Lyndsay Williams Cambridge UK sensecam@gmail.com +44 (0) 7970 101578 Managing Director Girton Labs Ltd, Cambridge Electronic Engineering for analog sensors, mobile phones, cameras, digital audio, medical computers Last update 26/10/2012 I am a Consultant Electronic Engineer, designing embedded hardware and software (digital and analog). I also do 3D CAD design and printing for handheld computers. From Jan 2012 to Oct 2012 , I was a Reader in Hardware and Software Integration at the Northumbria School of Design, Islington, London I helped set up the new P3i lab. I did designs for biomedical devices, technology for future mobile phones and intelligent clothes as here I was a Senior Research Fellow for The University of the Arts, London 2010 to 2011, working on a design for a fragrance release computer. My main area of research is applications of analog sensors, life logging and computers to assist with short term memory loss caused by brain damage. I was a Researcher at Microsoft Research Cambridge from 1999-2007, where I designed SenseCam a camera for helping people with memory problems. I also work occasionally for Apple Inc Cupertino as a Consulting Expert, and also several USA lawyers re patents and iPhone. I sometimes speak on BBC Radio 4 about my research in lifelogging, memory loss, and sensing systems. click to enlarge, some designs 2012 from Girton Labs Older Work I was born in Cheshire, UK. I graduated in BioMedical Electronics Hons from The University of Salford. I started my career designing and building some of the earliest commercial designs of digital audio, music and sound sampling computers for PCs in the 1980's. This work was used in Commodore Computers, Amstrad and Philips computers. music synthesiser designs In 1997, I designed and built a new type of mobile phone called Smartquill. This had no visible controls, no keyboard, but used touch sensors, accelerometers, heat sensors, GPS and camera to control the phone. I asked British Telecom to finance my time for the building of this prototype. They made me a Senior Research fellow at BT Research, Martlesham, UK. Apple bought my patent in 2007 and some of this early work now used in the Apple iPhone and iPad as here. SmartQuill 1997 now bought by Apple In 1998 Microsoft heard about SmartQuill and asked me to work for them as a Hardware Researcher at Microsoft Research Cambridge. In 1999 I came up with the idea and patent of SenseCam, a wearable camera with sensors to aid people with severe memory problems, e.g. Alzheimer's and Dementia . I designed and built the hardware and software for the early prototypes. Some patients who have only a few minutes of memory have been helped by SenseCam ®). BBC video here . Here is a longer video . This is now shipping under license from Microsoft. Here is the first ever SenseCam movie. At Microsoft I designed, tested and patented many new types of user interfaces for mobile phones using sensors as used in Windows 7 Mobile phones, here is some work I started in 2002 which contributed to Microsoft Kinect. First SenseCam prototype I left Microsoft Research in 2007 and set up Girton Labs, Cambridge. Here is a synopsis of some of my earlier work at Microsoft in The Guardian. Since leaving, my team and I have won 5 research awards and grants for my innovations, e.g. from East of England Development Agency and Technology Strategy Board. One is for SenseBulb, is a new type of low power lightbulb with human tracking sensors and a built in mobile phone. It calculates what people and objects are doing in a room according to heat flow patterns from a thermal camera and sends SMS text messages. It's useful for games controllers, security, greenhouse gas reduction and Assisted Living. SenseBulb is a working prototype. Another design is SenseSurface, this allows a standard LCD screen to have real control knobs placed on it for control of audio and video etc. There is a video of working demo here. The media covers my work on occasions, e.g. The Guardian , BBC, The Times and October 2010 Time Magazine. Some videos of designs I am an Associate of 42Technology, St Ives. contact sensecam@gmail.com or +44 (0) 7970 101578 https://sites.google.com/site/lynsense/ |