3/05/2004 01:19:00 PM

SenseCam is a badge-sized wearable camera that captures up to 2000 VGA images per day. In addition, sensor data such as movement, light level and temperature is recorded. This is similar to an aircraft "Black Box" accident recorder but miniaturised for the human body. It could help with memory recall, e.g. where did I leave my spectacles or keys? who did I meet last week? by doing a "rewind" of the days events. If a person has an accident, the events and images leading up to this will be recorded, and these could be useful to health workers. It could also be used for automatic blog generation.

Sensors trigger a new recording. For example, each time the person walks into a new room, this is detected and the image is captured with an ultra wide angle lens. Other triggers include, time, a person nearby, change in light level, or sudden movement. A hand gesture can also manually capture an image or a change in acceleration. An accelerometer is used for image stabilisation to reduce blurred images caused by motion. The SenseCam can also capture handwritten notes and pictures. The current prototype interfaces with Windows XP to show images and sensor data. Future version will capture audio and heart rate.

-MS Research

Combine SenseCam with MyLifeBits and we will all be creating Terrabytes of data each year. Personal archive searching could become a central part of our story telling and personal memory.