Augmented Reality in the Workplace

19 December 2023

Augmented Reality in the Workplace

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are two rapidly developing technologies with a wide range of applications. AR overlays digital information onto the real world, while VR creates an immersive digital environment that users can interact with.

Both AR and VR are having a significant impact on the workspace, school space, and everyday life. In the workspace, AR and VR are being used to improve training, safety, and productivity. In the school space, AR and VR are being used to create more engaging and immersive learning experiences. In everyday life, AR and VR are being used to enhance entertainment, shopping, and communication.

Impact on the workspace

Training

One of the most significant impacts of AR and VR on the workplace is in training. AR and VR can provide trainees a realistic and safe environment to practice their skills. For example, Boeing is using VR to train its assembly workers on how to build new aircraft. The US military is using VR to train soldiers on how to operate weapons and navigate different terrains.

Safety

AR and VR can also be used to improve safety in the workplace. For example, AR glasses can provide workers with real-time information about hazards and safety procedures. AR can also be used to guide workers through complex tasks. For example, General Electric is using AR to help workers repair jet engines.

Productivity

AR and VR can also be used to improve productivity in the workplace. For example, AR can be used to provide workers with hands-free access to information and instructions. VR can be used to create virtual meeting spaces and collaboration tools. For example, Microsoft Teams now offers VR meeting spaces, allowing users to collaborate in a virtual environment.

Impact on the School Space

AR and VR are being used to create more engaging and immersive learning experiences. For example, AR can be used to bring science textbooks to life or to allow students to explore historical sites. VR can be used to transport students to different places and times or to allow them to experience complex concepts firsthand.

For example, the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania uses AR to bring its science exhibits to life. Students can point their smartphones at the exhibits to see additional information and animations. The University of North Carolina is using VR to transport students to different historical sites and allow them to experience them firsthand. For example, students can take a virtual tour of the Roman Colosseum or the Great Wall of China.

Impact on everyday life

AR and VR are being used to enhance entertainment, shopping, and communication in everyday life. For example, AR can be used to play interactive games or to try on clothes before you buy them. VR can be used to watch movies and TV shows in a more immersive way or to attend virtual concerts and sporting events.

For example, IKEA is using AR to allow customers to try on furniture in their own homes before they buy it. Customers can point their smartphones at the place where they want to place the furniture to see how it would look. The North Face is using VR to allow customers to experience their products in a virtual outdoor environment. Customers can hike through a virtual forest or climb a virtual mountain.

AR and VR are also being used to improve communication. For example, AR can be used to translate languages in real-time or to provide sign language interpretation. VR can be used to create virtual meeting spaces and collaboration tools. For example, Facebook is developing AR glasses that can be used to translate languages in real-time and provide sign language interpretation.

Conclusion

AR and VR are two rapidly developing technologies with a wide range of applications. AR and VR are having a significant impact on the workspace, school space, and everyday life. As these technologies continue to develop, we can expect to see even more innovative and ground-breaking applications.

https://spectrum.ieee.org/vr-and-ar-course-program

https://about.fb.com/news/2023/09/impact-of-vr-and-ar/

https://itmunch.com/breaking-barriers-exploring-the-future-of-vr-and-ar-itmunch/

https://www.xrtoday.com/augmented-reality/the-role-of-ar-in-the-future-of-work/

https://techround.co.uk/tech/apple-vr-headset-future-virtual-reality/

Engine used: QuillBot

Tagged AI, apple, Augmented Reality, Gaming, workfromhome

21 October 2023

The Rise and Reality of AR and VR in Education, Healthcare, and Training

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are immersive technologies that create realistic simulations of real or imagined environments. They have been increasingly used in various fields, such as entertainment, gaming, tourism, and education. However, one of the most promising and impactful applications of AR and VR is in healthcare, where they can enhance medical training, diagnosis, treatment, and patient care. In this article, we will explore the benefits and challenges of using AR and VR in healthcare education and training, and present some examples of how they are being implemented in different settings.

Benefits of AR and VR in Healthcare:

AR and VR offer several advantages for healthcare education and training, such as:

They provide a risk-free, controlled, and personalised environment, that is also engaging and interactive. This enables learners to practice various skills and scenarios without harming themselves or others, and to receive immediate feedback and guidance¹.

