In a concept that is similar to one shown by Seebright, a company called Caputer showed a prototype headset they call the SEER. They think it gives users the look of Iron Man. It is a big, bulky headset that appears to not have any counterweights added to the back for balance. It will not set any fashion trends.
The SEER AR Headset from Caputer Labs
The company is planning to launch a crowd funding Kickstarter campaign within weeks following its CES debut. Not much has been revealed about the headset yet, however.
It does use a smartphone as the content and image source that appears to sit horizontally in a visor above and in front of the eyes. Optics (whose design has not been disclosed) route this image to a full panoramic optic that sits in front of the eyes and that looks to be a segment of a sphere in shape. While the outside of this is reflective so others see themselves when looking at the users, it is semi-transparent offering an augmented reality experience.
The field of view is said to be 100 degrees and will change the view based upon the head tracking sensors built into the headset.
Very little has been disclosed about how one might interact with the image, but observers have said there is a mouse icon that is visible to select objects or by clenching your jaw. That’s a little different.
If the Kickstarter campaign is successful, the company hopes to bring the product to market in 2015 aiming at professional uses in engineering and medicine. The company needs to develop an SDK too for developers. The price is expected to be under $100.
