Augmented reality is hotly debated

The AR & VR World Summit is the most important annual meeting place for the business-oriented augmented, mixed and virtual reality community. One of the aims of the summit is to develop as many new ideas as possible in the field of AR through exchange with various experts. Versatile concepts for companies that believe in the use of augmented reality technology are to be developed and concretized from the inputs of the summit.

Once again this year, highly interesting topics on augmented reality technology were exchanged and short presentations were given by speakers from various industries. From chemical companies to tech firms and architecture firms, various companies were represented and reported on their own specific use cases and experiences. The large chemical company BASF from Germany presented interesting inputs on global virtual design and construction management, focusing on the integration of BIM (Building Information Modeling) with augmented reality. Microsoft presented their augmented reality glasses HoloLens 2. They explained how these can be ideally used in day-to-day business and the massive benefits of using them. In addition, various companies, including Gensler, a large architecture firm, discussed which augmented reality glasses they actually use in their day-to-day business. For us as a mobile agency in the field of augmented reality, there is one key point that we take from the summit. We go into this in more detail in the following section.

An important conclusion that we draw from the various talks at the AR & VR World Summit is the increasing relevance and high potential of augmented reality technology for companies of all sizes from various industries. This is because the use of AR opens doors to completely new possibilities in many areas. In the following, we have compiled a small overview of various use cases in which augmented reality technology is already being used.

Augmented reality is expanding the tourism industry. The technology can be used to enhance real places, monuments or cultural buildings with additional virtual information. In May 2019, we collaborated with Liechtenstein Marketing to add virtual interactive elements to the Liechtenstein Trail, which leads right across Liechtenstein. To this end, we developed the LIstory mobile app, which is available in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. Users have the opportunity to go on a hike through Liechtenstein and learn about the country’s history through exciting augmented reality experiences. Augmented reality technology offers incredible potential for the tourism industry.

Augmented reality, but also virtual reality, has the potential to completely change the training sector. The feeling of being on site and practising with virtual objects enables efficient training of a company’s employees. For example, construction workers can be confronted with situations in a simulated environment that would pose a danger in the real world. This allows them to practice appropriate situations in a safe environment without actually putting themselves in danger. Furthermore, the technology can also be used optimally for the learning purposes of children in schools. AR or VR conveys a real feeling through interaction with virtual objects. As a result, children can better visualize the material they are learning, such as geometric figures, with the help of AR or VR.

In the real estate and construction industry, there are various applications in which augmented reality technology is used. 3D models of machines or buildings can be placed visually on site in the real world. The term BIM (Building Information Modeling) is already widely used today and can be easily combined with AR. Before a building is actually constructed, it is possible to use BIM to virtually inspect the digital twin of the building. In this way, planning errors can be detected before the building is constructed and high redesign costs can be saved. AR can also be used to place the virtual building directly in the real world and check whether it actually fits into the real environment. The potential of AR is extremely high for this area, as high costs can be saved, among other things.

Augmented reality can be used to make plant and machine services more efficient and cost-effective. Augmented reality technology is already being used in industry. For example, service technicians can use AR glasses or an AR app to better locate a missing or defective component. They can also use the AR app as an assistant to find out more information about a particular component. On behalf of Bombardier Transportation and in collaboration with VBZ, we developed a corresponding augmented reality solution for the maintenance of streetcars in 2018. Equipped with AR glasses, technicians can walk through the streetcar and call up information on the individual parts of the vehicle. Using different colors, they can quickly identify whether a part is defective or missing and needs to be reordered. Furthermore, individual parts can be clicked on to obtain detailed information. This saves technicians an enormous amount of time. They can work more efficiently as they don’t have to search for individual parts by eye when they are already automatically recognized thanks to augmented reality technology.

With the help of augmented reality, products in an online store can be shown to customers in virtual form. This allows customers to explore the features of a product or service without having to go on site. For example, a customer can “test” the desired furniture from a digital catalog and check whether it fits in their own home. To do this, the virtual object can be displayed in real size in the real environment. In this area, we developed an augmented reality mobile app for Möbel Pfister back in 2008, which was not yet available in Switzerland at the time.

Augmented reality-supported warehouse systems assist customers or employees in searching for and sorting products. The AR technology recognizes parts or the barcode of a product and consequently provides information about the content or price of the respective product. This allows customers to complete their purchases efficiently without having to spend a long time searching for the desired product in the store.

These are just a few examples of where augmented reality is already being used today. The technology can be used efficiently in practically any environment. There are already exciting use cases in medicine, the airline industry and many more.

We are already looking forward to the next Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality conference to get many more updates, exchange experiences and gain inspiration. The next conference (AWE Europe) in this area is the largest in Europe and will take place in Munich in October. We, the Bitforge team, will certainly be present at AWE Europe in Munich.