The training solution is based on the Augumenta SmartEyes system, which uses camera-equipped smart glasses to connect field workers in Africa with Japanese experts who can view the local scene and provide instructions and support in real-time.

JICA is responsible for delivering Japan’s official development assistance as an implementing agency, providing ODA Loan and Grant Aid, and executing Technical Cooperation in developing countries. With approximately 100 offices and a network of people cooperating within its numerous programs running all over the world, the organization provides, for example, technical training for participants from developing countries in a wide range of fields, such as medical, industrial, and agricultural fields.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, JICA programs allowed Japanese counterparts to host experts and researchers from developing countries in Japan and thousands of Japanese experts to travel to the target countries to arrange hands-on training locally. The pandemic caused disruptions to the programs: experts have been forced to evacuate and the hosting of trainees has been suspended. Last autumn, JICA launched an open call for proposals to find solutions that enable the programs to continue operating despite travel restrictions.

The Augumenta solution will initially be deployed in two countries in Africa as a tool to aid technical guidance:

1. In the medical field, including infectious disease control, between the researchers at Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Ghana and experts in research institutions in Japan;
2. In the field of infectious disease control between the University of Hokkaido and The School of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Zambia;
3. In the field of agriculture, connecting experts in Japan and the Agriculture Research Institute of the Ministry of Agriculture in Zambia studying rice cultivation. Augumenta’s SmartEyes solution matched the criteria set by JICA and was selected out of the 24 submitted proposals to provide the much-needed communication solution.

SmartEyes fulfills the key program requirements, including:

1. Needs to work with varying network conditions.
2. Does not require the researcher to stop working to communicate.
3. Provides proper visibility to the target, traditional webcams have not been sufficient.
4. Short learning curve, the solution does not require technical expertise to be used.
5. Can be customized based on JICA’s needs.

Read more about this in the full press release

Read Augumenta’s reaction in their blog about the SmartEyes JICA announcement

Read Augumenta’s AREA member profile

Global software company TeamViewer (who recently acquired AREA member Upskill) which has just become Mercedes’ third biggest sponsor in its $300 million (USD) total portfolio, works with many industry partners in helping provide Augmented Reality solutions.

Mercedes believes there is scope for AR to help improve the speed of problem solving at grand prix events, help ramp up processes and also reduce expenditure in the cost cap era by it not requiring so many staff to travel to races.

The idea is that the AR systems would allow a direct live contact between personnel working at the track and related staff at factory that would provide a vital link on F1 race weekends.

Asked about the potential benefits by Motorsport.com, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said: “Formula 1 is a sport that travels around the globe. And in the same way as we have our race support room, where we have around 30 people that monitor the car, that work in the simulator, and in the wind tunnel to enhance the performance on track, we need to inspect high tech parts, such as the power unit hydraulics components and gearboxes.

“I think having remote access from the factory through the augmented reality possibilities that TeamViewer provide is going to give us an edge.

“The benefits are also that the remote work that we all have experienced in the last 12 months is also helping us to reduce our carbon footprint. We will be able to take less people to the racetrack, because the remote access will allow us to have exactly the same kind of potential in working with our engineers on the track even when they are back at base.” TeamViewer CEO Oliver Steil said that AR had been a huge help in other industries, so was something that could certainly offer opportunities in F1.

“In manufacturing, logistics, repair, inspection, testing healthcare, we have solutions where the worker wears glasses and gets step by step instructions on those glasses,” he explained.

“When you have a very, very complex inspection of an aircraft engine for example, then you can have somebody on call who is a trained engineer but working in a different location – and they work together to solve a problem.

“We have many different use cases. It is really gaining momentum now across industries in a way, to either help people perform more complex tasks or to upskill existing workforces. Or you can just have higher quality, and a faster understanding, of what has worked and how the parts flow works.

“It’s what we’re offering many customers around the world, mostly large enterprises that are deploying the solution. I think over the years, there will certainly be an opportunity to discuss this also in the sports arena.”

