Following the Augmented World Expo event that took place at the end of May 2017, AREA member Appearition has written a blog about their experience at the event AWE.

Notes and thoughts from various event talks are mentioned including those on Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Mixed Reality and X-Reality.

• AREA’s Executive Director, Mark Sage talks about Augmented Reality in the Enterprise Ecosystem and how this can be improved.
• Juergen Lumera spoke about how Bosch is taking up single pain points and improving the entire process to provide a great customer experience.
• Vivek Aiyer of Appearition spoke about Designer Enterprises and real world experiences.

Other points mentioned in the blog are:

• AR / VR / MR from a technology perspective has improved immensely over the last year
• A step-by-step approach to use existing content and slowly create change rather than the big bang approach will go a long way to improve usage
• The devices we use to bring the benefits and seamlessly integrate its usefulness into our lives is still at its infancy
• An end to end seamless solution is what is lacking and can be brought together by collaboration across solution providers, partners, vendors, customers and end users.
• The importance of being end user empathy-focused

To read the full blog click here.

A recent article by Interesting Engineering discusses Augmented Reality in the manufacturing sector: leading manufacturers such as Thyssenkrupp, Boeing, Caterpillar, Range Rover and Porsche are all applying AR at different levels and are all witnessing tremendous benefits across multiple production stages.

Thyssenkrupp, use AR for design. They use the Microsoft HoloLens which helps them design bespoke home mobility solutions. A salesperson now measures clients’ staircases through HoloLens and the measured 3D point cloud data is then sent to their manufacturing team automatically. This helps them make quick decisions and near real-time design approval for manufacturing.

AREA member Boeing is mentioned for using AR to assemble their products. Augmented Reality helps ease their complex tasks of wiring that goes into all their Fighters. Boeing using Google Glass and Skylight which is a software platform from Upskill, another one of AREA’s members.

The next 3 points that are stated in the article are personnel training, quality control and maintenance. Interesting Engineering also state that as the hardware and software for AR improve, this embryonic technology will gain more potential to disrupt the traditional industrial environment.

To read the full article click here.

Finger Food Studios, is developing a new interactive scenographic tool for Microsoft HoloLens according to their press release. It is being tested in a show creation context by Cirque du Soleil. Finger Food’s innovative holographic set design tool took centre stage at the Microsoft Build (MS Build) conference Day 2 Keynote.

During the Keynote, HoloLens creator Alex Kipman invited Cirque du Soleil to demonstrate Finger Food’s Mixed Reality scenographic tool. This full-scale holographic tool can not only save on time and costs, but also allow for greater creative freedom and collaboration.

As demonstrated on stage yesterday, Finger Foods’ scenographic tool enables the creation of interactive 3D blocks and shapes that can be quickly transformed into a full scale rendering of a stage, including holographic performers. A tool like this would enable creative teams to work together to imagine, test and bring life to their ideas at full scale even before the first casting session or any building begins.

To read their full press release click here.

PRESS RELEASE: Canadian Tech Firm debuts HoloBridge IoT data visualization framework at Hannover Messe Industrial Fair

Finger Food Studios becomes OSIsoft’s first Red Carpet Incubation Program (RCIP) Mixed Reality Developer with Deschutes Brewery Demo.

Working with OSIsoft LLC and Microsoft, Finger Food has created an innovative holographic application for top US craft brewery, Deschutes.

With HoloBridge, Finger Food brought Deschutes’ data to a new level of understanding. Drawing on Finger Food’s strengths in game design and development, user interaction and collaboration, the company created a way for Deschutes to not just see, but interact with their data at scale.

Finger Food’s Mixed Reality (MR) application features life-size holographic brewery equipment with live streaming data, offering context and insights from the PI Integrator for Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Cortana Intelligence ready to be viewed and analyzed.

To read the full press release by Finger Food Studios please click here.

ITC Infotech, a global service provider of technology solutions, announced in a press release (May 22 2017) that they will collaborate with AREA member PTC and Oracle to provide an Augmented Reality solution for Connected Service.

ITC Infotech, a Platinum level and Cloud Standard member of Oracle PartnerNetwork and long-standing strategic partner with PTC, developed this solution by drawing upon proficiencies and expertise in delivering Customer Experience (CX) and digital transformations for Service across a multitude of industries. This solution is aimed at improving self-service, assisted service & field service interactions for B2C and B2B industries. Improved service outcomes and a stellar service experience is expected to enable customers to improve top line and bottom line growth while also enabling them to expand their market share.

“The collaboration among Oracle, PTC, and ITC Infotech gives us the opportunity to explore how our existing CX products can enrich AR technology to deliver a more robust consumer experience across Oracle Service Cloud, Oracle IoT Cloud, and Oracle Commerce Cloud,” said Shon Wedde, Senior Director of Product Management, Oracle. “We are excited to address the possibilities of AR across self-service, assisted service, and field service,” he added.

The full press release can be read here.

AREA member Scope AR, announced this week that they will be launching a version of their WorkLink Augmented Reality content authoring platform on the HoloLens. This gives the customers the ability to help remote workers learn to repair or assemble complex machinery.

Their WorkLink product can utilize the HoloLens’ outward facing depth sensors to map a rough mesh of objects and attach AR step-by-step instructions to the real-world objects with “the same ease as creating a PowerPoint presentation,” according to the company. This will allow non-technical employees a chance to easily build content and push it out to supported platforms, including iOS, Android and Windows.

Scott Montgomerie, CEO, Scope AR says, “This is going to be the easier way to get content onto the HoloLens.”

 Scope AR builds tools which allow workers to see CAD models overlaid on real world objects (while getting live support from specialists), giving them the ability to easily see when there’s an issue while also being able to deliver quick fixes. Most of this work is done on tablets using marker-based tracking, but the company is increasingly looking towards the headset-based future of AR.

