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Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

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Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#101

Post by ehlovader »

giancarlostoro wrote: post #97
lazaroclapp wrote: post #91

Does the device's camera work from behind the one-way-mirror? Specifically, does the device camera work well enough from behind the one-way-mirror to do accurate face recognition? (the idea being that it can display different information for different users and have at least a soft "biometric" privacy lock). Also, would color images be displayable through the one-way mirror or only white will make it intact?

I believe the device is on the side that you only see your own reflection, but I could be entirely wrong. I base my assumption on the premise you can see the contents of the tablet from your side.

Two way mirrors can actually be seen through both sides given the right lighting. Here is more information from MentalFloss https://youtu.be/XKuF1eT1Cqc Given that, I am sure the camera could see out, which in a bathroom could be a much creepier feature than if it couldn't.

Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#103

Post by bennettfeely »

asm wrote: post #16
pavel_lishin wrote: post #4

I wonder if humidity and steam would be a problem if this was done in a bathroom.

We used construction paper to black out the back around the tablet. My guess is that the paper wouldn't like the humidity but the rest would be fine. Perhaps you could swap in some black plastic material that would work with spray adhesive.

Wouldn't a coating of black spray paint work just fine?

Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#104

Post by hannahmitt »

lazaroclapp wrote: post #91

Does the device's camera work from behind the one-way-mirror? Specifically, does the device camera work well enough from behind the one-way-mirror to do accurate face recognition? (the idea being that it can display different information for different users and have at least a soft "biometric" privacy lock). Also, would color images be displayable through the one-way mirror or only white will make it intact?

Color works quite well, the white was purely an aesthetic choice.

I haven't tried out the camera, but hypothetically should work.

Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#105

Post by CydeWeys »

lazaroclapp wrote: post #91

Does the device's camera work from behind the one-way-mirror? Specifically, does the device camera work well enough from behind the one-way-mirror to do accurate face recognition? (the idea being that it can display different information for different users and have at least a soft "biometric" privacy lock). Also, would color images be displayable through the one-way mirror or only white will make it intact?

You could very easily etch off just the silvering directly above the camera even if the mirror did prove to be a problem. The front fascia on smartphones (which are not transparent) already have an analogous cut-out for the front-facing camera.

So yeah, facial recognition to display per-person customized information is definitely possible, and would be awesome.

Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#107

Post by CydeWeys »

Raphmedia wrote: post #55
artmageddon wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe add a motion sensor to it?

Perhaps a light sensor? You are not going to use your mirror in a dark room. Unless you want the display to show up in the dark, but personally I wouldn't want that.

That wouldn't work during the day if your bathroom has a window (it'd be on all day).

I think the simplest way to do it would be to tie it in directly to your light switch. (Note that the light switch wouldn't be controlling power to the Android device, it would merely be a data signal determining whether the display should be on.)

Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#108

Post by mikeyouse »

hannahmitt wrote: post #17
joshgachnang wrote: post #5

I'm guessing this is based off [1] which uses a normal monitor and a Raspberry Pi. This one looks much quicker and simpler than [1], but what if you need to do anything to the tablet (updates, new app, etc)? Remove it and re-adhesive? Personally, I've been working on doing the same with an RPi and Hover so I can wave my hand in front of the mirror to swipe to new screens/info. [1] https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/mag…

The other end of the USB cable and tinkering through that is usually enough. But definitely nice to have non-permanent adhesive.

I used these recently to hang a ~20lb whiteboard -- They're incredibly sturdy:

http://www.command.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/NACommand/Command...

Re: Show HN: Make a programmable mirror

#110

Post by joshgachnang »

level wrote: post #39
joshgachnang wrote: post #5

I'm guessing this is based off [1] which uses a normal monitor and a Raspberry Pi. This one looks much quicker and simpler than [1], but what if you need to do anything to the tablet (updates, new app, etc)? Remove it and re-adhesive? Personally, I've been working on doing the same with an RPi and Hover so I can wave my hand in front of the mirror to swipe to new screens/info. [1] https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/mag…

That's funny, I've actually been doing the exact same thing, RPi2 and a Hover. I have a few blog posts about it here which I was going to post after the project is finished.[1] I actually just bought all the wood to build the frame and I'll hopefully be doing next weekend. [1] http://alaycock.github.io/blog/

That's awesome, I'm going to keep an eye on this.
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