The Camera Bag: Ball-shaped camera rolls into danger zones for a closer look
posted Thursday, November 8, 2012 at 5:09 PM EDT
If James Bond doesn't have one of these yet, he should immediately get on the horn to "Q." This ball-shaped camera can, quite literally, be thrown into a danger zone to get an eye on what's really going on.
Developed by a Boston-based company called Bounce Imaging, this spherical device may look like a bowling ball but it's actually heavily laden with imaging tech. It could also give soldiers, first responders and police the ability to check out a dangerous scene before entering.
The ball is equipped with six cameras -- each facing in a different direction -- plus accelerometers, gyroscopes, temperature sensors and infrared LED lights. Footage and info from the scene is then transmitted to a mobile device such as a tablet or smart phone.
Ball-shaped cameras are not new: the Israel military uses a $5,000 device called the EyeBall R1. Bounce Imaging, which is still developing its spherical camera, hopes to offer its product for quite a bit less than that.
The one catch to these devices? A poor throw could put the camera ball into an area where its view is blocked. Seems like a second career opportunity for former PBA tour bowlers and maybe even washed-up MLB pitchers, if you ask us.
See the camera ball in action in the video below.
(Via Tech News Daily via Discovery News)