Buzz… Buzz.. BUZZZZZZZZ…
An attack of killer bees, or do you have a soccer game in your pocket? If a team of researchers from Umeå University in Umeå, Sweden, along with Ericsson Research, have their way then it could definitely be a game in your pocket. The researchers are developing a method by which vibrations from a cellphone could allow the user to discreetly follow a soccer game in progress. The study, including experiments and user tests from the researchers (Shafiq ur Réhman, Li Liu, Haibo Li, and Jiong Sun) will appear in an upcoming issue of IEEE Transactions on Multimedia.
The concept is that a cell phone is synchronized with a soccer ball in the field. In soccer, the ball is the focus of the game, both in playing and watching, so it is a natural point of reference. For syncing, every time the ball is kicked the phone vibrates. The vibration is of a different frequency and length based on where the ball is on the field (the field is divided into five virtual vibration segments). The vibration is also modified depending on who has possession of the ball. Different actions on the ball create different vibration patterns as well. For example, a score creates a longer and stronger vibration (think "GOALLLLL!!!").
User Testing has shown that a game could be easily followed by the interpretation of the vibrotactile method, although some initial training was required. The method could be used to subtly follow a game without taking the user out of their environment otherwise. Even something as simple as noting who has the ball and when a goal is made could go a long ways to keeping track of a game, According to Réhman,
Vibration could offer a ‘private’ channel and very efficient information encoding (even lower than SMS [short message service, or text messaging])
At some point I can see it being used with a text display of the game, since you may need to indiscreetly whip out the phone to verify the score. Researchers are already looking combining the vibrotactile feedback with audio and video to create a unique user experience. The vibrotactile technology may be spun off from the university and commercialized by the company Videoakt AB (http://www.videoakt.se/). No word yet on the size of battery needed to let a phone vibrate all the way through an intense overtime game.
via (image credit: Shafiq ur Réhman, et al. ©2008 IEEE.)
