A project - by Chris

I saw an application for android phones a while ago that amazed me.  It is a GPS Navigation app that uses your camera to display the gps directions in real time!  I keep thinking of those moments where you look at the gps and it says turn in 1.3mi and you see 3 streets before that and at each one your gut drops and you want to take the turn but the dang gps hasn't told you to and you're so unsure which turn to take (unless you read the street name on the gps and are looking for that street....).  Well there have been a couple apps in development that I keep hearing whisperings about that do what I've been dreaming of.  They call this concept  AR Navigation or Augmented Reality Nav.  I've heard of two apps that do this.

One such program is called Wikitude Drive and is still in development but was actually released Dec 2010 in a couple European countries.  Here is a pic of the program in action.  It shows you by using the real time images from your  phones camera as the display and then overlays the directions and arrows on top!  

In case you haven't followed what I'm trying to explain here is a video from the developers of Wikitude Drive.

The other application that does AR Nav is called Route 66 Maps + Navigation.  Route 66 uses TomTom maps and 3d graphics.  They call their AR Nav "Follow me" navigation.  Here is their video explaining the same thing.

....Whichever comes out first will be the one on my phone, at least until the other one comes out with cooler features!  :)

So, I figure since Sommer is always doing some project and showing it off that I too would post a project I've done.  I am especially proud of this because I've spent the last 8 months trying to find a good car mount for my phone int he car and havent found anything that didnt look and feel ghetto.  Here is one of the one's I've tried.  I got it from Best Buy for super cheap but it felt exactly that way, super cheap.  You would put your phone in and crank it down so your phone would stay and lock in place, lame.

Here were some of the things I wanted:

• Secure fit
• The camera could not be covered.
• I didn't want to feel like a nub

So I figured I'd make one myself.  I went and grabbed a garmin suction mount kit because it would be the piece I needed to stick it to the windshield.  Then I went and got a hard case for my phone.  I needed a hard case that assembled half way instead of the front/back snap on cases.

 + =  What i want

The case works perfectly and has a very snug fit and since I am planning to only use the lower half of the case that snug fit is necessary!  By using only half the case it makes it very easy to put my phone in and easy accessible for when I need to take a call or something.

Well I dont have any "in the process of making it" pictures.  But here's the final product.  So instead imagine those two pieces coming together with:

So I pieced together my own DIY project!  Probably not as cute as Sommer's dealings but I think she infected me with "DIY-isis" (i know, lame joke).  In case you noticed, I only put my car key down there because I was showing Sommer my car mount ...

And here is a not so glamorous picture from the mount in my car parked at home.  I angled the camera down a little bit so you could tell its in the car.  FYI I won't have it angled down once I get this application.