Brother Launches Wearable AirScouter Monitor

Sci-Fi movies have long been filled with high-tech displays people can wear like glasses—displays that not only look cool but give you the sort of Heads Up Display you only see in video games.  While there have been many imposters and a few genuine bits of tech that just don’t work quite right, Brother’s new AirScouter may actually make the wearable PC a believable—and usable—reality.

The prototype projects a light directly onto the wearer’s retina that broadcasts an image that is the scale equivalent of a 16 inch display.  That is to say, due to the optical illusion the device creates, you think you’re actually looking at a 16 inch monitor when there’s nothing of the sort in front of you.

Up until this point, that has neither been a practical, nor a safe thing to do.  However, the Brother device uses a fast-moving light that won’t burn your precious little peepers.  Interestingly enough, the guts of this cool little device didn’t come from any sort of military fighter pilot’s helmet but the insides of a Brother inkjet printer!

The Brother AiRScouter Augmented Reality Glasses – to give them their full name according to DVICE – can attach to existing eyeglasses or plain-glass frames for those without vision defects and use a micro-electrical mechanical system (MEMS) scanner to gather information about its surroundings. Pricing information isn’t yet available – and Brother hasn’t committed to a precise launch beyond a vague by-the-end-of-the-year announcement.