Sat-Nav for your mp3 player
p2pnet.net news:- Computer scientists at Swansea and Glasgow universities have come up with a way for mp3 player owners to use their boxes a kind of surface sonar to steer them to where they want to go.
SONAR is short for SOund Navigation And Ranging) and it’s popular with dolphins, whales and submarines : )
But researchers at the two universities think they’ve found a way to use GPS satellite navigation technology on hand-held music devices such as mp3 players, “to help guide pedestrians around cities,” says the BBC, going on:
“Walkers could programme a destination into a device and be directed there while listening to songs. If headed the right way, music would play from both headphones, but shifting volume to different ears could indicate a change in direction.”
Presumably, it would also be useful for blind people, or people with limited sight.
“Researchers say the technology could be developed to allow users to personalise the system,” says the BBC.
The prototype was developed by Dr Matt Jones at Swansea University’s department of computer science and, “we’re looking at how we can use the music people are listening to in order to prompt them to take notice of things that might be of interest to them,” the story has him saying.
“For instance, if your handheld device knows that the user likes art galleries, it can give a ‘nudge’ when they’re in the vicinity of a gallery. The nudge would either be a physical tap or vibration from the device, or it could be given audibly by changing the balance of the music being listened to.
“If the user decides to follow the cues to see what the device thinks is of interest, the system will then guide them to the destination. And if users ignore the hints, the device will stop nudging, until it comes across something else of potential interest.”
Also See:
BBC – MP3 players could boast sat-nav, May 10, 2007
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