They enable repeatable and scalable immersive simulations that can accommodate different levels of difficulty and complexity. Learners can master the basics before advancing to more challenging tasks, and access the simulations anytime and anywhere .

They enhance the realism and fidelity of the simulations by incorporating sensory inputs, such as visual, auditory, haptic, and olfactory stimuli. Learners can experience the situations as close as possible to reality, and develop their situational awareness and decision-making abilities .

They facilitate collaboration and communication among learners and instructors, as well as between different disciplines and specialties. Learners can work in teams, share perspectives, learn from each other, and develop their interpersonal skills.

Examples of AR and VR in Healthcare:

There are many examples of how AR and VR are being used in healthcare education and training across different domains, such as:

Anatomy: AR and VR can help learners visualize the structure and function of the human body in 3D, without the need for cadavers or models. For instance, the HoloAnatomy app uses Microsoft HoloLens to display holographic images of the human anatomy that can be manipulated by gestures. Similarly, the 3D Organon VR Anatomy app uses Oculus Rift to display interactive models of the human anatomy that can be explored by controllers.

Surgery: AR and VR can help learners practice surgical procedures in a realistic and safe environment, without the need for live patients or animals. For example, the PrecisionOS system uses Oculus Quest to provide immersive surgical simulations for orthopedic education. Likewise, the Osso VR system uses HTC Vive to provide surgical simulations for various specialties.

Resuscitation: AR and VR can help learners perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in a lifelike scenario, without the need for manikins or actors. For instance, the ResusVR app uses Google Cardboard to provide a 360-degree video of a CPR scenario that can be controlled by voice commands. Similarly, the CPR Simulator app uses Samsung Gear VR to provide a 3D simulation of a CPR scenario that can be controlled by head movements.

Challenges of AR and VR in Healthcare:

Despite the benefits of AR and VR in healthcare education and training, there are also some challenges that need to be addressed, such as:

Cost: AR and VR and software can be expensive to acquire, maintain, update, and integrate with existing systems. Moreover, they may require additional resources such as space, power, internet connection, technical support, etc^.

Accessibility: AR and VR devices may not be widely available or compatible with different platforms or standards. Moreover, they may pose some barriers for users with disabilities or special needs¹².

Quality: AR and VR content may vary in quality depending on the source, design, development, validation, evaluation, etc. Moreover, they may contain errors or inaccuracies that could affect the learning outcomes or patient safety.

Ethics: AR and VR may raise some ethical issues regarding the privacy, consent, confidentiality, ownership, etc. of the data or images used.

Conclusion:

AR and VR are transforming healthcare education and training by providing immersive simulations that enhance learning outcomes and patient care. However, they also pose some challenges that need to be overcome by further research, development, and regulation. Therefore, it is important to adopt a balanced approach that considers both the pros and cons of using AR and VR in healthcare education and training.

Sources:

Tagged Augmented Reality, healthcare

6 December 2021

Facebook’s metaverse is insignificant

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The idea behind Facebook’s Metaverse is brilliant. It truly is. But I find it incredibly difficult to believe hordes of people would buy Facebook’s headsets with a 1080p camera and stereo mic. Personally, I wouldn’t like to meet with people wearing any data harvesters from Facebook on their bodies. By wearing Facebook’s products, you surrender your privacy. Simple as that.

I really don’t want to talk about Zuckerberg’s latest project because I only give him free publicity by doing so. But it’s essential to make my point.

Metaverse is ambitious. In fact, too ambitious. Facebook believes they can build the whole world right away, and to be fair, they are delusional. Let’s assume Metaverse exists for a second, though. The problem of this digital world is three-fold. Firstly, as a developer, you don’t know anything about writing programs that would run on Metaverse. Secondly, the programming language lacks libraries and frameworks to enable developers to create apps efficiently. Thirdly, there’s no user base with devices. Zero. Facebook sold like a dozen oculus sets, but that’s it.

In short, sure, the hype factor is here, and everyone is excited about Metaverse. But still, without any of the above three aspects, Metaverse doesn’t exist outside of Facebook’s marketing team.

On the other side of the “spectrum” are Apple, Google, and Microsoft. Apple is told to release its next “big thing” in the next year. The next big thing will be either a VR or AR headset. No matter which headset Apple will introduce, Apple’s digital world will outgrow Facebook’s Metaverse from day one.

