What is Augmented Reality (AR)
− It’s an interactive experience of a real-world environment where the objects that reside in the
real world are enhanced by computer-generated perceptual information, sometimes across
multiple sensory modalities, including visual, auditory, haptic, somatosensory and olfactory
(smell).
− Augmented reality is the result of using technology to superimpose information —sounds, images
and text.
AUGMENTED REALITY VS. VIRTUAL REALITY
• Virtual reality means computer-generated environments for you to interact with, and be
immersed in.
• AR adds to the reality you would ordinarily see rather than replacing it.
• AR is more like visualizing something in real world.
• VR is more like visualizing whole real world.
AUGMENTED REALITY IN TODAY'S WORLD
• AR has been in uses since 90’s, for example, the heads-up displays in many fighter aircraft would
show information about the attitude, direction and speed of the plane, and only a few years later
they could show which objects in the field of view were targets.
• In the past decade, various labs and companies have built devices that give us augmented reality.
In 2009, the MIT Media Lab's Fluid Interfaces Group presented SixthSense, a device that combined
the use of a camera, small projector, smartphone and mirror. The device hangs from the user's
chest in a lanyard fashion from the neck. Four sensor devices on the user's fingers can be used to
manipulate the images projected by SixthSense.
• Recently AUGMEDICS got approved by FDA in USA that allows Doctors to perform spinal surgery.
AUGMEDICS has XVS (XVISION Spine System) that uses AR to assists doctors to allow them
visualize spinal cord.
o The XVISION consists of a transparent near-eye display headset and all elements of a traditional
navigation system.
o It determines the position of surgical tools, in real time, and a virtual trajectory is superimposed
on the patient’s CT data.
o The 3D navigation data is then projected onto the surgeon’s retina using the headset, allowing
them to simultaneously look at the patient data and see the navigation data without averting their
eyes to a remote screen during the procedure.
• From Gaming to Education to Healthcare, in each sector we could find an
application AR which would make the work of end users easier or fun.
AUGMENTED REALITY APPLICATION
1. Medical Training
From operating MRI equipment to performing complex surgeries, AR tech holds the potential to
boost the depth and effectiveness of medical training in many areas. Students at the Cleveland
Clinic at Case Western Reserve University, for example, will now learn anatomy utilizing an AR
headset allowing them to delve into the human body in an interactive 3D format.
2. Retail
In today's physical retail environment, shoppers are using their smartphones more than ever to
compare prices or look up additional information on products they're browsing. World famous
motorcycle brand Harley Davidson is one great instance of a brand making the most of this trend,
by developing an AR app that shoppers can use in-store. Users can view a motorcycle they might
be interesting in buying in the showroom, and customize it using the app to see which colors and
features they might like.
3. Repair & Maintenance
One of the biggest industrial use cases of AR is for repair and maintenance of complex equipment.
Whether it's a car motor or an MRI machine, repair and maintenance staff are beginning to use
AR headsets and glasses while they perform their jobs to provide them with useful information
on the spot, suggest potential fixes, and point out potential trouble areas. This use case will only
continue to get stronger as machine-to-machine IoT technology grows and can feed information
directly to AR headsets.
4. Design & Modeling
From interior design to architecture and construction, AR is helping professionals visualize their
final products during the creative process. Use of headsets enables architects, engineers, and
design professionals step directly into their buildings and spaces to see how their designs might
look, and even make virtual on the spot changes. Urban planners can even model how entire city
layouts might look using AR headset visualization. Any design or modeling jobs that involve spatial
relationships are a perfect use case for AR tech.
5. Business Logistics
AR presents a variety of opportunities to increase efficiency and cost savings across many areas
of business logistics. This includes transportation, warehousing, and route-optimization. Shipping
company DHL has already implemented smart AR glasses in some of its warehouses, where lenses
display to workers the shortest route within a warehouse to locate and pick a certain item that
needs to be shipping. Providing workers with more efficient ways to go about their job is one of
the best ROI use cases in today's business environment.
6. Tourism Industry
Technology has gone a long way towards advancing the tourism industry in recent years, from
review sites like TripAdvisor to informative website like Lonely Planet. But AR presents a huge
opportunity for travel brands and agents to give potential tourists an even more immersive
experience before they travel. Imagine taking a virtual "Walkabout" Australia before on AR glasses
before booking a ticket to Sydney, or a leisurely stroll around Paris to see what museums or cafes
you might like to visit. AR promises to make selling trips, travel, and vacations a whole lot easier
in the future.
7. Classroom Education
While technology like tablets have become widespread in many schools and classrooms, teachers
and educators are now ramping up student's learning experience with AR. The Aurasma app, for
example, is already being used in classrooms so that students can view their classes via a
smartphone or tablet for a richer learning environment. Students learning about astronomy might
see a full map of the solar system, or those in a music class might be able to see musical notes in
real time as they learn to play an instrument.
8. Field Service
Whether it's something as small as an air conditioner, or as large as a wind turbine, every day field
service technicians get dispatched to repair a piece of mission critical equipment that needs to
get up and running as soon as possible. Today, these technicians can arrive on-site with AR glasses
or headsets and view whatever they're repairing to more quickly diagnose - and fix - the problem.
And instead of having to thumb through a repair manual, technicians can go about their business
hands-free to get in and out faster than ever.
9. Entertainment Properties
In the entertainment industry, it's all about building a strong relationship with your branded
characters and the audience. Properties like Harry Potter are immensely successful because
readers of the books and watchers of the movies feel like they know the characters, and are
hungry for additional content. Entertainment brands are now seeing AR as a great marketing
opportunity to build deeper bonds between their characters and audience. As a matter of fact,
the makers of AR sensation Pokémon Go are soon planning to release a Harry Potter-themed AR
game that fans can interact with day in and day out.
10. Public Safety
In the event of an emergency today, people will immediately reach for their smartphone to find
out what's going on, where to go, and whether their loved ones are safe. Moreover, first
responders arrive on the scene of a fire or earthquake trying to figure out who needs help, and
the best way to get them to safety. AR is showing promise in solving both pieces of the public
safety puzzle. First responders wearing AR glasses can be alerted to danger areas, and show in
real-time individuals that need assistance while enabling to still be aware of their surroundings.
For those in need, geolocation enabled AR can show them directions, and the best route to, safe
zones and areas with firefighters or medics.
AR LIBRARIES
ARCORE ~by GOOGLE
ARKIT ~by Apple
Easyar ~by VisionStar Information Technology
Vuforia ~by PTC
And etc.
USES CASE IMPLEMENTED
Image Detection:
Here we scanned a set of images.
They are stored into database.
Each image is uniquely indexed and uses ARCORE library.
Whenever application detects image similar to image in database then it replaces a
portion of image with object (Cube)
Live Image:
Here we scanned a set of images.
They are stored into database.
Each image is uniquely indexed using ARCORE library.
We developed an application which continuously scan for image which are similar to set
of images scanned earlier. And if camera finds that image then whole image is replaced by a
corresponding video of indexed image and video starts playing automatically.
Scanning part is done with the help ARCORE library.
Working Demo of Live Image:
Reference:
ARCore Docs
ARCore Tutorials
