Web-based AR for Enterprise: Opportunities and Challenges

AREA-Directed Research: RFP Submission

Industry Context for the Research

As AR technologies mature, developers working for AREA member organizations will generate growing catalogs of AR experiences for use in the workplaces where employees encounter new and/or complex situations involving physical world spaces, machines and materials.

Industry specialists are now seeking scalable ways to author, manage and maintain those AR experiences and to support a wide range of display devices, sources of data and users operating in diverse workplaces. Currently, their options are limited to adopting closed, proprietary system architectures and methods for AR experience authoring, delivery and presentation.  This “walled garden” approach is designed to support “native” mobile applications, which are neither interoperable across devices nor easy to maintain.

An alternative is currently under development in the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Immersive Web (IW) working group. All major Web browser vendors are currently collaborating in the W3C ​IW working group to develop the WebXR Device API specification. When ratified and adopted, WebXR Device API and its extensions will enable delivery of AR experiences to any device running a standards-compliant browser. Immersive Web-based solutions will offer inexpensive content development, delivery and maintenance options. IW will enable OS-interoperability, portability between devices, intuitive sharing of content using common hyperlinks, improved security and scalability, and seamless integration with existing enterprise Web architectures and database investments.

Before AREA members can test and/or embrace the IW specifications, they must understand the status and development roadmap of the W3C working group’s activities, and be able to compare the benefits and practical limitations of using Web-based delivery of enterprise AR content versus the existing native application approach.

This research project will educate and empower AREA members as they begin to explore Web-based AR as a resource in their AR portfolio, and permit members to converse with enterprise stakeholders and Web-based AR solution providers. With this knowledge, AREA members will be able to choose if, when and how to take full advantage of the emerging Immersive Web.

Approach and Scope

To achieve the goals of this project, the research team will:

1. Collaborate with the W3C Immersive Web WG chairs, editors and major contributors to report on the status, initial functionality, and development roadmap and timeline of the WebXR Device API specification.
2. Conduct research on prior investigations and current initiatives, if any, regarding Web-based AR for enterprise use cases.
3. Survey AREA members and industry stakeholders regarding their knowledge of, and attitudes and aspirations regarding, web-based delivery of AR experiences.

The research will answer at least the following questions for AREA members.

1. Capture current state of the art

• What is the status of the W3C Immersive Web WG and who is driving and/or participating in it?
• What are the tools and who are the leading suppliers of Web-based AR solutions?
• Have any enterprise AR customers or technology suppliers begun to pilot or implement Web-based AR and what are the results of these projects?
• What are the use cases in which Web-based AR will be best suited?
• What are the architectural components, in addition to the Web browser, that need to be considered in a Web-based AR solution?
• What are the maturity levels (Low, Medium, High) of these other components?
• Compare and contrast Web-based AR with native mobile application architectures

2. What does engagement of Web-based AR look like across the enterprise AR experience life-cycle?

• What are the relevant parameters for making realistic technical and business decisions?
• How can businesses choose between Web-based AR and native mobile applications?
• What new capabilities will companies need to develop or acquire to successfully implement Web-based AR architectures?

3. What are some ideal future states (scenarios) towards which enterprises and AR technology providers should be planning?

• What does the roadmap(s) for the evolution of both Web-based AR and native mobile application experience delivery strategies look like?
• What are the anticipated and/or potential benefits?

Deliverables

This AREA research project will produce three deliverables:

• A written report containing the results of research and analysis with recommendations and a bibliography of sources and appendix with list of experts who contributed to the research.
• A working demonstration (“running code”) of Web-based AR delivery and presentation for an elementary enterprise use case. The software will be published in a private repository where AREA members can download packages and run code locally with Web browsers that support current level of WebXR Device API support.
• A 2,500-3,000 word case study or executive summary of the research which can be published on the AREA Web site

Using the research report and demonstration code produced in this project will permit AREA members to better plan their integration strategies and scalable architectures, as well as to begin fruitful dialog with suppliers of Web-based AR tools and content about integration scenarios and roadmaps.

A case study or executive summary suitable for public release by the AREA will summarize the state of the art and results of the running code. The publication of the case study will permit stakeholders in the broader AR ecosystem to discuss the use of Web-based AR and discover one of the benefits of AREA membership.

Selection Criteria

All proposals will be evaluated by the AREA research committee chair and research manager on the following criteria:

• Demonstrated knowledge of Web technologies, enterprise AR authoring and experience management and the W3C standards development processes.
• Clear qualifications of the proposing research organization and any partners in the domains of Web management and/or adjacent technologies.
• Review of prior research reports and process management tools.
• Feedback of references.

Submission Deadline

Please use the submission form below to submit your proposal on or before 12 PM Eastern Daylight Time September 16, 2019.

Budget for this Project

Note that the AREA Research Committee budget for this project is $15,000. Organizations interested in conducting this research for the fixed fee are invited to submit proposals.

Questions

Any questions concerning this project and the AREA Research Committee, please send an email to the Research Committee.