Specialized Industrial Devices

The military, aerospace, and heavy industrial sectors give us a sneak peek at the future, for technological advances made in those fields will eventually trickle down to the private sector. Here's just a few of the cutting-edge devices that are attracting attention in the field.

Head-mounted Displays

Nothing makes a fashion-statement that says, "We are the Borg - you will be assimilated - resistance is futile!" like a mounted display with a glass screen that fits over one eye. Yet that's exactly what a head (or helmet) mounted display looks like. It's a miniature computer with a transparent screen in front of one or both eyes. It's not at all uncomfortable, and can display all manner of both textual and graphical data.

Instead of "virtual reality" - those people you see at computer trade shows with wraparound headsets as they play an immersive 3D game while moving around and looking like an utter nerd - these are called 'augmented reality' or sometimes 'computer-mediated reality'. For the viewer, they can project a map, diagram, or mock-up onto the real world, or simply feed a data stream of scrolling text. These have a number of applications:

·           Aviation - piloting a jet or helicopter. These are usually built right into the helmet and can include night vision goggles, targeting displays, or other data.

·           Ground tactical situations - These can be military, police, or fire and paramedic. Who couldn't perform better with a link to a computer running in one eye?

·           Engineering and medicine - Fix a power plant boiler with a virtual 3D map of its insides visible, or perform open-heart surgery with a continuous feedback of the patient's vital signs.

·           Sports - Even pilots of ground vehicles, such as Formula One race cars, can benefit from an advanced telemetry system.

The most prominent manufacturer of these devices so far has been Liteye Systems, Inc. To see someone in action with one of these systems is breathtaking; it's almost as if they were psychic. Still too pricey for the private sector, but we all known that technology tends to trickle down to home affordability eventually.

Wristmount PDAs

Just a little bit smaller? If we get Personal Data Assistants down just a little bit from their current handheld size, we'll have something just like Dick Tracey's "2-way wrist TV". And that would be too cool. Especially with touch-screen technology or stylus input. These devices are so specialized that only limited industrial and military uses apply, but really wearable computers are within range for the private sector.

Thermal Imaging and Night-Vision gear

Applications for this run anywhere from night hunting to science exploring to police and military work. Wearable thermographic cameras which detect radiation in the infrared range are shaping up into a very handy science. With them, a power-line repairman can find an overheating transformer, a fireman can see through smoke to rescue a victim, a construction engineer can spot heat leaks in insulation, and a chemist can find out which beaker of acid is about to be a good reason to pull the Halon dump switch and run.

These are just some of the electronic devices that we've seen make advances in the past few years. With them, we are slowly but surely augmenting ourselves into a realm where we will someday function with many more senses than what nature provided us with.

Filed Under: Industrial Technology