EyeTaps & Other Stuff

A core interface element of my planned neural interface "cyborg suit" is the EyeTap, a device invented by Steve Mann. Unfortunately, Steve has been unable to productize the EyeTap, requiring anyone who wants one to build their own.

The good news is that Steve has used Kopin CyberDisplays in the past to power the display side of the device (I'm not sure if that's still the case with his most current designs) and that Kopin has CyberDisplays with resolutions up to 1280 x 1024, which is exactly what I'm ultimately going for.

However, because those displays are quite expensive (upwards of $4000 each and I need two!) I've decided to start somewhat smaller...

I happened across this blog post detailing one guy's tinkering with repurposing the WildPlanet Spy Video Car's Head set. It seems this thing uses Kopin's low-end CyberDisplay parts.

I was able to find one for only $50 which I'm going to use to build an experimental, extreme low-end eyetap so that I can get some experience building a functional eyetap without risking destroying expensive parts in my experimentation. I'm calling this a "Generation 0" Eyetap.

Once I feel that I've learned all I can and have the funds, I'll try building my "Generation 1" model, with 800x600 resolution and a wearable computer to power it.

In other news...

My exocortex software continues to progress in fits and starts. It's too hot right now to run my exocortex full time, but I plan to start doing so in September. (I really need to switch my house from evaporative cooling to refrigerated air.)

I did order the entire Spy Video Car kit, so time permitting, I may start doing some elementary robotics work later this year. I'd like to try seeing if I can control the car through my exocortex.

I haven't made much progress on actually using my digital voice recorder yet. I'll probably make more progress once I've got my exocortex into production mode.