Becht was awarded a project to perform a “Repair versus Replace” analysis of failing coke drums at an Indian Refinery.  Due to travel restrictions, the Becht team was unable to travel to the site for field walk-downs and inspections.

Becht utilized an in-country sub-contractor (Ingenero) to perform the walk-down utilizing the RealWear glasses which allowed the Becht experts to be there virtually for important field visits in the absence of being able to visit on site.

Utilizing RealWear smart glasses gave the Becht team a better perspective than drawings and photos ever could.

Read the original case study on Becht’s website.

Read RealWear’s AREA member profile.

Whilst the consumer side has not been entirely successful as yet, it looks as though producers are betting on the enterprise and industrial customers.

• Facebook‘s AR/VR research division last month showed off its futuristic wristband for controlling AR glasses. The company’s Ray-Ban smart glasses will arrive later this year, though they won’t have an integrated display. They’re considered a precursor to future glasses with full augmented-reality features.
• Last week, Niantic CEO John Hanke teased what appears to be a see-through headset or smart glasses; he said the company is working on “new kinds of devices” that leverage its augmented-reality platform. (The WSJ reports that Niantic is developing AR glasses with chipmaker Qualcomm.)
• Apple is expected to reveal its $1,000+ AR/VR headset in the next several months, possibly during Apple’s virtual Worldwide Developers Conference in June. They’re a forerunner to Apple’s more complicated AR glasses, due out by 2025.
• Snap, which already sells its Spectacles smart glasses with a camera but no display, is expected to reveal its AR glasses in May at its Partner Summit. After that, Snap will ship the glasses to developers and creators.
• Google opened up its Glass Enterprise Edition 2 AR headset, geared toward businesses and developers, for direct purchase last year. Now, the WSJ reports that Google is “likely to try a consumer play again” in the AR space.
• While fewer than 1M AR glasses and headsets are expected to sell this year, IDC projects that will skyrocket to 23.4M in 2025, mostly on the business side:

You can read all about it in the original article on the Wall Street Journal https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-apple-and-niantic-bet-people-are-ready-for-augmented-reality-glasses-11617713387

Through the use of Area Targets, industrial organisations can create AR interfaces within their facilities to enable employees to better engage with machinery and understand how the environment is being utilised.

More information can be found here https://library.vuforia.com/features/environments/area-targets.html

PTC says that with support from Matterport and Leica 3D scanners, along with NavVis’s indoor mobile mapping systems, Area Targets users can generate “photorealistic, survey-grade digital twins, empowering them to create digital canvases of spaces such as factories, malls, or offices for advanced spatial computing applications”.

As one of the leading emerging technologies, spatial computing powers digital twin renderings to support the activities of machines and people, as well as environments in which they operate.

When deployed across the industrial enterprise, spatial computing enables seamless interactions between employees through AR, enabling companies to close the loop on performance management, improve machine learning capabilities with spatial analytics, and optimise design and factory floor operations,” notes PTC.

“Vuforia Engine Area Targets is a one-of-a-kind solution for large, persistent AR experiences,” said Mike Campbell, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Augmented Reality, PTC.

“Whether users are looking to add navigation to their office building or view in-context data on a factory floor, Area Targets is the answer. We’re pleased to be expanding such a key capability and component of PTC’s spatial computing vision.”

The release of Vuforia Engine Area Targets marks the second Vuforia offering to deploy spatial computing in the form of area targets within the industrial setting, the first being the Vuforia Spatial Toolbox platform.

Combined with the Vuforia Chalk, Vuforia Expert Capture, and Vuforia Studio AR products, the Vuforia AR Enterprise Platform provides what PTC says is a “robust set of offerings that enables users to increase workforce safety and efficiency, improve customer experiences, and reduce costs”.

