1. 3-D PRINTING
Also known as additive manufacturing, 3D printing is an upcoming technology
that is rapidly gaining momentum - it is the process of making three dimensional
solid nature of objects from digital files. Designers begin by building virtual models
of the desired objects in Computer Aided Design (CAD) files with the help of a 3D
scanner - to copy an existing item or a 3D modeling program objects - and to create a
1: 1 or a scaled up / down model of that object.
The idea of 3D printing has existed for decades but not until recently have
renowned companies like Google and Microsoft made a step into the space.
3D scanning has particularly taken center stage, and a good example of
hardware that can perform 3D scanning is Microsoft Kinect Fusion., as well as
by Scanify Fuel 3d.
A lot more PC hardware brands have followed suit, and signs are that high-end
mobile devices will soon have built-in 3D scanners. Currently, there are a variety
3D scanners of expensive large scale ranging from industrial machines to $ 30
DIY devices that can be used by anyone at home.
2. EMERGING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) TRENDS
Undeniable, robots are miles away from matching the natural human level
intelligence but what we've seen in recent years shows that soon we may be
having artificial people. It's not going to happen in 2016, but of course at this
rate of progress, where we may find ourselves at the end of the year as far as
robotics and artificial intelligence are concerned remains anyone's guess.
In countries like Japan, robots have offered a significant proportion of reliable
labor force and are used in elderly care. We've seen self-driving cars in 2015,
and who knows, maybe soon after chefs are going to be a thing of the past.
According to experts, the next generation of robots will be extremely close
to humans in terms of the thought process, they will be able to hear and speak,
and express emotions, well, formulate original ideas.
While our usefulness as humans continue to lose value with the advancement of
this technology, the thought of having a metal version of the human species
remains a very exciting one.
3. UPCOMING TECHNOLOGY - VIRTUAL REALITY
Since modern virtual reality hit the market some time back in 2014, 2D video
officially became a thing of the past with many gamers craving towards the real
3D experience. With this upcoming technology, users are provided with a 360-degree video environment and are able to view video and gaming content like they were a "part of it".
For this to happen, a VR headset is mounted on to a digital device such as a
smartphone, and then strapped around the head to cover the eyes. Some of the
few successful market virtual reality headsets so far include Samsung's Gear
VR, the Google Cardboard pocket friendly and of course the highly anticipated
Oculus Rift, which is available for pre-order now and will ship starting March 28th.
VR technology has not yet found its peak in mass market appeal mainly due
to little awareness dispensable and its utility, but if the growth in popularity
the last quarter of 2015 extends to 2016, the upcoming technology could go
mainstream with tremendous potential to be THE technology of the future.
4. AUGMENTED REALITY
Often muddled up with virtual reality, augmented reality (AR) is pretty much
different and oftentimes more practical when compared upcoming technology
to VR. AR enhances what the user sees via 3D smartglasses (like Microsoft's
HoloLens) by embedding digital information into real world contexts while
virtual reality creates immersive digital worlds in front of our eyes that behave
in ways that mimic real world analogues.
2015 looked like the breakthrough year for AR but there were no serious signs
that the technology would make it to the mainstream. Not until the last quarter
of the year, at least, when many IT companies announced their involvement
in this upcoming technology field. Apple Inc. in particular made their intent of
AR venturing into the market when they came up with a prototype projector AR
back in September for which they were granted patent. Since they have not
developed a final consumer product but the sheer move to file for patents should
be enough to signal that augmented reality is going to be real very soon.
5. INTERNET OF THINGS
Internet of things is an environment in which physical objects are provided with
the a1bility to connect and transfer data between each other over a network
without necessarily utilizing computers to human or human to human interaction.
For the past five or so years, the internet of things has been a vital part of the
technology world and is now firmly embedded in our lives. That said, we're
far from fully exploiting this beautiful technology, according to experts, and
hopefully in 2016 is going to be the breakthrough year.
A number of developments are expected to take place in the next 12 months in
this upcoming technology field as gadget manufacturers continue to increase
the production of wireless IP-based devices. Also the emergence of more
natural-to- people "thing" interaction is expected to take place, and this way
will be more usable devices through semantic modeling and voice control
and social interplay. This way, devices with less friction interactions between
technology and people will emerge, and this will be seen as a step towards
the internet of things ubiquity.
Microdrones are also expected to emerge in 2016. This will be tiny personal
drones, equipped with high-quality cameras and other smartphone capabilities,
with which people will be able to record, store and share memorable moments
of their lives. Other people's privacies with face jeopardy, but that may be too
a tiny setback to stop the spread.
6. WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY OF THE FUTURE
If 2015 was good for wearable tech enthusiasts, 2016 will be better. It all
started back in 2014 with wristbands mounted with multiple sensors for
measuring and recording body temperatures, heart rate, speed, distance
covered etc.
Then came a more advanced generation of devices designed to be worn around
the wrist, the neck, the waist, the ears and other parts of the body equipped with
sensors and additional functionalities such as GPS connection and some
smartwatch capabilities.
