The Virtual Family Dinner, Being Developed By ...

The Virtual Family Dinner, being developed by Accenture, will allow family members to chow down together regardless of where they live. It works like this: small, ceiling mounted cameras monitor Accenture’s Chicago test kitchen, tracking a test mom as she prepares a meal. When the system sees her bring dishes to the table, it infers she’s about to eat and ready for company. Up pops a screen on the wall, a computer automatically looks up a directory of family extended members, finds someone who might be available to chat, and projects that person’s life-size image on the screen. (AARP magazine 9-10/06)