Google Glass Apps

Following a report late last month claiming that Google was preparing to open up Google Glass to third-party app developers, the company announced today it is opening up a new Glassware Review Process that allows anyone with Glass to submit third-party apps. Apps that are accepted will show up in the MyGlass app and Google is kicking things off with the addition of a handful of apps, including: SportsYapper, Fancy, Mashable, KitchMe and Thuuz.

As of today, you can submit your Glassware for review. Completing the Glassware review process will make your Glassware eligible to show on MyGlass and eligible to receive quota beyond the testing limit.

Google has a “Distributing Glassware” support document and checklist available to walk developers through the process:
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssldTFWBv3E&feature=youtu.be]

Today Philips and Accenture announced the creation of a proof-of-concept that uses a Google Glass head-mounted display for performing surgical procedures. The demonstration connects Google Glass to Philips IntelliVue Solutions and proves the concept of seamless transfer of patient vital signs into Google Glass, potentially providing physicians with hands-free access to critical clinical information. Additional ideas:

• Accessing a near real-time feed of vital signs in Google Glass;
• Calling up images and other patient data by clinicians from anywhere in the hospital;
• Accessing a pre-surgery safety checklist;
• Giving clinicians the ability to view the patient in the recovery room after surgery;
• Conducting live, first-person point-of-view videoconferences with other surgeons or medical personnel; and
• Recording surgeries from a first-person point-of-view for training purposes.

This is interesting but proof of concepts have already been happening like the surgeons we covered in August. Press release follows:
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPlaa1xhX4s

Augmented reality specialist Metaio has put together an interesting proof-of-concept video illustrating how vehicle manuals could soon be a thing of the past, with Glass providing all the instruction needed …

The demo is an extremely simple one (and anyone who needs to be told that step 1 of filling the washer fluid is opening the bonnet probably shouldn’t be allowed behind the wheel of a car), but it’s easy to see how the same approach could be used for the most technical of operations by a car mechanic.

Metaio previously put together an iOS app for Audi with a similar approach.

You can find some other Glass ideas that caught our eye linked in the opening sentence here – with this one (a surgeon allowing colleagues to watch an operation) coming along shortly afterwards.

Choosing between the atmosphere of attending a live game and the information and commentary you get from viewing on TV could soon be a thing of the past thanks to Blue, a Glass app that feeds you real-time info while you’re watching the game.

Blue uses geolocation to figure out which ballpark you’re sitting in. It knows who’s playing and automatically starts presenting data to you as the game unfolds — stats for every player and pitch, even play-by-play descriptions. Watch a pitch fly by, then Blue will tell you its speed and type. Wondering what call the umpire just made or why that runner got sent back to first base? Blue will let you know … 
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MyGlass, the companion app Google created to allow you to screencast your Glass view to anyone with an Android phone, has now been updated to allow it to control Glass, reports Engadget.

The move was in response to feedback from Glass Explorers that “controlling its UI via swipes, nods and voice commands can sometimes be… awkward” … 
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Google Glass is generating a lot of interesting ideas lately. A couple of new ones that caught my eye are an app from Mutualink designed to assist emergency services personnel, and a Glass version of Amazon’s Price Check app.

Mutualink’s app, spotted on TechCrunch, is designed to enable emergency responders to get access to key documents on-scene. Examples they give are a firefighter being able to see layout plans before entering a burning building, a police officer being able to tap into live CCTV feeds from the surrounding area and medical personnel being able to access medical records and transmit video footage back to a hospital for review by specialists … 
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There are some projects that are so cool they send a little shiver down your spine, and for me this is one of those. It shows OpenGlass testing two Glass projects aimed at visually-impaired users.

Question-Answer allows someone to ask what an object is, receive an answer from Twitter users and then hear that answer spoken. Memento allows a sighted user to teach Glass to recognise objects, and will then tell a visually-impaired user what they are looking at … 
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It’s not the best video in the world in terms of production values, but the techniques being demonstrated are pretty cool. For example, asking Glass the height of the Washington Monument when looking at it and being shown a visual scale overlayed on the real thing, translation of a sign on a sidewalk and overlaying a restaurant with star rating and opening times … 
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The Verge noted that Twitter user Nicolas Gramlich spotted one more change to the redesigned web version of the Play Store: support for Google Glass apps.

Google’s updated Play Store includes mention of Glass, implying that the company’s headset will be managed through the store soon. Users who have linked Glass with their Google account have been seeing the device in the site’s “compatible devices” list when viewing apps … 
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Image: Engadget

Twitter appears to be testing an official Twitter for Glass app, which would allow Google Glass users to tweet photos directly from the gadget, reports AllThingsD …
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