Augmented Reality is discussed on the PwC technology blog as part of their Global Digital IQ Survey. Emerging technology is discussed with AR for the Enterprise taking the spotlight.  The blog starts by indicating the types of enterprise enabled AR initiatives taking place in industry now and states that the market is growing.   The PwC/CB Insights MoneyTree™ Report, which tracks AR together with VR, recorded $1.5 billion in venture capital investment in 71 deals in 2016.

Graphs included in the blog show (1) Investment in Augmented Reality by industry and (2) “Essential Eight” technologies driving disruption including IoT, AI, Robotics, 3D printing, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Drones and Blockchain.

The following 3 questions are posed, with answers given:

Who is investing the most?

Aerospace and defense, as well as software and internet/information technology companies are early to the game; consumer banks, airlines, engineering and construction companies, retailers, and wholesale and distribution firms will be investing in AR in three years.

What are AR investors focusing on?

Digital culture development is a top initiative today; customer experience will be an additional goal for the next three years. AR will increasingly be used to put the huge volume of IoT-collected data into context.

What value do AR investors expect?

Although the number of relevant respondents is small, early returns are expected to take the form of revenue growth.

The top 3 applications for Wearable technology and Augmented Reality in the Automotive Industry are discussed, in a recent guest article by Randy Nunez of The Ford Motor Company, that appeared on a blog post from BrainXchange (AREA Member).

Nunez outlines what he believes are the top three use cases for Wearable technology and Augmented Reality in Automotive. The top three are:

• Guided Instructions – Adding digital or virtual content while in the real world to provide step-by-step instructions for procedures or workflows is a key use case
• Remote Expert – Using smart eyewear in conjunction with video/audio collaboration software can connect local users with remote experts to provide real-time guidance
• Design Visualization – Visual 3D representation of a vehicle design can include physical prototypes made of clay or wood.  This can be expensive and time-consuming to create and modify.

Randy will be speaking on a panel about applications for Smart Glasses and other head work devices on Thursday 11 May at the Spring Enterprise Wearable Technology Summit 2017 in San Diego, CA.

If you are interested in reading the full article click here.

Press release dated May 9 2017: ABI Research ranks AREA Member PTC’s Vuforia platform as the leader among 19 Augmented Reality platform competitors, with Re’Flekt and Ubimax securing first and second runners-up positions. The initial sections of the press release are published below:

Recently acquired by PTC, Vuforia’s expansive platform offering and demanding market share now combines augmented reality (AR), IoT, and enterprise expertise. This positions Vuforia as the leader in AR platforms, especially when considering the dominant enterprise focus in the market.

“Vuforia’s story has several facets that are responsible for its favorable position: ample market experience, a complete portfolio, and a competitive enterprise supplement through PTC,” says Eric Abbruzzese, Senior Analyst at ABI Research. “The importance of a strong enterprise play cannot be understated. While the consumer market may be the key to eventual AR ubiquity, the enterprise market is this industry’s foundation.”

ABI Research’s competitive assessment broke competitors into three groups to better reflect the nature of the platforms: software development kit (SDK)-focused, application-focused, and usage-focused. While Vuforia, Re’Flekt, and Ubimax take the top three spots among all companies, each group has its own, distinct winners.

Vuforia, Wikitude, and ARToolKit are top suppliers in the SDK-focused group mainly due to strong machine vision and cloud device support. Aurasma (by HP), Augment, and Blippar score highest in the application-focused group thanks to strong customer footprint, fair pricing, and good developer accessibility. Re’Flekt, Ubimax, and Upskill Skylight are the main three in the usage-focused group due to their strong device support, IoT synergy, and smart glasses support.

A press release from Upskill dated May 9, 2017 reveals that AREA Member, Upskill (formerly APX Labs), a leader in enterprise software for Augmented Reality (AR) devices, announced the acquisition of Austin, TX-based Pristine, the leading software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider of AR collaboration and video streaming software. The press release can be read here

And is summarised below:
Pristine’s remote assistance and knowledge capture solutions will complement Upskill’s existing Skylight industrial AR platform to offer the most comprehensive product offering in the industry, making it easier for customers to meet their operational needs and IT requirements.

“Augmented reality is driving incredible productivity results across functional areas in industrial enterprises. Our customers are seeing an average of 32 percent performance improvement from their very first use of Skylight,” said Brian Ballard, co-founder and CEO, Upskill. “There aren’t very many new technologies that can deliver this kind of ‘out of the box’ value creation, which is why adoption of AR technology is accelerating at an incredible pace. This underscores the importance for Upskill to leverage new opportunities that will help us scale and innovate faster than anyone else in the space. The acquisition of Pristine will allow us to do just that.”

Pristine is best known for its flagship product, EyeSight, which provides best-in-class “see what I see” video streaming capabilities for remote experts. Customer deployments have proven EyeSight to help workers complete inspection, compliance and repair processes at a fraction of the cost and time normally required. Through the acquisition, Upskill will now offer Pristine’s portfolio of field-worker collaboration solutions including EyeSight. These applications are typically deployed on smart glasses, but are also available across Mac, PC, iPhone, iPad and Android devices. With Pristine solutions in its repertoire, Upskill will be able to add breadth and domain expertise to its product offering and more choices for customers seeking to implement AR across manufacturing, logistics and field service applications.

Along with the added technology capabilities and product solutions, Pristine also brings to Upskill a talented engineering and product team with deep industry experience in scaling deployment of enterprise wearables across an impressive client base,

Look out for our upcoming blog where The AREA speaks to Jay Kim of Upskill.