A Wearable Computing Device That Perceives Its Surroundings and Presents Multimedia Information through a Heads-up Display Can Behave like an Intelligent Assistant to Fulfill the Promise of Personal

Personal computers have not lived up to their name. Most machines sit on a desk and interact with users for only a small fraction of the day. Notebook computers have become smaller and faster, enabling mobility, but the same staid user paradigm persists. Typically you must stop everything you’re doing, use both hands, and give the computer your full attention. Wearable computing is poised to shatter our preconceptions of how we should use a computer. A personal computer should be worn like eyeglasses or clothing and continuously interact with the user on the basis of context. With heads-up (head-mounted) displays, unobtrusive input devices, personal wireless local area networks, and a host of other context-sensing and communication tools, wearable computers may act as intelligent assistants. Trend-setting professionals may soon wear several small devices, perhaps built into their clothes. They will be able to check messages, finish a presentation, or browse the Web while sitting on the subway or waiting in line at a bank. Such wearable devices can augment human memory by providing instant access to important information anytime, anywhere. Operating these devices, however, poses problems. Although speech input and output will become more popular, such interaction may prove annoying in many situations. Imagine sitting next to someone on a cross-Atlantic flight who is constantly chatting with one or more devices. Nevertheless, wearable devices promise to be less disruptive and may interact with people differently than other tools. An ever-present computational device can affect your sense of who you are and what you can do. Just as we’ve adapted to watches, cellular phones, and other personal devices, we’re likely to shape our personal habits around wearable computers. They will migrate from technophiles to the average person; over time our culture will adjust to incorporate the devices. It’s too early to tell which approach to wearable design will prove popular. The devices can be built in many ways, and the marketplace will determine which fashions and styles will prevail. Although their potential is vast, many of these devices share a common shortcoming: they are generally oblivious to you and your situation. They don’t know what information is relevant to you or when it is socially appropriate to “chime in.” The goal, therefore, is to make electronic aids that behave like a wellBernt Schiele