philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

A Major Apple Patent published in Europe this week Covers Near-Eye Displays for Augmented Realty Glasses

One of the engineers on Apple's optical team is Graham Myhre, Display Exploration Engineer who came to Apple from Lytro who is a leader in light field cameras and light field VR experiences. In total, six Apple engineers were behind this invention.

Apple's invention covers an electronic device such as a head-mounted device or glasses that may have one or more near-eye displays that produce images for a user.

See the full story here; http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2017/12/a-major-apple-patent-published-in-europe-this-week-covers-near-eye-displays-for-augmented-realty-glasses.html 

(India) The changed face of tech in 2018

Invisible Fingerprint Scanner

Qualcomm and Synaptics are working on fingerprint scanning technology that works through glass, aluminium and displays, including LCD and OLED.

Battery Tech

By using graphene — a form of carbon — instead of the common lithium, batteries could hold 45% more charge in the same size and go from 0% to 100% charge in 10 to 12 minutes.

Four Cameras Are Better Than Two
Four cameras in a phone (two each in the front and rear) can overcome the limitations of mobile phones compared with cameras.

Taller Displays

18:9 displays are here to stay and it should become the standard for Android phones across all budgets

Face unlock

Huawei has already showcased its own version of the advanced tech while others like OnePlus showed off its camera-based face unlock that's even faster than what the iPhone X offers.

See the full story here: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/from-invisible-fingerprint-scanners-to-smartphones-with-four-cameras-the-changed-face-of-tech-in-2018/articleshow/62306805.cms

Union: New Playground Design Work Is In Final Phase (with an AR component)

New “American Girl” doll launched by Mattel

Mattel (MAT) describes the latest doll in the popular toy line, which launches today, as a "creative, confident 11-year-old girl and aspiring astronaut who dreams of being the first person to go to Mars."

The company said that "Luciana Vega," described as being of Chilean descent, is meant to help girls defy gender stereotypes and embrace risks in pursuit of their goals.

Parents, meanwhile, should be prepared to embrace the American Girl app. That lets kids unlock augmented reality features, videos, space simulations and other content.

Mattel's marketing campaign includes an educational program geared toward third- through fifth-grade students that focuses on space exploration.

See the full story here: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-american-girl-doll-launched-by-mattel-nasa/

Single metalens focuses all colors of the rainbow in one point

Metalenses — flat surfaces that use nanostructures to focus light — promise to revolutionize optics by replacing the bulky, curved lenses currently used in optical devices with a simple, flat surface.  But, these metalenses have remained limited in the spectrum of light they can focus well. Now a team of researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) has developed the first single lens that can focus the entire visible spectrum of light — including white light — in the same spot and in high resolution. This has only ever been achieved in conventional lenses by stacking multiple lenses.

“Metalenses have advantages over traditional lenses,” says Federico Capasso, the Robert L. Wallace Professor of Applied Physics and Vinton Hayes Senior Research Fellow in Electrical Engineering at SEAS and senior author of the research. “Metalenses are thin, easy to fabricate and cost effective. This breakthrough extends those advantages across the whole visible range of light. This is the next big step.”

The Harvard Office of Technology Development (OTD) has protected the intellectual property relating to this project and is exploring commercialization opportunities.

“Using our achromatic lens, we are able to perform high quality, white light imaging. This brings us one step closer to the goal of incorporating them into common optical devices such as cameras,” said Alexander Zhu, co-author of the study.

See the full story here; https://www.seas.harvard.edu/news/2018/01/single-metalens-focuses-all-colors-of-rainbow-in-one-point

Lucyd ICO Wants To Develop AR Smart Glasses Top Tech Giants Couldn’t

Phil Lelyveld comment; this is the second article that describes Lucyd but gives no factual info for why they think their technology is better than Magic Leaps or any of the other AR glasses companies.  The ICO is to fund the prototype, which according to their website is not due until Sept. 2018.  The staff appears to be solid and qualified.  Invest in the ICO with your eyes open to the high risk and 'buzzword-centric' nature of their current publicly available info. Images in the articles are standard glass frames with annotations making them appear to be the ideal AR glasses.

Company info here: https://www.lucyd.co

Pimax Further Revises ‘8K’ Headset Design, January Shipping Date for Consumer Version Unlikely

Pimax, the China-based VR headset manufacturer known for its wildly successful ‘8K’ headset Kickstarter campaign, probably won’t be hitting its January 2018 ship date for its consumer version as previously promised to early backers. Then again, we sort of expected that in the first place.

