particular due to too few applications, but also disturbing in terms of privacy. The camera could indeed be triggered discreetly with a voice command or even a simple blink of the eye. In addition, with a price of 1,500 dollars, they were not accessible to all and the design was rather ugly.
Replace smartphone
Google Glass, initially intended for the general public, is today designed for businesses. And there is a reason for this according to Grégory Maubon: “Today, among the general public, augmented reality is used 99.9% with phones and tablets. However, tablets are not very practical and the screen is small with laptops. Augmented reality aims to provide rather visual information, but in a context of reality. A bit like seeing through a small window using a phone. Today, companies like Google and Microsoft want to make augmented reality more natural with a tool that can be forgotten. It will be even easier with lenses, but it may be annoying the people in front of you not to know what you are looking at.
Currently, the world is not ready for this technology as explained by the independent consultant in augmented reality. "You put someone on the street with augmented reality glasses, he is still seen as an extraterrestrial, so you imagine with lenses ... On the other hand, acceptance could go very very quickly if the benefit is very clearly explained" . In other words, it is necessary to explain to people who do not suffer from visual impairment, what they could get from connected lenses. Although the latter are not yet on the market, communication is changing, we will see in two years if they improve the vision of the visually impaired and, later, replace smartphones.
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- Business
- Culture
- Augmented reality
- smartphone
- Future (s)