By now you’ve probably heard of Google’s Project Glass – aka Google Glasses. Google revealed this amazing technology back in April. According to statements made during last week’s Google I/O conference, they should be getting to consumer hands by next year.
If you’re much of a tech fan at all, you’re probably drooling like crazy over these things. If you’re an Apple fan, then you may be wishing that Apple would hurry up and launch their own version. Well, it looks like you may get your wish. Apple has been awarded a patent for something that looks an awful lot like its own version of Project Glass. The patent, which Apple originally applied for way back in 2006, is titled “Peripheral treatment for head-mounted displays” and covers “[m]ethods and apparatus, including computer program products, implementing and using techniques for projecting a source image in a head-mounted display apparatus for a user.” In other words, Apple’s own Project Glass. Or iGlasses, if you will.
Strictly speaking, the patent is focused on methods for reducing eyestrain that can be caused by having a head-mounted display so close to the wearer’s eye. Nevertheless, it means that Apple is at least somewhat interested in developing its own wearable display. Whether they ever actually bring such a product to market is still very much up in the air. A lot will likely depend on how well Project Glass does.