Samsung announces 3 new C-Lab projects, including smart glasses for the visually impaired
Samsung has provided a glimpse of three new projects that are brewing in its in-house incubator program.
The Korean electronics giant will officially showcase the products at CES 2018 in Las Vegas next week, but for now it has revealed some details of what’s been cooking in C-Lab.
A few months back, Samsung launched Relúmĭno, an app that works in conjunction with the Samsung Gear VR headset to help the visually impaired see more clearly. The rear camera on the smartphone serves as the “eyes” of the Gear VR, with the app magnifying specific areas of the real world — from books to artwork — while adjusting color contrast and brightness to make the object easier to see. Now, however, Samsung is taking things a step further by developing Relúmĭno smart eyeglasses specifically for the app.
While the company hasn’t given any indication of what the Relúmĭno glasses look like, it’s clear that the new eyewear is designed to make the Relúmĭno app more practical to use in a real-world situation — after all, carrying a hefty VR headset around with you isn’t ideal. The glasses will still work in conjunction with a smartphone, drawing from its power and processors, while a built-in camera and display saves you from having to slide your smartphone into the front of the spectacles as you would have to do with the Gear VR.
Over in the audio realm, Samsung also announced S-Ray (Sound-Ray), which is a directional speaker designed with portability in mind.
It’s an interesting idea that could have many use-cases — for example, you may wish to listen to music in your office without wearing headphones, meaning you could enjoy podcasts or pounding beats at your desk without disturbing colleagues. The company said that it will also showcase “a variety of product options” related to S-Ray at CES, including a neckband to carry the speaker around with you.
Samsung’s C-Lab will also be showcasing GoBreath, which it touts as a “recovery solution” for those who have suffered from lung damage or postoperative pulmonary complications.
GoBreath is essentially a portable device and accompanying app designed to guide patients through deep breathing exercises to aid recovery. Doctors may also be able to access a web and cloud service to monitor patients’ recovery remotely.
Samsung launched C-Lab back in 2012 as a platform for workers to develop ideas away from their core duties, but it wasn’t until CES 2016 that Samsung showcased the first fruits of the program. In the intervening months, Samsung’s C-Lab has showcased a bunch of new early-stage ideas, including a 360-degree wearable camcorder, smart belts, and connected smart shoes.
Once an idea is developed to a certain market-ready stage, Samsung usually spins out the projects as standalone companies. With that in mind, Samsung has also revealed that seven of these spin-outs will debut new commercial products at CES next week, including Linkflow, its previously announced wearable camcorder.
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