Tele-presence can be defined as the experience of being fully present at a live (non-virtual) location remote from one's own physical location. Effectively removing the visual and aural senses from the body’s location and having them operate in real time from somewhere else.

Tele-presence is currently being used for military and exploratory purposes allowing the body to exist in dangerous or inhospitable physical environments.

This project uses similar technology but explores its use in a social context.

The remote hardware consists of a small camera and a binaural microphone. The user views the camera’s image through a set of TV glasses. The head movements are monitored and translated directly to the remote camera in real time. The link between user and camera is wireless. The remote camera can be attached to any moving object, enabling the following scenarios:

People
Through the rent-a-body service the customer can rent the physical body of another person. The rented body effectively has his senses removed, he can see nothing and hear only the voice instructions of his user. His body becomes literally a host. This enables the customer to either visit ‘socially’ inhospitable, unethical places or to attent meetings or events without physically being there.

MPs can enjoy voyeuristic visits to the shady end of town without repercussion.

Individuals of a nervous disposition or lacking social skills can use the rented body to go on blind dates in their place.

Businessmen can attend meetings from the home.Alternatively, parasitical tourism is achieved by attaching the camera to people in a different social circle to your own.

Dogs
In the same way that to a degree the eyes of a dog can enable a blind person to see, their legs can be used to enable people to walk whilst remaining stationary. In this way the user can window shop from home or take a walk in the country.

Vehicles
Enabling remote real-time tourism. By attaching the camera to a taxi in New York the user feels like he is literally sitting on top of it. This facilitates random journeys through foreign cities.