Andrew Yee[_1_]
April 17th 08, 08:29 PM
ESA News
http://www.esa.int
11 April 2008
Tourist information wherever you are
Would you like instant access to information on the buildings and scenery
you see on your travels? A novel mobile phone programme, able to provide
information on what you see when you see it, was a regional winner in the
European Satellite Navigation Competition, sponsored by ESA's Technology
Transfer Programme.
This novel use of satellite technology, created by Ernst Pechtl and Hans
Geiger, combines three of today's modern technologies: satellite navigation
localisation services, advanced object recognition and relevant internet
retrieved information.
Ernst Pechtl, and Hans Geiger are co-owners of the company SuperWise
Technologies AG, which has developed the Apollo image-recognition system
that lies behind the eye-Phone.
How does it work? If you see something interesting while out walking for
instance, you take a photograph with your mobile phone, select the item of
interest with the cursor and in real time preprocessed information on the
object selected is sent to your mobile phone.
"It could be a building, a mountain, a tree, plant or a special event such
as a local festival," explain Pechtl. "The amount of information you receive
depends on you, if you want to know more you just click the 'more button'
and you trigger a more detailed search responding to your profile of
interest. Applications include tourism, education, remote healthcare,
security, science, etc."
Regional winner in European Satellite Navigation Competition
The eye-Phone won the regional prize for Bavaria, Germany in the 2007
European Satellite Navigation Competition. This competition, also known as
the Galileo Masters, is sponsored by ESA Technology Transfer Programme (TTP)
to encourage the innovative use of satellite navigation systems to develop
new products and services.
"The eye-Phone is a good illustration of the potential of satellite
navigation systems when their positioning information is combined with other
communication and information technology. With the improved accuracy of the
European Galileo system in comparison to existing systems, the prospects
will be amazing," says Frank M. Salzgeber, head of ESA's Technology Transfer
Programme Office. "Galileo can create new businesses in Europe and
strengthen Europe's competitiveness in space spin-offs."
The system has been developed using Apollo technology, an innovative
artificial intelligence system. "It's a unique piece of software that can
carry out object recognition within images, a very tricky task. It is
self-learning and after a short and very simple training session it can
identify any object in the world," says Pechtl.
Apollo technology can identify objects in a digital image regardless of the
angle from which it is taken, the lighting conditions or quality of the
image. To support object recognition, it uses navigation positioning
information.
It uses also an 'angle-sensor', a new function now being introduced in
digital cameras that identifies the angle from which an image is taken and
the direction in which the camera is pointing. Once the object in the
picture is recognised the system can then interface to any database on the
internet to select user-specific information on the object selected.
"The key to the eye-Phone system is the object recognition done by the
Apollo software. Nothing in the world is able to do what our software does,"
says Pechtl.
Concept proved -- prototype on the way
SuperWise Technologies plans to team up with mobile phone operators who
would provide the eye-Phone functionality as an additional function for
subscription. It will be partly located on the phone and partly in a central
processing system of a cooperating image archives.
"The Apollo software is basically ready, and there is already one camera
available with what we need: GPS, angle-sensor and on-board processing
power. All we have to do is to integrate our system with the camera, i.e.
load our software on the camera chip, to have a prototype ready and
working."
A prototype should be ready during the mid of 2008, then Pechtl expects that
it will take another 12 to 18 months to work out deals with mobile phone
operators, find partners and negotiate agreements with database information
providers, before the eye-Phone functionality can be offered to mobile phone
users.
If all goes according to plan, mobile phones could soon provide a mobile
tourist guide.
European Satellite Navigation Competition, the Galileo Masters
The European Satellite Navigation Competition was initiated in 2004 with the
aim to encourage small enterprises in participating European regions to come
up with new ideas for satellite navigation applications.
Supported by ESA through its Technology Transfer Programme (TTP) and the
German Aerospace Center (DLR) it is run by Anwendungszentrum GmbH
Oberpfaffenhofen, together with the Munich International Trade Fair SYSTEMS
under the patronage of the Bavarian Ministry for Economics, Transport, and
Technology.
ESA's Technology Transfer Programme Office (TTPO)
The main mission of the ESA TTPO is to facilitate the use of space
technology and space systems for non-space applications and to further
demonstrate the benefit of the European space programme to European
citizens. The TTPO is responsible for defining the overall approach and
strategy for the transfer of space technologies including the incubation of
start-up companies.
For more information, please contact:
Technology Transfer Programme
European Space Agency - ESTEC
Keplerlaan 1, P.O. BOX 299, 2200 AG, Noordwijk
The Netherlands
Office: +31 (0) 71 565 3910
Fax: +31 (0) 71 565 6635
Email: ttp @ esa.int
Web site: http://www.esa.int/ttp
[NOTE: Images and weblinks supporting this release are available at
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMK2B3XQEF_index_1.html ]
http://www.esa.int
11 April 2008
Tourist information wherever you are
Would you like instant access to information on the buildings and scenery
you see on your travels? A novel mobile phone programme, able to provide
information on what you see when you see it, was a regional winner in the
European Satellite Navigation Competition, sponsored by ESA's Technology
Transfer Programme.
