Amazon's smart mirror patent idea will dress you in virtual clothes

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Would you let Amazon dress you? It's an idea that the company doesn't seem to want to let go of. 

After launching the eyebrow-raising Amazon Echo Look camera, which took photos of a user before offering fashion advice, a new patent has been uncovered which shows Amazon considering a similar concept within a smart, mixed-reality mirror.

It describes a mirror equipped with cameras, projectors and reflective and transmissive display panels to mix the experience of a regular mirror with one capable of augmented reality overlays.

Check your look on Amazon's beach

So, you could sidle up in front of the mirror, and check out what an outfit would look like on you, projected over your image in a form-fitting way, without first having to buy the item. A virtual model would be created, tracking your eyes and face, merged between the two panels in as natural a mirror-like experience as possible. Presumably, it'd be tied to some form of Amazon retail system, letting users buy "the look" being trialled, too.

In addition, the mirror could recreate different scenes, letting you know how your outfit would go down in different real-world environments. The example given puts the wannabe-fashionista on a digital beach.

As ever with a patent, it's not necessarily a sure-fire sign that this product will ever come to market. But there's loads of evidence that Amazon thinks this could be its way into the lucrative world of fashion. 

It's already launched its own fashion label, which the Look was playing into, even if that gadget's buzz died very quickly after its reveal. Amazon also bought New York's Body Labs team late last year, which creates 3D avatars for gaming and clothing modelling. It sits squarely right next to what Amazon appears to be looking to achieve with this patent product.

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• Via: GeekWire (main image USPTO)

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