NEW YORK: Microsoft has filed a patent application for a technology that will allow devices to literally provide an electric shock to notify users about incoming emails, messages and scheduled events.
According to the patent application titled “Wearable computer having a skin-stimulating interface,” Microsoft’s technology will allow users of wearable devices to be alerted to new emails and messages by receiving an electric jolt. The wearables will deliver the electrical stimulation to notify the user about incoming text messages, emails and phone calls, and could also be used as an alarm clock to wake up the user from sleep by delivering an electric jolt at the set time.
As per the patent details, “Techniques are described herein that are capable of providing electrical stimuli to skin of a user to convey information to the user. The electrical stimuli may inform the user of an event, a condition, etc. Examples of an event include but are not limited to receipt of a message (e.g. an email, an instant message (IM), a short message service (SMS) message, or a transcribed voicemail), receipt of an alarm (e.g. an alarm clock alarm or a warning), receipt of a phone call, occurrence of a time of day, etc.”
A number of wearables in the market today inform users about incoming messages through physical stimuli. For instance, the Apple Watch taps wearers on the wrist to inform them about an event, though there have been complaints from some users that the taps are so light that they can be easily missed. Microsoft’s patent details claim that users can easily miss vibrations such as those delivered by the Apple Watch while using heavy machinery.
Microsoft’s technology can be integrated inside any wearable such as a T-shirt or shoes, which would be capable of delivering an electrical stimulus to notify the wearer about incoming messages or upcoming events. However, it remains to be seen if consumers would prefer to be alerted with such electric shocks on a regular basis.
