10 practical and incredible uses for thermal photography
Cat
A company called FLIR is behind what it says is the world's first thermal-imaging smartphone, called the Cat S60.
No, it's not a phone designed to photograph cats (although you could do that). It's "Cat" as in the brand of rugged construction machines that dig giant holes in the ground.
Putting a heat-vision camera into a $599 smartphone might sound like a gimmick, but we think it's pretty cool — thermal photography has a deep history of great applications.
Here are just a few of the incredible and practical ways the world has used thermographic imaging.
Thermographic cameras record infrared light, which we can often feel as warmth on our skin — but the human eye can't detect. The new Cat S60 camera might be able to take photos like this.
yellowcloud/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)More practically, you might use it to save money and the environment. Contractors already spot and fix leaky insulation with the technology.
Janet McKnight/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)Source: FLIR
If you're an electrical engineer, thermal imaging can help reveal where circuitry is heating up, causing inefficiencies, and potentially show-stopping faults.
OzAdr1an/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)Source: Optotherm
See the rest of the story at Business Insider