from the see-through-the-prison-bars-Joe-Bean dept.
MIT AR Headset Uses RF Signals to Reveal Hidden Objects:
The headset, called X-AR, relies on radio frequency (RF) signals to operate. RF signals are wireless electromagnetic signals most often used for communication, like in walkie-talkies, mobile phones, and your favorite radio station. Their ability to pass through solid material makes for an ideal locator—provided the hidden object possesses an RFID tag.
RFID tags reflect RF signals emitted by an RF antenna. As these reflections occur, MIT's AR headset captures them and turns them into a virtual transparent sphere. The sphere tells the user where an item is, regardless of whether it's sitting in a cardboard box, around a corner, or under a pile of other objects. Once the user picks up the item, the AR headset verifies that they've picked up the right thing.
MIT associate professor Fadel Adib, who directs a wireless and sensor technologies group, led a team of research assistants and postdoc students in creating the headset. The team started with a Microsoft Hololens AR headset with an RF antenna. Then they programmed the antenna to use synthetic aperture radar (SAR). This technique enabled the antenna to measure the distance between itself and RFID-tagged objects. This technique proved highly effective thanks to humans' free range of motion: Frequent movement provided the SAR antenna with multiple measurements, facilitating more accurate localization.
[...] As one can imagine, this isn't just useful for a lighthearted game of hide-and-seek. Warehouse, retail, and factory workers could use the technology to quickly and easily find the necessary equipment, rather than opening and digging through bin after bin. There's also a chance emergency services could also use it for search-and-rescue missions, but anything they'd hope to find under snow or rubble would have to contain an RFID tag.
(Score: 3, Touché) by MostCynical on Wednesday March 01, @09:19AM (3 children)
so the question you will now be asked before going out into the world.. swallowed or inserted?
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 3, Interesting) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday March 01, @05:02PM (2 children)
>swallowed or inserted?
Our cat has one injected between the shoulder blades. We have a cat-flap which checks it before unlocking to let him in.
Not hard at all to imagine a world where the airport security express line is for individuals who have chosen to be "chipped" and as they approach the checkpoint they're first ID'ed by their chip number, then facial recognition to corroborate with the photo on file, then the human at the gate hopefully takes a glance up to confirm that everything looks good as they walk past without stopping.
Of course, those individuals can also be ID'ed at a distance with goggles like this. The potential for crushing of what little civil liberties we have left are obvious: scanned at one point on a highway, then scanned again 1/4 mile later, elapsed time measured and speeding ticket automatically issued. Crowd at a political rally all scanned, then targeted at home with everything from annoying phone calls to crosses burning in the yard. All persons entering and exiting an abortion clinic, or gun shop, scanned and cataloged for "later handling." etc. etc.
Personally, I'd rather carry an RFID in my wallet (as I already do in some credit cards) which I can choose to take out whenever I don't want it used to ID me. Not quite as good for identification as an implanted chip, but far more manageable for civil liberties. But: how many people are carrying RFID chips with them all the time every day and completely unaware of the potential for abuse?
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Thursday March 02, @05:31AM (1 child)
Well, maybe in future we'll have a real use for tinfoil hats: To shield off the implanted RFID chip in our head.
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Thursday March 02, @10:58AM
I'm starting to think I should carry ESD bags in the car so I can insert my wallet and phone when I feel like "going dark."
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end