WASHINGTON – Google Glass, maybe. Smartwatches, could be. Sony’s foray into wearable computers seems a little harebrained, or in this case, hair-brained.
Yes, Sony wants to develop a SmartWig.
In a patent application with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, Sony envisions hiding sensors, processing units and a communication interface under a wig.
In Sony’s filing, the company says the wig could “be made of horse hair, human hair, wool, feathers, yak hair, buffalo hair or any kind of synthetic material.”
The filing says it makes perfect sense to store delicate electronics in a wig because people “instinctively protect their heads more than other body parts.”
The SmartWig would interact with other devices, including phones and computer glasses, similar to Google Glass.
Sony’s filing suggests the SmartWig could be helpful while displaying slides in a business presentation.
The person wearing the wig “can control the presentation slides simply by natural behavior like touching side burns.”
And to magnify a point in that presentation even more, the SmartWig could include a laser pointer somehow affixed near the forehead.
According to Sony’s application, the SmartWig could include GPS, a camera, and notify the wearer of incoming email and other events by vibrating.
The filing makes no mention of when – if ever – the SmartWig might go into production.
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