A woman who was issued with a traffic ticket for driving while wearing Google Glass has been found not guilty of watching television while driving.
Software developer Cecilia Abadie was pulled over for speeding in October last year, and the officer cited her for using a visible “monitor” – a charge usually issued to people driving while watching a television.
It is the first known alleged traffic violation for wearing Google’s computer eyeglasses while driving.
The verdict following a trial in a San Diego traffic court could help shape future laws on wearable technology as it goes mainstream.
Court commissioner John Blair said: “There is no testimony it (Google Glass) was operating or in use while Ms Abadie was driving.”
He also dismissed the speeding ticket.
After the ruling, Ms Abadie said: “Google doesn’t have a specific recommendation other than ‘be responsible’.”
“The screen never comes up by itself. The screen would not light up unless I give it the command to do so. So I don’t find it distracting.”
The device features a thumbnail-size transparent display above the right eye.
The image is not visible to anyone but the wearer, making it difficult to determine whether a device is on or not.
It lets wearers take pictures, record video, send messages or perform other tasks with touch controls or by speaking commands.
It connects to the internet using wi-fi hotspots or wirelessly through mobile phones.
The technology is not yet widely available to the public, but Ms Abadie, 44, was one of about 10,000 “explorers” who received the Google Glass earlier this year as part of a tryout.
Google has not announced a public release date for the device, but speculation centres around early 2014.