CooperVision has successfully deployed Vuzix M400 Smart Glasses equipped with LogistiVIEW’s Vision+ augmented reality warehouse software to provide hands-free picking guidance at their 275,000 square foot West Henrietta, New York distribution site, which at any given time stores more than 120,000 different contact lens products.

LogistiVIEW’s Vision+ Software Automation Platform combines the best of traditional picking tools including augmented reality PTL, visual instructions, voice interaction, gesture control, and RF scanning, into a single system.

The combined set of instructions are delivered to the worker intuitively and hands-free through Vuzix M400 AR Smart Glasses, avoiding the need for any bolted down infrastructure. AI and computer vision add an intelligence layer to the process, optimizing tasks and pick sequence for the best possible efficiency.

At the CooperVision warehouse, employees are now using Vuzix Smart Glasses to assist with order picking.

Vuzix’ M400 Smart Glasses equipped with LogistiVIEW’s Vision+ software provides a hands-free solution that is delivering efficiency gains in our operations,” said Michele Bosa, Vice President, Americas Distribution of CooperVision.

“The ability to offer LogistiVIEW’s patented computer vision and AR visualizations on Vuzix Smart Glasses provides customers like CooperVision with a highly flexible solution to boost the efficiency and accuracy of their operations,” said Seth Patin, Founder and CEO of LogistiVIEW.

“The versatility of our M400 Smart Glasses continues to drive customer demand across a wide range of industry verticals and it’s great to see CooperVision using Vuzix M400 Smart Glasses in their Upstate New York distribution center to deliver hands-free productivity gains in their operations,” said Paul Travers, President and CEO of Vuzix.

Read the original Vuzix press release about CooperVision here.

Microsoft will fulfil an order for 120,000 AR headsets for the Army based on their Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) design. The modified design upgrades the capabilities of the HoloLens 2 for the needs of soldiers in the field.

“The program delivers enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios,” says Microsoft’s Alex Kipman.

Microsoft says this announcement marks the transition from prototyping these designs to producing and rolling them out in the field.  This is a huge step for Augmented Reality technology.

According to the US Army, the IVAS system is designed to streamline existing vision-enhancing and immersive training capabilities into a single platform.

“The suite of capabilities leverages existing high-resolution night, thermal, and Soldier-borne sensors integrated into a unified Heads Up Display to provide the improved situational awareness, target engagement, and informed decision-making necessary to achieve overmatch against current and future adversaries,” the US Army writes. “The system also leverages augmented reality and machine learning to enable a life-like mixed reality training environment so the Close Combat Force can rehearse before engaging any adversaries.”

Read further information on Microsoft’s Blog

See Microsoft’s AREA profile. 

Through the partnership Arvizio and Sight Power will offer stakeholders a seamless integration of mining data, 3D models and LiDAR scans to be shared between Sight Power’s Digital Mine platform and Arvizio’s Immerse 3D augmented reality solution. The combination will provide the mining industry with an integrated suite of mining operations software and AR to help optimize the mining process by reducing costs, improving efficiencies, increasing productivity, and enhancing safety, according to Arvizio.

Augmented reality technology represents an important aspect of the mining industry’s digital transformation and it is increasingly emerging as a key component to incorporate and visualize mine planning data in the design, operations, resource management, and investor relations processes.

Sight Power’s Digital Mine platform is a system for collecting and processing detailed information relating to all operations and work processes in the mining enterprise. This information, when merged with modeling, monitoring, and distributed sensor systems, offers a cohesive solution to automate daily, routine operations for geologists, mining engineers, mine surveyors, and other specialists, which can help to increase labor productivity and reduce technical errors, according to the company.

Arvizio’s Immerse 3D solution allows 3D models and LiDAR scans to be visualized in AR. Combined with Digital Mine, the two platforms allow for the visualization of LiDAR scans and geological models from mining operations that may cover many miles/kilometers and include multiple layers. Furthermore, Immerse 3D enhances the Digital Mine platform by extending its capabilities to include multi-user, multi-location AR visualization and collaboration in fully synchronized sessions utilizing web meeting platforms such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom.

