Skip to the Next Song in a Blink of an Eye, Literally

In what was only a matter of time before we saw something like this hitting the market, folks at Osaka University's Graduate School of Engineering Science have come up with this remote system to access your iPod's (play, stop, skip, rewind fast forward) menu in a blink of an eye... literally.

PC World says that when a user winks (I am always very careful writing this word), their skin sends information to sensors clipped to accessories on the person's head, such as glasses or headphones (earbuds in the iPod's case). Kazuhiro Taniguchi of Osaka University's Graduate School of Engineering Science is the man behind the "KomeKami Switch" or "Temple Switch," as the system is called. According to him, infrared sensors detecting just the right blink send an electric signal to a micro computer which, in its turn, works the Apple iPod.

According to the how-to, users will need to wink strongly for one second with one eye (probably the left) in order to rewind, or skip to the next song (probably using the right eye). Other commands, such as fast forward or pause/play can also be achieved in a similar manner. For example, the user will have to close both eyes to pause and play, according to Taniguchi in a Reuters e-mail interview.

People of course asked: "so what if I was to blink by accident and skip to the next song?" (note that this is not an actual question asked by the interviewers, but a mere example on my behalf to describe a possible situation). Taniguchi confidently assured future users of his Temple Switch that "it doesn't happen at all. This system doesn't malfunction even if the user eats, talks, walks and runs," he wrote, pointing out that there are differences between an accidental blink and an intentional blink. "The computer can judge the difference of those signals," he added. It's that sensitive, huh...? I find it pretty hard to believe that it won't annoy some iPod users, but we'll just have to wait and see.

I can think of a number of people stupid enough to use this while driving.