Google Glass 2.0 patent hits the web

There have been some pretty juicy murmurs heating up the Google Glass rumour mill over the last few days and these patent sketches, which hit the web at the end of last week, have added yet more fuel to to the fire.

You'll recall that Intel has been linked with Google Glass 2.0; a recent report from the Wall Street Journal stated than an Intel chip will replace the current Texas Instruments CPU inside the iconic smartglasses.

Essential reading: Wearable tech has moved on from Google Glass

The new Google Glass models, if the patents end up ringing true, are set to switch the action from the right to the left eye, and the sketches suggest a move away from the traditional spectacles look in favour of a more futuristic aesthetic.

Just how the wearable computer will sit on someone's face without a nose clip to hold it in place remains to be seen. Another mystery is just how Glass 2.0 will be powered - there doesn't seem to be any room for the battery pack.

Patent pending

However, as with any patent applications, it's important to remember that there's a mighty big chance the ideas will never actually see the light of day. Google has filed numerous Glass patents over the last year or so - here are two other examples, one from August 2013 and one from November 2014:

What we do know is that Google Glass is in dire need of a shake up and an injection of excitement is much needed if a commercial launch is ever to be a success.

Google Glass was the poster-child for the entire wearable tech industry when the Explorer edition first went on sale back in 2013. Fast-forward 18 months and Google's clever specs are still an object of fascination but a consumer launch looks further from a reality than ever.

Recent data suggested that the developer community is largely abandoning Google Glass, in the wake of poor consumer interest, and those that remain are pursuing limited enterprise projects.

Last month, Reuters reported that Google’s Sergey Brin had been spotted at a Silicon Valley red carpet event without Glass, an unusual sight first for the man who heads up the company’s secret Google X labs that first developed the wearable device.

There is some hope, specifically in Google's partnership with fancy sunglasses maker Luxottica. We've yet to see luxury fashion specs running Glass but alongside refined Google designs, these could be what normal people in non-Silicon Valley streets will end up wearing in 2015 and beyond.

So while we're not expecting these patents to materialise into the Google Glass consumer edition, we are at least encouraged that the Big G is still putting resources into a product that, if refined, could be a genuine game changer.