University of Florida professor Franky So has created night vision technology that could be easily incorporated into cell phones and other gadgets for a low cost.
Imagine going camping, and being able to get a clear view of your surroundings in the middle of a dark forest without a flashlight. You can see your tent, the nearby trees, and maybe even a raccoon scurrying through the woods.
Night vision goggles? Almost—but instead of wearing them on your face, the special technology could be implanted directly into your cell phone.
Instead of using the thick glass cathode ray vacuum tube that makes night vision goggles so heavy, University of Florida engineering professor Franky So has created a lightweight device consisting of a photodetector and a light-emitting diode (LED) to allow night vision. Because the parts are common and lightweight, his device should be far cheaper to produce than the goggles, which often sell for over a thousand dollars.
“Incorporating it into a cell phone might not be a big deal,” he said.
So could night vision be an upcoming iPhone app? Sounds like a brighter future to us.