Commuter Rail Workers in Boston Are About to Get Bionic Eyes

[johnpbarlow]

Excerpt:

In September, Keolis Commuter Services (KCS), which operates the Greater Boston commuter rail system for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), will give AR smart glasses to field mechanics so they can communicate with expert technicians in its main maintenance facility. The aim is to speed up train repairs and reduce the disruptions they cause.

The project will use software from a startup called AMA XpertEye that links smart glasses with a Web-based interface. AMA XpertEye buys the glasses from manufacturers (Epson, Google, ODG, or Vuzix) and loads its own Android-based operating system onto them. The technology enables the wearer to stream video and converse in real time—typically from the field—with someone located elsewhere, such as an office.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/6021 ... onic-eyes/

[dbperry]

Wow. I can actually see the application of this. I've listened to the "mechanical help desk" on the scanner numerous times where a home office tech is trying to walk an engineer through troubleshooting..."see the switch next to the little doohickey down to the right and behind the little whatchamacallit." I can imagine that happens with mechanics at Readville on the phone.

These things never work as well as advertised and I usually dismiss them out-of-hand for being silly overreaches of technology. At least this one seems to have some realistic application.