Bose AR smart sunglasses revealed

Bose has unveiled a pair of augmented reality (AR) enabled sunglasses using the Bose AR platform. They certainly present a whole new way that AR can be implemented.

The Bose AR prototype uses visual information captured by the glasses and then adds contextually relevant audio information to its wearer.

Granted, Bose could have done the same just by using a pair of headphones but where’s the fun in that?

Bose AR sunglasses

The Bose concept sunglasses are capable of telling the user more about what is being looked via audio updates.

According to Bose’s blog post, the sunglasses makes use of the Bose AR platform. This uses head movements, voice commands and taps on the wearable to execute various functions.

The first prototype glasses are Bluetooth compatible for calls. That also means that they can integrate with Siri or Google Assistant.

The smart specs uses a new technology that ensures that the audio can only be heard by the wearer. All of that kit fits in the arms of the glasses.

Sensors in the glasses track the orientation of a listener and integrates with an iOS or Android device to track location and motion. All of that information is then sent back to the AR-enabled application in the wearable.

Big investment

The company intends on working with developers and companies in order to expand the capabilities of audio AR wearables.

They are already working with ASICS Studio, Strava, TripAdvisor, TuneIn and Yelp on collaborations that will provide content for the wearables. Meanwhile, MIT’s Media Lab and the NYU Future Reality Lab are also playing around with prototypes.

To encourage the startup community to begin work on the new platform, Bose has set aside $50 million to invest in companies that create apps, services and related technologies for the Bose AR platform. Bose is clearly not messing about there then.

Price and availability

We are not sure whether or not Bose intends to launch these glassess to the masses just yet. But the company does assure us that we will hear about more wearables based on Bose AR platform in the near future.

So, stay tuned and we’ll let you know more as soon as we do.