2015 provided the platform for all these developments and phases thanks to market
demand upsurge, more reliable major IT companies such as Apple, Google and
Microsoft have entered the market, only to increase its already overwhelming
popularity. Currently the Apple Watch - a smartwatch-cum-fitness tracker, fitness
tracker Fitbit, Jawbone, Microsoft Band and the Misfit Shine are reigning supreme
fitness tracker on the market.
According to experts, another generation of fitness trackers that can record from
bodily phenomena under the skin might hit the market in 2016. That means, the
hassle of having to strap devices on the body will be done away with, consequently
increasing the ease of use.
7. UPCOMING TECHNOLOGY -
microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), also called "smart matter"
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), also called "smart matter" is
a technology that connects small mechanical devices such as mirrors,
gears, valves, actuators and sensors embedded in semiconductor chips
to different computers to perform mechanical functions.
Currently, MEMS are being used in automobile airbags as accelerometers
where they've replaced less reliable yet expensive devices. An airbag can
inflate that utilizes MEMS on the basis of detected deceleration as well as
The physical size of the person being protected.
MEMS devices feature micro-circuitries contained in small silicon chips
into which mechanical devices such as a sensor or a mirror have been
manufactured. Such chips are typically manufactured in large quantities and
relatively low cost, making them a cost effective alternative for multiple purposes.
Other uses of MEMS include heating and cooling in sensor-driven systems
that are known to be highly energy efficient. They are also used in global position
system sensors which are mounted on to courier parcels for parcel tracking and
sensing of treatment along the way. In airplanes, are included in MEMS sensors
contained in the fabric of the wings to facilitate detection and reaction of the plane
by changing the airflow to the wing surface resistance, consequently creating an
array of diminutive wing flaps.
Lastly, smart matter is used in optical switching devices to enable switching of
light signals through different paths and a 20 nanosecond switching speed.
8. SMART Drones
Although the use of drones for commercial purposes is yet to be legalized in
many countries across the world, the number of vendors and the general drone
use of these kits has been seeing an upsurge accelerating over the past few years.
According to a report, drones will have little under 30 exhibitors at CES 2016,
more than four times the 2015 number of vendors. Specifically what 2016 has
in store for us as far as drones are concerned, kits are more like planes than cameras,
as the upcoming technology evolves to make up fliers and foolhardy novice mistakes.
Lily, for example, are planning to release a waterproof drone that launches when
tossed into the air and follows the user around as they ski, skate or even kayak.
GoPro, camera helmet manufacturing giant, is set to deliver a model that
called Karma sports special functionalities that the company has been hesitant to reveal.
Late in Q3 2015, Amazon released a short video of a prototype of its upcoming
delivery drones, as the demand for a more efficient mode of package delivery
continues to grow. All these realities could be in 2016.
9. WIRELESS CHARGING TECHNOLOGY
Wireless electricity has been the world's long-term dream, often discussed
but never quite delivered.
In 2016 though, the use of wall sockets to juice up the smartphone and
smartwatch batteries may be run down and replaced with wireless charging
docks that use magnetism to transmit electricity. Wireless chargers, also
known as inductive chargers, use a transmitter coil to produce an alternating
current, which in turn generates a voltage in the device and the receiver coil.
Wireless charging pads for example, can be used to charge smartphones,
Bluetooth headsets, tablets, cameras and portable power banks.
Some high end devices such as the Samsung Galaxy series, Apple iPhones
and some smartwatches are already supporting this upcoming technology.
More and more companies are designing their devices in favor of this trend,
which facilitates efficiency, portability and faster charging, and soon corded
chargers could be rendered useless.
10. Terahertz imaging
Terahertz imaging is a new nondestructive evaluation (NDE) method of dielectric
Material analysis and quality control used in a number of applications ranging
from security, pharmaceutical, biomedical, aerospace and material characterization
industries.
Not so much a technology of the future as it is already being used at various airports
security checkpoints around the world mainly for explosive detection.
Cars that feature automatic sensing and collision avoidance capabilities
also use Terahertz imaging.
Like sonar or radar, terahertz imaging relays images by comparing measurements
across a number of sensors. The arrays have to be of high density as the distance
between the different sensors is directly proportional to wavelength.
In a camera, the lens directs the incoming light in such a way that what is
reflected by a portion of the visual scene brings about an equal of the patch
sensor display. In imaging systems with relatively low frequencies, the incoming
beam, whether acoustic or electromagnetic, strikes each and every sensor in the array.
The distance between different sensors, as stated earlier, should not be more
than half the incoming wave's wavelength, and as long as this is kept to, the
calculation is simple and straightforward as it only requires the inversion
sensors' readings. Two or more possible solutions will be yielded if the sensors
are located more than half a wavelength away from each other.
Researchers at the Research Laboratory for Electronics and MIT, in an issue
of IEEE Transactions on Antennas Propagation, describe a new method of
reducing the number of sensors necessary for millimetre-wave or terahertz
imaging by a factor of up to 100, making the whole more realistic upcoming
and viable technology in the future.
