Facebook Reality Labs is exploring what’s coming in the next decade of human-computer interaction, and it’s not going to be something you hold in your hand.

“Imagine a world where a lightweight, stylish pair of glasses could replace your need for a computer or smartphone,” FRL said in a blog post today. “You’d have the ability to feel physically present with friends and family — no matter where in the world they happened to be — and contextually aware AI to help you navigate the world around you, as well as rich 3D virtual information within arm’s reach.”

The post goes on to say that while this may sound like science fiction, FRL believes it will soon change the way humans interact with computers. In what it calls a “paradigm shift,” FRL said that the future is in augmented reality glasses.

Such technology will not be clunky devices that take you out of the real world and into a digital world, but will work with the person in a way that combines the two realities without an interruptive transition. “They need to be able to do what you want them to do and tell you what you want to know when you want to know it, in much the same way that your own mind works — seamlessly sharing information and taking action when you want it, and not getting in your way otherwise,” said FRL.

Facebook Chief Scientist Michael Abrash explained that this kind of interaction with technology is one of the most difficult problems to overcome. The “always-available” AR, he said, will be intuitive, what he called an extension of the body. If this comes to fruition, he contends, wearers will barely know they are wearing the glasses while they are using them and at the same time interacting with other people.

An example was given of someone wearing a pair of AR glasses combined with a soft wristband. They walk into a coffee shop and a virtual assistant asks the question, “Do you want me to put in an order for a 12-ounce Americano?” It will only take a click of the finger to choose yes or no. This is what FRL calls proactive technology, rather than reactive.

FRL further explains that once the coffee has been bought and the person sits at a table, they put on a pair of lightweight haptic gloves. Immediately a virtual screen is seen through the glasses, along with a virtual keyboard. “Typing is just as intuitive as typing on a physical keyboard and you’re on a roll, but the noise from the cafe makes it hard to concentrate,” said FRL. Therefore, there’s noise reduction in the technology, which understands the needs of the person in the environment.

In order to give commands without the technology being too obtrusive, FRL said, it’s working on wrist-based electromyography. This monitors electrical signals that travel from the spinal cord to the hand, which will control the functions of a device based on signal decoding at the wrist. “The signals through the wrist are so clear that EMG can detect finger motion of just a millimeter,” said FRL.

Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg discussed this in an interview with The Information on Monday. He said the technology could be used to “teleport” wearers to other people’s homes or offices, adding that he believed the technology could cut down on travel and reduce the impact of global warming.

“Rather than calling someone or having a video chat, you just kind of snap your fingers and teleport, and you’re sitting there and they’re on their couch and it feels like you’re there together,” said Zuckerberg.

Photo: Facebook