“Our work with leading mining companies using Digital Mine demonstrated that combining operational technology, monitoring systems, devices and spatial datasets into a single workflow system, streamlines mining operations at every phase,” said Sergey Reznichenko, CEO at Sight Power. “We are delighted to team with Arvizio to integrate Immerse 3D AR visualization into our workflows and use augmented reality to empower stakeholders around the world for a more efficient exchange of information, problem solving, verification of key operations and safety systems in their mining projects.”

Arvizio stated that its Immerse 3D platform extension enhances the capabilities of Sight Power’s Digital Mine technology and can be applied to the following use cases:

• Supporting staff training and equipment repairs to reduce operational costs and downtime;
• Extending Digital Twin capabilities for processing plants for real-time monitoring;
• Real-time virtual presence at mining sites;
• On-going evaluation of mine evolution models to identify issues and avoid costly overruns.

A press release dated March 16, 2021, London, UK reveals that AREA member RealWear, Inc., the global leader of hands-free head-mounted wearables, today announced that Mace Group (‘Mace’), a global consultancy and construction firm headquartered in London, deployed RealWear’s assisted reality wearable computers running voice-enabled Microsoft Teams, paving the way forward for the global construction industry. For the first time, the voice-activated RealWear HMT-1 wearable device has enabled hundreds of its workers and clients to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and reduce its carbon footprint via using the device for remote inspections during the construction process.  The wearable deployment marks a first for the construction industry.

Mace works on a number of construction projects both in the UK and across the globe. When the pandemic hit and travel restrictions came into effect, Mace envisioned an entirely new and safer way to inspect building façades. To operate as effectively and as safely as possible under seemingly indefinite social distancing restrictions, it needed a solution that would enable inspection work to still be carried out but with minimal people onsite than normally permitted.

RealWear’s assisted reality head-mounted wearable computers require only a single site inspector to be physically present, while multiple others ‘view’ the site clearly and remotely from their own location, via a feed that streams from the innovative headset directly to the viewer’s handheld or laptop computer. The technology negates the need to physically travel to a site, while also delivering on Mace’s requirement for its workforce to be fully connected through remote collaboration. Furthermore, the deployment has banished the logistical and planning complexities of trying to coordinate the diaries of several site inspectors to be present at the same time on the same day. Since the completion of the deployment this month Mace has been able to reduce in-person site visits, and its Façade team has seen a 75% reduction in travel; not only has this resulted in a reduction in carbon emissions, but the time saved has freed up staff to be more productive during the course of their day.

“With its willingness to embrace the future, it’s appropriate that Mace is at the head of the curve within the construction industry with respect to deploying wearable technology,” commented Phil Sedge, Head of Facade, Mace Group. “Since the deployment, we have seen improvements in the decision-making process, and we’re able to share real-time information instantaneously. The technology has enabled us to reduce the number of staff travelling to site, without any compromises to the quality of our work. The time saving and environmental benefits deliver further advantages.” He added: “RealWear’s reinvestment back into product development has also impressed us, which means that the foundations of this technology are future proofed. We only wish we had deployed it sooner.”

Following an in-depth consultation with RealWear partner, SystemActive, which involved various demos via video conference, Mace selected RealWear’s purpose built, voice enabled HMT-1 over other solutions available in the market, including smart glasses. The RealWear headsets met Mace’s requirements for no compromises on safety, for hands-free operation and the ability to clip to the side of hard hats. Its other requirements included durability and functionality at the right price point; two other areas where RealWear excelled.