The graph above illustrates the projection of sales of AR glasses in the upcoming three years. As you can see, it’s forecasted that Apple will sell almost five times more units than Facebook will, only in the first year. What’s more, in 2025, Facebook is predicted to be the second smallest player on the market.

The reason Apple will destroy the competition lies in the above three factors that are absolutely essential for creating the digital universe. And Apple, one year before the predicted release of AR glasses, already fulfills 3 out of 3 factors.

Around six years ago, Apple introduced its new programming language – check. In 2017, they released ARKit – a set of APIs, libraries, and frameworks for working with AR objects and AR realties – check. And lastly, Apple has been building a user base since the day iPhone launched (now standing at whopping 900 million active iPhones) – check. And a great majority of the active iPhones can run AR apps.

That gives Apple essentially all there is to dominate the AR market overnight by simply pushing a software update. What’s more, the developer base already knows the process of developing AR apps for iOS.

Now let’s talk about another critical aspect – computing power. To run AR programs, you need enormous computing power. The hardware must run tens of billions of operations every second, fit in a small box, and be highly energy-efficient (meaning how many operations you can make out of a battery charge). And wow, what a surprise! For more than ten years, Apple has been developing precisely these kinds of chips. The ones that are both extremely energy efficient and have unmatched performance. This fact already creates a tremendously significant competitive advantage over Facebook.

Another significant aspect of AR is the number of use cases. With Facebook’s oculus, you can play games, call friends and watch some videos on youtube. I’d say that’s pretty limited. Thus, to survive, Metaverse will need to extend capabilities that will take time to develop. Apple will offer many more, besides the above use cases, such as maps, music, tv, podcasts, and fitness services from the launch day. So, the services that Apple offers are much more wide-ranging than Facebook’s offering.

Closing Thoughts

This relatively long analysis was supposed to show you why Facebook’s Metaverse has no significant future and how their competition will relegate them to the background in the upcoming years. Facebook’s failure will lie in almost every area of creating the digital world, starting with the user base with digital-world-running capabilities, going through chip performance, and ending on limited use cases.

Of course, the subject of the digital world becomes much more complex when we start discussing the effects of living on the internet on the human psyche. For now, though, I wanted to focus only on the technological aspects of this matter.

Sources

Tagged apple, Augmented Reality, facebook, metaverse, Virtual Reality

14 January 2020

2 Comments

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Tight on space? Try a shelf reinvented by Tylko

Reading Time: 3 minutesPoland ranks 6th in terms of furniture production worldwide. No other of our industries have such a strong position. Despite such a well-developed market, it turned out that there is still room for innovation and development.

The founders of Tylko have created an application for designing shelves themselves. They are boldly invading the global furniture market, which is only just discovering the possibilities of new technologies and sales via the Internet.

Interior design with a Tylko shelf
Source: https://tylko.com/

How does it work?

You aim your smartphone at the place where you want to place the rack. You can view and configure a piece of furniture using the app: you can adjust the shape, height, and width of the furniture by sliding the slider and analyze the changing price. The application translates your design into production files and sends them to one of the factories that produce the parts that make up your shelf. It will come to you two or three weeks later as a flat-pack, a self-folding piece of furniture – sequentially packed, with personalized instructions and no tools required.

The Tylko shelf arrangement
Source: https://tylko.com/

Tylko shelf integrated into the interior
Source: https://tylko.com/

What distinguishes Tylko from other companies?

Surely the easiest thing to identify is customization. Tylko is not the first company that does it, but it does things completely differently, in a form that is very simple and accessible to everyone. Furniture is supposed to be functional in terms of ergonomics. It is meant to be beautiful, stable, possible to produce and to serve the customer for a long time. All this is written in a complex algorithm, which is very simple to use with a series of sliders to let users quickly tweak and apply dimensions, styles, and finishes. This is the advantage.

Why is Tylko a technology company?

Tylko is not e-commerce. The product is sold over the Internet, but calling this startup an e-commerce site is too simplistic. It is a technology company that has its products and creates them. Tylko is an inventor when it comes to a physical product.

The startup has very complex algorithms that make the furniture the way we want it to be, i.e. it meets all values and conditions. Drawing furniture for production has been completely eliminated. Instead of that, Tylko writes programs that draw furniture for production. Automating the creation of production files is a very strong thing at this startup.

