Ericsson's Connected Tree Expresses Loneliness Through Twitter
At this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Ericsson is demonstrating how technology can be melded together with nature to help it better communicate with us. Their "Connected Tree" or "Twittering Tree" is a prime example of the Internet of Things.
The tree senses change in the electromagnetic field around it and can react to human presence by playing music and turning lights on and off. Its Twitter account, @ConnectedTree, is its voice and will express feelings like loneliness, or in the case of being surrounded by a lot of people, busyness. It can even send SMS messages to a passerby's mobile phone.
The Connected Tree reminds us of Tweetgrass, a student project displayed at the ITP Winter Show 2009, which would transform user tweets into virtual clouds and eventually would water the grass. Botanicalls is similar in that a plant lined with a system of moisture sensors was able to contact its owner via SMS when a botanical need arose.
As sensors become smaller and more affordable, products like Botanicalls or even this SMS enabled cat tracker will become everyday consumer products. Our mobile phone will continue to be our personal connection to communicating with everyday objects.