As reported by Tom’s Hardware, Pimax is now moving into its fifth prototype version of the ‘8K’ headset, which is said to hide the headset’s sensors, improve IPD adjustment, and improve heat dissipation and strength. The company is also currently exploring a “new hardware solution” to reliably keep refresh rates at 85Hz and 90Hz. Previous prototypes seen at public demos used a 75Hz refresh rate, although Pimax says the current prototype is stable at 80Hz. Regarding the new hardware solution, Pimax says they’ll “reach a conclusion in March.”

The headset, which hooks into Valve’s license-free SteamVR tracking standard, boasts a 200-degree field of view and dual 4K panels—a list of features that garnered it over $4.2 million in Kickstarter funds before its conclusion earlier last month.

See the full story here: http://www.virtualrealitypulse.com/edition/daily-sony-samsung-2017-12-28?open-article-id=7675708&article-title=pimax-further-revises--8k--headset-design--january-shipping-date-for-consumer-version-unlikely&blog-domain=roadtovr.com&blog-title=road-to-vr

Crypto prices suffer as Korean government announces new regs, potential ban

Dec 15, 2017-Seoul, South Korea-A Screen shows the prices of bitcoin at a virtual currency exchange store in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean is studying ways to regulate speculative trading in crypto currencies as the latest surge in prices stokes a craze over bitcoins. (Photo by Seung-il Ryu/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Under the legislation, Korea, which is the third largest market for cryptocurrencies in the world after the U.S. and Japan, would ban anonymous accounts and continually monitor crypto exchanges.

The proposed legislation on anonymous accounts is in line with recommendations from the Korea Blockchain Industry Association earlier this month which declared that currency operations between Korean Won and cryptocurrency-denominated accounts should only be allowed in cases where the identity of the account holder has been confirmed. 14 member exchanges agreed to that proposal.

See the full story here: https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/28/korean-government-crypto-prices/?utm_medium=TCnewsletter

Porsche Interior Design Boss Hints At Augmented Reality Systems For The Future

According to chief designer Michael Mauer, Porsche vechiles will always have a steering wheelas consumers should be able to choose whether they want to drive themselves or enjoy a "computer-assisted ride" thanks to semi-autonomous driving technology.

Porsche went on to suggest its interiors will be equipped with more touchscreens and fewer buttons. The company's head of interior design, Ivo van Hulten, also hinted augmented realitycould play an important role in the future as the technology can project "virtual elements into the driver’s field of vision" and this would enable drivers to keep their eyes on the road.

See the full story here: http://www.carscoops.com/2017/12/porsche-interior-design-boss-hints-at.html

‘Felice Grodin: Invasive Species’ — Augmented Reality (AR) Exhibition at PAMM

'Felice Grodin: Invasive Species' at Perez Art Museum Miami is an augmented reality exhibition - a  digital exhibition displaying the commissioned works by Miami-based artist Felice Grodin.

Influenced by geophilosophy, a field of thought that analyzes the relationship between physical and mental territories, this is a one of a kind exhibit taking place at the  Perez Art Museum. 'Felice Grodin draws architecture background to explore the mutable within landscapes, architecture, and the urban panoramas. Her works at this exhibit blend with the museum's architecture and, for the duration of the exhibition, transforms PAMM’s environment.

The show, which features a total of four digital works was launched with two AR site-specific works—Mezzbug and Terrafish. These unique works engage with and virtually enhance the museum’s building. In "Terrafish", Grodin overlaps PAMM’s hanging gardens on the waterfront terrace.The translucent body of a digital species that Grodin created in "Terrafish", overlaps PAMM’s hanging gardens on the waterfront terrace. This piece of work is suggestive of nonnative jellyfish found in South Florida waters.

By drawing on the destructive impact of invasive species and creating a new digital environment, Grodin highlights the transformative and unstable state of our ecosystem, speculating about a not-so-distant future affected by climate change and overtaken by uncanny creatures.

“Felice Grodin: Invasive Species” will be on view through April 21, 2018 at the Perez Art Museum Miami, 1103 Biscayne Blvd, Miami, FL 33132, USA

See the full story here: http://www.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/2742921/felice-grodin-invasive-species-augmented-reality-ar