Succeed - UMaine New Media Students Create Matchmaking Technology
Sometimes, wearing your heart on your sleeve — or your shirt — is a good thing.
New Media students at the University of Maine have developed technology that allows those looking for love, friendship or business connections to do just that. In last semester’s interactive Web development class, students created a wearable device designed to help people make a personal connection and break the ice.
Students initially envisioned using the device as part of a dating service on campus, working from the premise that if a person were given more information about the personalities of the people they pass by, other then what they see, they would be more likely to break the ice and start a conversation.
In a nutshell, it works like this: Users enter their preferences and personality traits into a computer program and upload the information to a small, portable device. The user then plugs the device into a shirt or handbag wired with small LED lights incorporated into the design. When users with similar preferences come within 30 feet of each other, the clothing or bag lights up, making it easier to spot a potential match in a crowd.
“The project development was basically like running our own business,” says Sean Collins, a junior new media major from York, Maine. “We learned so much researching different hardware and how everything worked.”
Though the project is still a work in progress, it has made national headlines in such media outlets as the Wall Street Journal, CNN and USA Today.
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