The deployment began in June 2020. SystemActive worked with Mace’s IT team to create a bespoke operating system for the HMT-1, which was tailored so that many of its out-of-the-box features could only be used for collaborating with clients and colleagues who were not physically present on site. Once the operating system was set up, the wearable headsets arrived on site and were ready to use. Training from both RealWear and SystemActive included on-boarding sessions to bring Mace’s personnel up to speed on how to log on to video conferencing and join meetings, and a walkthrough of the functions of the camera and video stream.

“From a health and safety, durability and price perspective, RealWear’s device ticked a lot of boxes. We worked with the senior teams at Mace to ensure the device was as easy as possible for everyone to use and that the bespoke operating system met Mace’s needs. We’re thrilled with the positive feedback from Mace on the deployment and look forward to working with the team in a continued rollout,” added Ross Riley, Head of Immersive, SystemActive.

“RealWear’s HMT-1 is purpose built for productivity, even in extreme environments due to its ruggedness, durability and functionality,” said Jon Arnold, VP of Sales, RealWear Inc. “With software updates to come in March that will further improve the user experience, the HMT-1 is set to be a central part of Mace’s workflow, both now and in the future,” he added.

Based on this level of success, Mace plans to surpass the 150-unit mark over the next few months as it ramps up deployment of RealWear’s HMT-1 globally. The company has recently procured more units to go out to one of its sectors in Peru to help with monitoring of a project and its various phases, including safety inspections. It has also increased awareness through its supply chain who have started to adopt the technology.

Read the original press release and RealWear’s AREA member profile.

Through this partnership, California’s next-generation manufacturing plants will have access to education programs that will enable them to incorporate Taqtile’s cutting-edge enterprise expertise into their day-to-day operations. Opportunities for members to learn about Manifest, Taqtile’s augmented reality (AR) training and upskilling platform, will be offered by CMTA over the coming months. Insights on leveraging AR to access the expertise of knowledgeable frontline personnel, including step-by-step maintenance procedures and repair instructions, will empower manufacturers and their frontline staff to improve efficiencies, accuracy and productivity.

“Innovative partners like Taqtile help us deliver state-of-the-art technologies that will tangibly benefit emerging and fast-paced manufacturing processes,” said CMTA President, Lance Hastings. “Bringing solutions like Manifest to our members allows us to ensure we’re fulfilling our mission of helping California’s manufacturers grow and remain competitive globally. We owe it to our membership and the more than 1.2 million California manufacturing workers to provide access to emerging technologies that empower them in their jobs and create better efficiencies across their organizations.”

“CMTA is providing world-class support for California’s manufacturers and introducing cutting-edge technologies that will help these companies increase their competitiveness,” said Taqtile cofounder and CEO, Dirck Schou. “The intuitive Manifest platform delivers to organizations the ability to leverage the expertise of their most knowledge employees, empowering frontline personnel to perform complex tasks more safely, efficiently, and accurately. We anticipate that a significant number of CMTA members will explore Manifest and apply it to their long-term advantage.”

About Taqtile
Taqtile, winner of the 2020 Microsoft Partner of the Year Award in the Mixed Reality category, builds enterprise software that leverages augmented reality to make Everyone an Expert, capturing the unique knowledge of company experts and sharing that knowledge with frontline workers. By virtually transporting the knowledge of experts when and where it’s needed, sometimes under the most urgent circumstances, Taqtile customers enhance operational capabilities and improve performance. The Manifest platform allows company experts to easily document and record tribal knowledge, and distribute it across an entire workforce, enabling less experienced operators to easily follow instructions and complete complex tasks safely and consistently. For more information on Manifest, please visit www.taqtile.com.

About CMTA
The California Manufacturers & Technology Association works to improve and enhance a strong business climate for California’s 30,000 manufacturing, processing and technology-based companies. Since 1918, CMTA has worked with state government to develop balanced laws, effective regulations and sound public policies to stimulate economic growth and create new jobs while safeguarding the state’s environmental resources. CMTA represents 400 businesses from the entire manufacturing community – an economic sector that generates more than $300 billion every year and employs more than 1.2 million Californians.