This mesh WiFi router can track motion to protect your family

Back at CEATEC in October, I came across Origin Wireless and its clever algorithm that can turn any WiFi mesh network into a simple home security plus well-being monitoring system, and that's without using cameras nor wearables -- just plug and...

Netatmo’s security cam can pick out cars, humans and animals

Netatmo is no stranger to home monitoring cameras, and at this year's CES, the company is taking its efforts outside. The WiFi-connected Presence outdoor security camera has a unique feature: It can distinguish between cars, people and animals. In ad...

Alps Electric integrates motion sensors and eye detection into vehicle cockpit of the future (video)

Alps Electric integrates motion sensors, capacitive touch, eye detection into vehicle cockpit of the future video

Residing in hall space a fair distance away from the likes of the Toyota and Sony, the automotive division of Alps Electric was demonstrating a forward-looking vehicle interface at CEATEC 2012. Connecting together the company's existing capacitive touch technology with motion sensors and eye movement cameras, the system centers on the multimodal commander -- that mysterious-looking orb located below the gear stick. Navigation through it can be done through waving your hand over the device, swiping or rotating the orb like a dial. This can then move through weather, music and map programs, which are all integrated into the car's touchscreen, while an overhanging motion sensor will also detect where your hand is headed. An Alps spokesman said that this means the system can try to predict your intentions, adjusting the UI before you reach for the controls. We've got a hands-on video from pretty busy showroom -- and more impressions -- after the break.

Continue reading Alps Electric integrates motion sensors and eye detection into vehicle cockpit of the future (video)

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Alps Electric integrates motion sensors and eye detection into vehicle cockpit of the future (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 03 Oct 2012 08:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google patents Project Glass motion-based theft detection, locks up if it feels ‘unnatural’ movement

Google patents Project Glass motionbased theft detection, locks up if it feels 'unnatural' movement

We know that you're never gonna take your Google glasses off, but if some nefarious lout feels differently, the boys and girls in Mountain View's X lab have got you covered. The company has patented a system whereby the device can identify "unnatural" movements and lock the headset if it feels the violent motion of them being wrenched from your face. Even better, while your would-be assailant is making off with the $1,500 gear, it'll be contacting the authorities to ensure that they can't get far with their ill-gotten HMD. If nothing else, we'll won't worry as much when pre-order customers 782 and 788 go out of an evening.

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Google patents Project Glass motion-based theft detection, locks up if it feels 'unnatural' movement originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 10:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hands-on with Smart Monitor’s SmartWatch, the seizure sensing wristwatch

Hands-on with Smart Monitor's SmartWatch, the seizure sensing wristwatch
Millions of people suffer from epileptic seizures, and the threat of such episodes is a constant concern for those with the condition, their families and caretakers. Smart Monitor knows that the freedom of folks with epilepsy is curtailed by trepidation caused by the unpredictability of seizures, so it's created the SmartWatch. The device is a wristwatch, roughly the size of a WIMM One, that has a GPS module and a proprietary accelerometer/gyroscopic sensor inside to detect the excessive and repeated motions that occur during grand mal seizures. It then records the time, duration and location of the occurrences and sends that information via Bluetooth to the accompanying app on your Android smartphone (an iOS version is in the works). The app tracks and stores the info and automatically calls your designated caretakers to alert them of the seizure, thusly ensuring the safety of the watch wearer. The watch also has physical buttons on the side that allow users to cancel a false alert or manually send one out with a single press.

Aside from the real-time safety net that comes with wearing the watch, it also provides valuable information to neurologists over the long term. When and where seizures take place is data that those who study and treat epilepsy find useful, and it can be quite difficult for folks to recall such info after a seizure. SmartWatch can give doctors an accurate long term look at a patient's episodic history that they wouldn't be able to obtain otherwise. Because it's a motion detection unit, the device is only for those who suffer from tonic clonic, or grand mal seizures, so it's not a universal seizure detector. However, the company's clinical trials with the device are ongoing, and Smart Monitor will submit it for FDA approval as a tonic clonic seizure sensor later this year.

Hands-on with Smart Monitor's SmartWatch, the seizure sensing wristwatch originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 20:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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