The
glasses, which contain tiny cameras, can identify everything from shop
doorways to the contents of a fridge – giving a verbal commentary
through a phone app and earpiece.
Users
can even have printed text read out loud simply by pointing at the
words, while those with partial sight can zoom in as they need.
Astonishingly,
facial-recognition software will instantly tell the user not only the
name of an approaching person but their job and date of any previous
meeting.
The
software, developed by London-based Vision Technologies and sold under
the GiveVision brand, instantly analyses a stream of images.
Once an object or street scene has been recorded, subsequent encounters are announced through an earpiece.
The
wearer can also tag images of a person’s face by speaking their name
out loud while filming, adding snippets of information and filing in a
contacts list.
The
high-tech glasses can be taught to recognise everything from the
entrance and type of shop to bus stops, the number of an approaching bus
and any empty seats on it.
The
system, being tested by 1,000 users, is expected to cost between £50
and £75 a month and could be included in mobile phone packages from next
year.