11. 5G NETWORK
If fast is 4G, 5G will be faster, and that's one more reason to relish in 2016
as it unfolds. According to researches, the new 5G network, which is already
being tested by Ericsson, Huawei and other renowned IT companies, will be
more than 100 times faster than the current 3G and 4G networks. Verizon is
among the few companies who have confirmed they will avail the new network
later in 2017, but smaller mobile service providers are expected to Capitalize on
the opportunity and bring the service to their customers as early as Q2 this year.
12. BITCOIN TECHNOLOGY
History has highlighted the instability and unreliability of Bitcoin, but a
future takeover of the digital cryptocurrency can never be ruled out. Sure,
Bitcoin has been in the middle of some serious controversies such as the
ilk Road saga, for instance, and legalising it has been met with a lot of
dilemma and opposition, but big financial institutions all across the world
seem to be in support of Blockchain this technology thanks to its transparent
and instant nature as a medium of international money transfers.
13. THE DEVICE MESH
There is a variety of trends that have led to an increase in the number of sensors found in devices and technologies that we use in our daily lives,
which become smarter as they collect and record data for more personal
health, security, etc ..
According to Gartner, these sensors, which are currently being used in silos,
will have their utility exploited even more in 2016, leading to better insights
on more and more patterns in our daily lives.
14. PERSONAL DIGITAL ASSISTANTS
From smart cars to robots, everything is going smarter with machine learning.
However, software based intelligence is bringing about an even greater impact
and thus it's becoming a more viable option.
Currently, Apple's Siri, Microsoft's Cortana, Google Now and other Personal
Digital Assistants are becoming smarter every day and is the leading autonomous
agents of today's technology. It's only a matter of time till the voice control app
conversations and replace the old school menus and forms.
15. ADAPTIVE-BUILD SECURITY SYSTEMS
The "hacker industry" is growing more and more advanced and (IoT) security
will be more in demand than ever in 2016. With this rate of online risk upsurge,
classical techniques of protection are no longer sufficient.
Any upcoming technology or application in this field needs to have a self-
system while protecting organizations and businesses follow the behavior of
their devices and the users alike, forming a security system that can undergo
adaptive adjustment.
16. BLUETOOTH POWERED BEACONS
Also known as lighthouses, Bluetooth beacons are being installed in utilitylocations such as hotels, shopping malls, offices, hospitals and recreational
points to detect nearby smartwatch and smartphone users and send them real
time notifications about their services in a bid to attract passing by potential customers.
So far, only established hotels and shopping malls have been able to afford
this technology mainly due to the high cost of purchasing and installing 4.2
Bluetooth beacons hardware, but with a projected increase in the number of
vendors in 2016, cheaper alternatives may be more accessible .
17. CLOUD-BASED SERVICES FOR VIDEO GAMING
According to a senior analyst at Jupiter Research - a UK-based marketResearch firm - powerful video games of 2016 will not rely solely on
consoles like it presently is, but also on cloud for power. Cloud is
believed to be more powerful and reliable than power center console
but 2016 would be "too early" to completely switch to the cloud.
In cloud-powered games, according to the analyst, triggered response
for action-packed games, fighting games, for instance, will not be fast enough.
For now, gamers can only anticipate hyped Nintendo's "Nintendo NX"
as the next upcoming cloud-powered video game platform.
18. BROADBAND DEVELOPMENT
The gaming and music industries are becoming dependent on streamingservices each day, and that calls for a wider bandwidth limit and technology.
Statistics show an incredible increase in the number of music streaming
service providers in 2015, and in 2016 has more to promise. A rumor has
been making rounds that Amazon Prime Video and Netflix are planning
to extend their services to more than 10 other countries in the Americas
and Africa. What's more, both Nvidia and Sony announced their intent to
start offering video game streaming service to every smart device there in 2016.
Almost every video game these days comes in an unfinished form such
that you have to download updates before you start playing, not to mention
digital distribution companies like Valve, which solely offer digital downloads.
This means that you have to first upgrade your broadband connection before
upgrading your gadgets, opening up space for upcoming technologies to
address these issues.
19. REFINED SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE
Gartner tipped the digital mesh to break into the mainstream in 2016. If that comes to pass, explains David Cearley, Gartner vice president,
another upcoming technology will be pulled along: the powerful
Neuromorphic architectures. Cearley believes that devices built on
FPGAs and GPUs will be a lot more similar to the human brain in
pattern recognition algorithms such as deep learning.
20. AMBIENT USER EXPERIENCE
Gartner refers to the above described sensors and devices' capacity tocollect and record data as more contextual Ambient UX. The snafu will
revolve around application design, level of forestalling this gadget
synchronicity and collaboration, for lack of reliable framing. this
upcoming technology, as well as sensors and devices, according to
Gartner, will be smart to an extent that they will be able to organize
users' lives without their even noticing that the devices are doing so.
TECHNOLOGY IN THE FUTURE - EXCITING TIMES
Some of the most exciting upcoming technologies in virtual and
augmented reality, as well as wearable tech made their breakthrough
into the mainstream somewhere in between the last 12 months, 2015
and provided a great platform for that. 2016 should be better, at least
Judging from history, and the thousands of researchers and raw viable
ideas all across the planet should merge to make our lives in the
foreseeable future even simpler.
Reference: http://www.appcessories.co.uk/upcoming-technology-of-the-future-trends/
