I am not sure if this was posted but little more on the
subject:
From Laptops To 'Wearables'
Ottawa Citizen - 10/10/00 10:11:37 AM
New computers strap on the body. Andy Riga tells how Bell Canada technicians will give them a
try.
Andy Riga
Citizen Special
MONTREAL - Nineteen Bell Canada technicians in the Toronto area will be outfitted with
"wearable computers" for two months in what the company called the world's first large-scale
market trial of such devices.
Bell, the country's largest phone company said use of the Mobile Assistant IV wearable
computers, made by Virginia-based Xybernaut Corp., "might translate into greater efficiencies,
shorter repair times and over-all better customer service."
If the trials go well, 500 to 1,000 technicians -- who repair broken cables, install high-speed
Internet connections for consumers and perform other duties on the road -- might be using the
devices by early next year, Brad Chitty, regional manager (mobile communication services) at
Bell, announced last week.
The 19 technicians will use Xybernaut's MA IV, a wireless computing and communications
device that will allow them to link to the Internet. It also acts as a wireless phone.
During the pilot project, technicians will be able to tap into Bell's internal database to submit
completed service orders, Mr. Chitty said.
They'll connect wirelessly to the Web site of equipment suppliers such as Cisco Systems Inc. to
read a schematic drawing, he said. Supervisors will notify technicians of coming jobs via the
devices.
Bell's field technicians use IBM Thinkpad laptops to access data remotely.
But Mr. Chitty said in most cases those laptops are installed in the technician's truck, obliging
them to go back to the vehicle every time a piece of information is needed.
Theft of the laptops is also a problem, Mr. Chitty said.
Bell, a unit of Montreal-based BCE Inc., is working with Xybernaut and IBM Canada Ltd. on
the trials. IBM has been mandated to help develop a smaller, lighter version of the Mobile
Assistant IV.
Bell, Xybernaut and IBM Canada said the device now being tried combines mobile computing
with next-generation wireless technology.
The device is smaller than a traditional laptop, Mr. Chitty said, describing it as about twice the
size of a portable cassette player.
It can be worn as a vest or as a belt and can be equipped with a head-mounted colour display or
a flat-panel display screen.
Mr. Chitty said the wearable PCs will initially cost about the same as a laptop, or roughly $4,000
to $5,000. But he said he expects the cost of wearable PCs to drop.
Edward G. Newman, president of Xybernaut, said that the pilot project will demonstrate "the
bottom-line benefit of our wearable system to the field force and customers of Bell Canada." |
