In fact, Xybernaut's executive vice president of Asian operations, Kaz Toyosato, worked on the original team at Sony that developed the Walkman, he said. He also helped develop the 8mm camcorder. He calls both of these things precursors to wearable computers. Xybernaut's new product, called the Mobile Assistant IV, lets the user control it with voice commands. It includes a headset and, carried on the belt, a compact computer on the belt with a Pentium 233 MMX processor.
Many initial uses relate to maintenance and the military.
In Germany, auto maker Daimler-Benz is testing Xybernaut's product at one of its plants. Technicians checking welds use it to analyze and communicate about problems that they find. The Boeing Co. in Seattle is testing another firm's wearable with some of its airline mechanics, says Chris Esposito of the wearable computer group at Boeing. The mechanics use the portable units to view diagrams so they don't have to leaf through manuals while working on airplanes. Wearables come in many other forms.