In addition, the elements that make up the furniture are of different sizes. Each time they have to be packed in a different way which is also facilitated due to technology. The startup also created an algorithm that packs these things, and by the way, it creates a manual for the factory staff on how to hide these items inside. This process is completely chronological. We open package no. 1, take out the manual, there is an element no. 1, element no. 2, element no. 3. Thanks to this, especially in a small apartment, we don’t have to put everything down on the floor first and look for these things, but they are arranged in turn.

The main markets for the company are Germany, Great Britain, France, Switzerland, Austria, but sales are made all over Europe. Many American investors have tried to convince their founders to bring their business to the United States. However, the owners did not want to do this as the place where they want to develop their product is Poland.

Does the company have a chance to become a global brand that will be recognized? Is there still room for startups in the furniture industry?

References:

[1] https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/tight-on-space-think-modular-furniture-600zqdcfp

[2] https://www.forbes.pl/biznes/tylko-meblowi-rewolucjonisci/xcy5mp5

[3] https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/07/tylko-bags-3-1m-to-size-up-a-bespoke-furniture-business/

[4] https://mamstartup.pl/13-polskich-startupow-ktore-moga-podbic-swiat

[5] https://plndesign.pl/tylko-albo-az/

[6] https://gregalbrecht.io/pl/podcast/mikolaj-molenda-tylko/

[7] https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/tylko-2

Tagged algorithm, Augmented Reality, design, disruptive technology, innovation, parametric design, startups, technology

22 October 2017

3 Comments

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Augmented Reality – new gateway for E-commerce

Reading Time: 3 minutesMany were exposed to augmented reality in 2016 with hit game Pokemon GO, which placed gaming animations within in the real world scenario through a smart camera lens. Augmented reality isn’t just for gaming. Over in the next few years, you will see it expand into other industries like healthcare, books, and of course augmented reality e-commerce.

With the launch of iPhone X and ARkit, Now apple can be involved in the world of augmented reality. Google has similarly been experimenting with smartphone AR since it showed off Project TAngo in 2014. After three years company has some great technology but very little in the way of actual users.Google is signaling a reactionary shift in its strategy by releasing a developer preview of ARCore. Google’s ARCore is the answer to Apple’s ARKit.

So what does it mean? ARCore and ARKit are the ways independent programmers and companies can create an augmented reality for your smartphone. They are not “the apps,” but they are how one would “create the apps.”

Both Apple and Google are making AR central to their mobile experience. That means companies creating new digital customer experiences can start thinking about how to harness AR for e-commerce purposes. Brands can extend the interactive and transnational experience to customers wherever they are as long as they have a mobile device in hand.

Augmented reality eCommerce can personalize the shopping experience for your customers. AR is arranged in such a way that it will increase sales by allowing customers to try before buying and, in turn, reduce returns by removing the initial guesswork. Customers want to know what they’re purchasing and AR is helping customers become more confident in their buying decisions while providing quantifiable differences for online merchants.

Overtime there will be tools that will change fashion industry . Which will allow customers to see what clothes look like on them or that show the actual size of the furniture in your space. Instead of an online store showing models wearing clothing, Customers may even able too see themselves in all of the outfits to know which will look on them and this will bring out huge revolution in online retail industry.

So to sum up AR has the potential to deliver these personalizes services to masses. it will change the perspective of online stores that we see today by giving a personalized shopping experience , guided by a knowledgeable curator who knows an individual shoppers style ,sizes and preferences which paves way to a new world of eCommerce

Sources :

Augmented Reality for Ecommerce

https://www.oberlo.com/blog/best-augmented-reality-ecommerceexamples

Tagged Augmented Reality, eCommerce, IKEA, mobile marketing, shopping, Virtual Reality

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A blog on technology, run by Kozminski University students and supervised by NeRDS

Tag Archives: Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality in the Workplace

The Rise and Reality of AR and VR in Education, Healthcare, and Training

Benefits of AR and VR in Healthcare:

Examples of AR and VR in Healthcare:

Challenges of AR and VR in Healthcare:

Conclusion:

Facebook’s metaverse is insignificant

Tight on space? Try a shelf reinvented by Tylko

Augmented Reality – new gateway for E-commerce