Camera as short-term memory

• Main Author: Lee, Cek Kwang.
• Other Authors: School of Computer Engineering
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2012
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Computer science and engineering::Computer applications
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/48506
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The capabilities of a mobile phone and a computer have become increasingly similar with the evolution of smart-phones. As we become more reliant on our mobile phones for daily tasks, sometimes we will conveniently record notes of our daily tasks into the phones. Examples of reminders include where we parked the car, directions to a place etc. Taking pictures to capture required information can be a quick substitute to typing reminder notes. The iPhone has its own photo management application, however a typical user faces a problem when trying to separate picture reminders from other photos. Since pictures taken with the iPhone camera appear as a collective album sorted in chronological order, it may take some time for the user to scroll through multiple pages of the camera album just to locate one particular image that is used for reminder purposes. It would be more efficient if the user is able to store these picture reminders separately in its own folder, and also to assign each image with a caption according to the context of what has to be remembered. Some research was done to understand the strengths and weaknesses of existing photo management apps. With the knowledge of what would be useful features to be included, SnapMem, the iPhone camera reminder application, is designed to overcome the limitations of these apps. Photos and videos can now be classified into folders and individually renamed at file system level, and a useful caption encompassing date-time, location name, and user’s notes is generated from the formatted file name. This also saves the user from the hassle of having to rename less meaningful file names like ‘IMG_0001.jpg’ after transferring these files to a computer. A similar function like this was not found in other existing photo management apps. To enhance its functionalities, a total of three additional features were implemented. The WIFI file transfer capability has worked around the rigidness of Itunes File Sharing, which only allows file transfer to the user’s own computer. Files can now be uploaded and downloaded to the iPhone from any web browser connected to the same WIFI network. Support for Optical Character Recognition allows extraction of texts from images, so that it works with iPhone’s built-in Reminder and Notes apps, which are purely text-based. Geo-tagging and the improved integration with Google Maps allows directions by walking, public transport, or driving to be generated from the user’s present location. The iPhone’s built-in photo management app currently supports only a static display of locations. More additional capabilities could be considered for future expansion of the app. Some recommendations include Dropbox integration, Bluetooth file transfer, display of picture or video alerts set off by a time defined by the user, and Augmented Reality.