William Gallagher for AppleInsider:
Security firm Sword is to begin a mass rollout of Vuzix smart glasses to be used in conjunction with iPads for a threat detection system intended for airports, sports arenas and federal buildings. Apple has not announced the deal and no details of the iPads are yet known, but Sword has confirmed it is spending an initial $7.1 million on the smart glasses.
Sword is a security system intended to be used in places such as airports where the wearer can have a hands-free view of data about items they’re required to search. In Sword’s case, the Vuzix glasses are to be paired to iPads which are running proprietary apps and also utilizing proprietary hardware.
Currently, Sword supplies customers with 9.7-inch iPad in a case that has extra electronics including a camera system which, through an undisclosed method, is reportedly able to detect concealed weapons.
Sword’s $7.1 million order will buy 10,000 of the Vuzix Blade, and sources familiar with the two companies have said they expect that to increase to hundreds of thousands of orders, each with an iPad, in the near future.
MacDailyNews Take: Boom! That, along with all of the improvements Apple has made to the iPad family, will certainly help move the iPad needle!
