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How Does Augmented Reality Work

Augmented reality (AR) utilizes camera-equipped devices with AR software to recognize objects through computer vision and overlay digital information in a 3-D experience. This technology allows users to interact with real-time data and control products via touch, voice, or gestures, with experiences tailored to different roles. A digital twin, a 3-D model stored in the cloud, connects the physical object to the AR experience by providing up-to-date information about the object.

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58 views4 pages

How Does Augmented Reality Work

Augmented reality (AR) utilizes camera-equipped devices with AR software to recognize objects through computer vision and overlay digital information in a 3-D experience. This technology allows users to interact with real-time data and control products via touch, voice, or gestures, with experiences tailored to different roles. A digital twin, a 3-D model stored in the cloud, connects the physical object to the AR experience by providing up-to-date information about the object.

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anhthuly.15.work
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How Does Augmented Reality Work?

The key is a digital twin.


by
 Michael E. Porter
and
 James E. Heppelmann
From the Magazine (November–December 2017)

Spotlight Series / A Manager’s Guide to Augmented Reality


01
Why Every Organization Needs an Augmented Reality Strategy

02
How Does Augmented Reality Work?

03
Augmented Reality in the Real World

04
One Company’s Experience with AR

05
The Battle of the Smart Glasses

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Augmented reality starts with a camera-equipped device—such as a


smartphone, a tablet, or smart glasses—loaded with AR software. When a
user points the device and looks at an object, the software recognizes it
through computer vision technology, which analyzes the video stream.

The device then downloads information about the object from the cloud, in
much the same way that a web browser loads a page via a URL. A
fundamental difference is that the AR information is presented in a 3-D
“experience” superimposed on the object rather than in a 2-D page on a
screen. What the user sees, then, is part real and part digital.

AR can provide a view of the real-time data flowing from products and allow
users to control them by touchscreen, voice, or gesture. For example, a user
might touch a stop button on the digital graphic overlay within an AR
experience—or simply say the word “stop”—to send a command via the
cloud to a product. An operator using an AR headset to interact with an
industrial robot might see superimposed data about the robot’s
performance and gain access to its controls.

As the user moves, the size and orientation of the AR display automatically
adjust to the shifting context. New graphical or text information comes into
view while other information passes out of view. In industrial settings, users
in different roles, such as a machine operator and a maintenance
technician, can look at the same object but be presented with different AR
experiences that are tailored to their needs.

A 3-D digital model that resides in the cloud—the object’s “digital twin”—
serves as the bridge between the smart object and the AR. This model is
created either by using computer-aided design, usually during product
development, or by using technology that digitizes physical objects. The
twin then collects information from the product, business systems, and
external sources to reflect the product’s current reality. It is the vehicle
through which the AR software accurately places and scales up-to-date
information on the object.
A version of this article appeared in the November–December 2017 issue (p.58)
of Harvard Business Review.

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