This novel use of satellite technology, created by Ernst Pechtl and Hans
Geiger, combines three of today's modern technologies: satellite navigation
localisation services, advanced object recognition and relevant internet
retrieved information.
Ernst Pechtl, and Hans Geiger are co-owners of the company SuperWise
Technologies AG, which has developed the Apollo image-recognition system
that lies behind the eye-Phone.
How does it work? If you see something interesting while out walking for
instance, you take a photograph with your mobile phone, select the item of
interest with the cursor and in real time preprocessed information on the
object selected is sent to your mobile phone.
"It could be a building, a mountain, a tree, plant or a special event such
as a local festival," explain Pechtl. "The amount of information you receive
depends on you, if you want to know more you just click the 'more button'
and you trigger a more detailed search responding to your profile of
interest. Applications include tourism, education, remote healthcare,
security, science, etc."
Regional winner in European Satellite Navigation Competition
The eye-Phone won the regional prize for Bavaria, Germany in the 2007
European Satellite Navigation Competition. This competition, also known as
the Galileo Masters, is sponsored by ESA Technology Transfer Programme (TTP)
to encourage the innovative use of satellite navigation systems to develop
new products and services.
"The eye-Phone is a good illustration of the potential of satellite
navigation systems when their positioning information is combined with other
communication and information technology. With the improved accuracy of the
European Galileo system in comparison to existing systems, the prospects
will be amazing," says Frank M. Salzgeber, head of ESA's Technology Transfer
Programme Office. "Galileo can create new businesses in Europe and
strengthen Europe's competitiveness in space spin-offs."
The system has been developed using Apollo technology, an innovative
artificial intelligence system. "It's a unique piece of software that can
carry out object recognition within images, a very tricky task. It is
self-learning and after a short and very simple training session it can
identify any object in the world," says Pechtl.
Apollo technology can identify objects in a digital image regardless of the
angle from which it is taken, the lighting conditions or quality of the
image. To support object recognition, it uses navigation positioning
information.
It uses also an 'angle-sensor', a new function now being introduced in
digital cameras that identifies the angle from which an image is taken and
the direction in which the camera is pointing. Once the object in the
picture is recognised the system can then interface to any database on the
internet to select user-specific information on the object selected.
"The key to the eye-Phone system is the object recognition done by the
Apollo software. Nothing in the world is able to do what our software does,"
says Pechtl.
Concept proved -- prototype on the way
SuperWise Technologies plans to team up with mobile phone operators who
would provide the eye-Phone functionality as an additional function for
subscription. It will be partly located on the phone and partly in a central
processing system of a cooperating image archives.
"The Apollo software is basically ready, and there is already one camera
available with what we need: GPS, angle-sensor and on-board processing
power. All we have to do is to integrate our system with the camera, i.e.
load our software on the camera chip, to have a prototype ready and
working."
A prototype should be ready during the mid of 2008, then Pechtl expects that
it will take another 12 to 18 months to work out deals with mobile phone
operators, find partners and negotiate agreements with database information
providers, before the eye-Phone functionality can be offered to mobile phone
users.
If all goes according to plan, mobile phones could soon provide a mobile
tourist guide.
European Satellite Navigation Competition, the Galileo Masters
The European Satellite Navigation Competition was initiated in 2004 with the
aim to encourage small enterprises in participating European regions to come
up with new ideas for satellite navigation applications.
Supported by ESA through its Technology Transfer Programme (TTP) and the
German Aerospace Center (DLR) it is run by Anwendungszentrum GmbH
Oberpfaffenhofen, together with the Munich International Trade Fair SYSTEMS
under the patronage of the Bavarian Ministry for Economics, Transport, and
Technology.
ESA's Technology Transfer Programme Office (TTPO)
The main mission of the ESA TTPO is to facilitate the use of space
technology and space systems for non-space applications and to further
demonstrate the benefit of the European space programme to European
citizens. The TTPO is responsible for defining the overall approach and
strategy for the transfer of space technologies including the incubation of
start-up companies.
For more information, please contact:
Technology Transfer Programme
European Space Agency - ESTEC
Keplerlaan 1, P.O. BOX 299, 2200 AG, Noordwijk
The Netherlands
Office: +31 (0) 71 565 3910
Fax: +31 (0) 71 565 6635
Email: ttp @ esa.int
Web site: http://www.esa.int/ttp
[NOTE: Images and weblinks supporting this release are available at
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMK2B3XQEF_index_1.html ]