When asked about valuable possessions, most people talk about scrapbooks and diaries. Capturing memories seems to be an important human need, and there are products that address that, whether it be audio recording devices or cameras. The big question is, how do you get all the senses recorded? Designer, Niki Selken, worked with a group at the Parsons Paris Metaverse Workshop to visualize that future, and it’s called “The Wearable Sensorial Diary“.
This wearable is a soft necklace prototype which addresses the ideas of recording touch, scent and sound. You may recall that Niki was one of the creators of the Senti8 wrist band, a wearable that recently got attention through NASA’s Space Apps Challenge. So, sense and memory are always on her mind.
We envision a future where one could capture and share tastes, scents, and sounds with a simple movement or just by leaning in for a hug with a friend. Our diary prototype has three detachable, light up “sensors” which represent, touch, scent and sound. The sensors are designed as three easy-to-feel shapes, so weather the user is sighted or bind, they could distinguish between them. Those sensors can be shared and traded with friends who also have the necklace to expand the reach of sensory memories. We aim to create physical connection with the digital and marry tangible memories with nearly intangible senses and simple objects.
A nice assortment of Adafruit parts were used to bring this alive, including a FLORA microcontroller, NeoPixels, a proximity and light sensor. Check out the video which captures the many possibilities of this wearable diary.
The most interesting thing about this necklace is the sharing capability. We have been rather two dimensional so far in our ability to capture moments. Additional data that this project suggests could give people a very layered experience, similar to what someone receives when playing the new Sims video games. Imagine scent, feeling, and sound at once; do we feel immersed or overwhelmed? How protective will we be of these moments? Will these modules need to have a lock or be password protected? I imagine an entire industry creating scenarios for people that may never experience them in real life, similar to the way Second Life offers another world. In fact, people could create places and experiences that don’t really exist in the same way green screen is used in video to cheat reality. Sharing and creating experiences may be the next trend.
Maybe you aren’t prepared to wait for the future and want to keep it simple. How about keeping your precious memories handy with our DIY USB Locket — at least you won’t misplace that gadget any more!
Every Wednesday is Wearable Wednesday here at Adafruit! We’re bringing you the blinkiest, most fashionable, innovative, and useful wearables from around the web and in our own original projects featuring our wearable Arduino-compatible platform, FLORA. Be sure to post up your wearables projects in the forums or send us a link and you might be featured here on Wearable Wednesday!