Wright 1 Consulting, a Manhattan Beach technology services company, is now participating in Google’s Glass Explorer Program. As a part of the company’s ongoing commitment to innovation, W1C joins a growing nationwide community of “Glass” users to test the capability of this new device prior to it becoming available to the general public.

Why Did W1C Join the Explorer Program?

Participating in the Glass Explorer Program means taking part in creating a new technological landscape, according Shelly Wright, Founder of W1C. “Glass is the next uncharted territory. It is like building your dream house and all you have is a plot of land. We have the ability to help shape what that landscape is and what the house will look like.” The uses and applications that emerge from the explorers’ use of glass will be the building blocks of that future landscape.

Glass Background

Glass is the brainchild of Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, Inc., whose vision was to create a piece of technology that did everything a cell phone or computer could do, but would free the user’s body to engage more fully in the world. With “Glass,” the user’s hands, ears, and eyes are mostly free, and the user’s posture is upright and engaged with the surroundings, rather than bent over and focused on a hand held device.

Have Glasses, Now What?

The W1C team joins other glass developers in an online community to share ideas, discoveries, and new uses for the device. The company acquired two pairs of Glass and plans separate uses for each. While the focus is primarily entrepreneurial, the complex system division and the mobile application division will each be given their own pair for use in research and development activities.

The challenge to W1C, as Shelly explains, is to develop a complex technological system on the Glass frame work. “While a mobile app is cool, hands-free access to data without the user having to turn their head to look at a static screen or shift their eye focus would be extremely useful.” While wearing Glass, the user need only glance up slightly to see and hear the needed information.

Glass does have some limitations. “It’s not quite intuitive,” says Shelly, and admits there is a learning curve to mastering the device.

Commitment to the Future

W1C’s participation in this project is indicative of the company’s overall mission statement. “We’re committed to having these and other cutting edge technology opportunities for our developers. It’s an ingrained part of our business process,” says Shelly. Aside from the work that needs to get done, Shelly stresses the important of “strategic play time.” “It is like giving developers free reign to do what they love. They are empowered to invent and create and try and try again and collaborate and ask for help. It intrigues and motivates them,” she adds.

While Google plans to open a store of apps for use with Glass sometime this year, W1C is not driven by the urge to create products for that storefront. “We must resist the urge to do it all at once, and instead see what difference we can make in the world right now,” says Shelly. “Technology is not just what we do; it’s our passion. (The process of creating uses for Glass) has to be fun.”

Future of Glass

New uses of Glass are emerging daily. Recently it was announced that a user may now just wink to take a picture with glass, rather than speaking the command “take a picture.” Glass is also being used by the New York Police Department to give officers instant access to databases and to provide video and audio recording of routine field duties, with the hope of reducing paperwork.

Follow us as we chronicle Wright 1 Consulting’s participation in the Glass Explorer Program in future blog articles and press releases.

Sources

Ante, S. (Presenter). (2012, September 10) WSJ Live. “Google’s Sergey Brin Preview New ‘Google Glass.’” [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from http://live.wsj.com/video/google-sergey-brin-previews-new-google-glass/FCB1CF6F-98B3-4E0F-9534-23EE5CEAC8C6.html#!FCB1CF6F-98B3-4E0F-9534-23EE5CEAC8C6

Laird, S. (2013, September 4) Mashable. “Google Glass App Store Coming Next Year.” Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2013/09/04/google-glass-app-store/

Misra, R. (2014, February 6) IO9. “Does It Make You Feel Safer to Know the NYPD Will Have Google Glass?” Retrieved from http://io9.com/wow-pretty-interesting-a-police-officer-friend-of-min-1517396384/@georgedvorsky

Mullins, J. (2013, December 18). E Online. “Google Glass Users Can Now Wink to Take Photos, Which Sounds Quite Creepy.” Retrieved from http://www.eonline.com/news/492087/google-glass-users-can-now-wink-to-take-photos-which-sounds-quite-creepy