Virgin Atlantic to Equip Engineers with Sony SmartEyeglass

Remember the Sony SmartEyeglass that just became available for pre-order for developers? Well it just got a big boost in market penetration and mindshare thanks to Virgin Atlantic. I’d previously argued that while the tech comes off too cyborg like for mainstream consumers, that there could be real world applications for professional industries such as architects, doctors, and engineers.

It seems that the folks at Virgin Atlantic share a similar view and have announced a partnership with Sony that would see Virgin engineers use the SmartEyeglass. More details await you after the jump.

According to Sony, starting next week, Virgin Atlantic’s plane engineers at London’s Heathrow airport will start using the Sony SmartWatch 3 and SmartEyeglass Developer Edition SED-E1 devices. The idea is that Virgin Atlantic will be able to deliver technical assistance by streaming real-time video directly from onsite engineers over to the technicians in the control room where they can view the content directly from the dedicated app.

On each engineers wrist will also be a SmartWatch 3, acting as a non-stop activity log, providing engineers with on-the-go job allocations and detail changes whilst simultaneously providing managers with instant feedback. Phil Maher, Director of Operations at Virgin Atlantic:

We are proud of our recent innovation work to provide the best possible experience for our customer facing roles and we’re pleased to now be exploring how new technology can contribute towards our essential operations procedures. It’s a great way to empower our people by providing instant access to the information they need to be more effective in their roles.

This isn’t the first time Virign and Sony have worked together. Previously, the luxury airline had used Sony Smartwatch 2 and a Google Glass to greet Upper Class passengers by name.