A few weeks back, I had the coronary-inducing experience of accidentally sending my camera crashing to the ground through an insecure tripod connection. It didn't bounce, but rather, faceplanted lens-first and sent a dull, painful thud through the forest floor below me. Suffice to say, I have never wanted this to happen, and never want my camera to be thrown around again like that. Francisco Aguilar and Dave Young of Bounce Imaging, scarily enough, are creating a camera exactly for that purpose. They have designed an unassuming, baseball-sized sphere of technology called the Bounce Imaging Explorer.
Simply put, it's not unlike a super ball filled with cameras, gyroscopes, and other gizmos that, when thrown into a hazardous or anomalous area, can relay a panoramic image and environmental data to a tablet or smartphone. The implications of such a device are many -- no longer will fiber-optic cameras, robots, or perhaps even bomb-sniffing dogs be needed. Instead, this proposed sub-$500 device -- described as "practically disposable" by its creators -- can be thrown into an area to gather all the information needed.
There could be some drawbacks, however. In a war or hostage situation, the ball could potentially be seen as a grenade. Additionally, the creators must take great care in sealing the device for situations involving gas leaks, since all it takes is one spark to ignite volatile chemicals. Should these issues be ironed out, however, this could change how law enforcement and rescue workers fix dangerous situations.
What are your thoughts on the practicality and usefulness of this device? Could it be used to create fine art photographs as well?
(Source)