Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
h a l f b a k e r y
Assume a hemispherical cow.

idea: add, search, annotate, link, view, overview, recent, by name, random

meta: news, help, about, links, report a problem

account: browse anonymously, or get an account and write.

user:
pass:
register,


     

CaloScanner

Calculate calories with a digital camera.
 
(+1, -1)
  [vote for,
against]

A digital camera could be programmed with a database of foods (based on what they look like, of course). The eater would photograph the plate of food from above, and Calo-Scanner would identify foods, estimate quantities, maybe ask a few questions to fix the data, and then create a calorie tally.

Restaurants and companies could help out by providing images of their dishes, and pre-calculate the caloric content. People would eat a little less, and take more food home for later.

wildgift, Dec 08 2005

[link]






       Digital magic, surely.
DrCurry, Dec 08 2005
  

       Yep. Even if the camera could cross-reference a picture with thousands of possibilities (how many white rice dishes are there? A LOT!), not all dishes look the same. No 2 dishes of chow mein look or are the same, blowing this out of the water. An estimated amount doesn't help when eating food prepared by a unique person. This could be somewhat done if you sent all your meals to a lab in advance for analysis before eating, but not many people could afford it or would want to do it. Maybe Katie Holmes?
Shadow Phoenix, Oct 13 2007
  
      
[annotate]
  


 

back: main index

business  computer  culture  fashion  food  halfbakery  home  other  product  public  science  sport  vehicle