Researchers considering syncing soccer matches with mobile vibrations

Call us cynical, but we just can't see this one working out it. A team of researchers from Umeå University in Sweden are reportedly looking to sync up events on a soccer field to vibrations in a cellphone, essentially enabling you to keep track of the action without having to focus your eyes / ears on the handset. The proposed system could send vibrations to the phone that would act as a way of communicating possession, ball placement and (of course) gooooooooaaallllls, but obviously a few obstacles still stand in the way. For starters, buzzing your mobile through an entire tilt would do a number on the battery life, and even though you could "feel" the action, it would still require a great deal of attention. In all honesty, we'd say this whole system probably has more promise off the pitch than on, but then again, we call football soccer, so what do we know?

[Via UnwiredView]

[Senor_Tom @ Nov 1st 2008 7:46AM]

In all honesty, no-one would use that at all.
Here in the UK (I presume the same in the US) you can load a small webpage listing scores and then select a match for slightly more detail. These sites are typically very very small and so use almost no data allowance :)

[Ray @ Nov 1st 2008 10:51AM]

Not to mention having to learn morse code to use it... and its not like a phone being on vibrate is exactly quiet, my phone vibrates pretty loudly in class

[xfrz @ Nov 1st 2008 8:05PM]

That would finally have a chance to get women interested in footie.

[PIMP @ Nov 1st 2008 7:49AM]

Sweden is teh shit. When is usa gonna learn from sweden

[Dave Chappelle @ Nov 1st 2008 8:11AM]

rofl wtf that come from? Sweden calls it soccer too? hmm so does Australia & U.S.A.. looks like the name 'Soccer' is becoming more popular than football now.

In Soviet Russia, Phone vibration on YOU!

[mailkonto @ Nov 1st 2008 10:13AM]

@Dave. Nah, we call it Fotboll (pretty close to fotball), not soccer. Socker means sugar in swedish, but thats a totaly different story :P

[bartoron @ Nov 1st 2008 8:02AM]

This will be really useful...

...as a sex toy.

[y3k.nik @ Nov 1st 2008 9:30AM]

Sitting at a coffee table with my date....

GHHHAHAHHAHAHAHAAOAOOOOOLLLL...


date runs for her life....

[bartoron @ Nov 1st 2008 10:28AM]

Sorry for ruining your relationship. :(

[Lionbacker @ Nov 1st 2008 8:36AM]

"The proposed system could send vibrations to the phone that would act as a way of communicating possession, ball placement and (of course) gooooooooaaallllls"

And that's why I love engadget.

[Kizorblade @ Nov 1st 2008 9:46AM]

Ball placement?

So your phone will be rotating in your pocket?
Left, right, forward, back.

"Is that a phone in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"
"Hmm?"
"Oh, wait. Nevermind. It disappeared. I mean... yeah"

[Cubfan786 @ Nov 1st 2008 10:48AM]

anyone know how to spell useless???

[Sam Stone @ Nov 1st 2008 10:56AM]

c-u-b-f-a-n-7-8-6

Anything else I can do for you?

[PIMP @ Nov 1st 2008 12:36PM]

LOL.

[holycow @ Nov 1st 2008 10:54AM]

Football... you mean FOOTBALL!

[Technex @ Nov 1st 2008 11:22AM]

Fooball.

[Zorque @ Nov 1st 2008 1:47PM]

Spelling it a different way doesn't make it any more fun to watch.

[Maxwell Ash @ Nov 1st 2008 3:09PM]

More fun than American football though, at least it doesn't stop every 10 seconds.

[why not the LS2LS7? @ Nov 1st 2008 6:09PM]

Yeah, instead it never even starts.

[gt2378b @ Nov 1st 2008 4:04PM]

Well, this is the first thing I thought of:

http://pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF036-Gopher_Girlfriend.gif

[Cubfan786 @ Nov 1st 2008 5:33PM]

@pimp

I have to hand it to you that was good.

[Cubfan786 @ Nov 1st 2008 5:35PM]

actually@ Sam Stone

[Sam Stone @ Nov 1st 2008 5:58PM]

Nothing personnal cubfan.

I just saw the opportunity, and exploited it.

But thank you, I'm here all week.

[Dean @ Nov 1st 2008 8:39PM]

"we just can't see this one working out it"

I can't see it working out it either.

[HyperHacker @ Nov 1st 2008 9:12PM]

Between not being able to tell when you have a call (try to hear your ringer through that crowd), draining battery life, and the fact that you really don't need the additional stimulus in the middle of a shouting crowd, I can't decide which reason to say this is pointless.

[webon @ Nov 1st 2008 10:39PM]

Interesting if it could also be used for prOn

[anantha92 @ Nov 2nd 2008 7:02AM]

A quick way to get your Girlfriend intersted in football, If you know what i mean :P

[Pedja @ Dec 19th 2008 9:12AM]

Yes, yes I do :P

[Wwhat @ Nov 2nd 2008 7:18PM]

I wonder if they envision using new ways to make phones vibrate in more complex way instead of the old tiny motor when they conceptualize this, although I don't wonder enough to visit their site.
In principle you could use the same system as speakers (woofers) to make vibrations, perhaps with a small weight attached, then you could use various waveforms to modulate the effect more directly when compared to a motor with an unbalanced weight.

[Pedja @ Dec 19th 2008 9:14AM]

If that fails they can always nVision it :D
(nVision: www.nvidia.com/page/nvision.html)

[Jason Staten @ Nov 2nd 2008 8:31PM]

Yet another reason to get excited for high scoring games.