Augmented Reality Headsets seemed to be a running theme at CES Las Vegas this year with many companies introducing headsets, designed for business and industrial use, reports PC Mag.

Firstly the Lenovo New Glass C200, available in June, which combines AR and artificial intelligence for enterprise, while Vuzix added a new item, M3000 Smart Glasses, adding to their enterprise headset line.

Osterhout Design Group had paired up with Vuforia  to develop 2 new products: the R-8 which is consumer based and the R-9 Glasses which are enterprise focused. They are both set to support other creations of augmented reality applications with the R-9 already running Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 835 processor.

Augmented reality is being explored through a number of enterprises already from Smartphone and tablet-based AR apps to head-mounted experiences. ODG, Vuzix and Lenovo are only a small section of businesses developing business-focused AR glasses. In the larger hardware industry, many are focusing on the enterprise of AR with companies developing 2 types of headsets:the binocular and the monocular.

Binocular Smart Glasses allow users to see 3D content aligned with the physical world, displaying in both eyes. However these type of smart glasses, allowing AR experiences, are known to be very difficult to create.

Monocular glasses, like the Lenovo and Vuzix headsets mentioned earlier, allow users to view content just outside of your field of view. This allows you to see information on objects you are looking at however they are not aligned with the underlying world. 

A report found on M Health Intelligence dated January 12 2017 states that hospitals and health systems are finding value in smart glasses.  Digital health companies such as Augmedix and Pristine are noted.  The article features quotes by Augmedix CEO Ian Shakil.  Augmedix recently closed a $23 million round of funding, 6 months after a capital injection of $17m and partnering with four national health systems.

Benefits brought to the healthcare industry by smart glasses include:

• Time saved in admin work (2-3 hours per day)
• Gives physicians hands-free access to information while they’re in front of the patient.
• “Dramatically more humane conversation with patients”
• The article states that tech-enhanced glasses are found everywhere from operating rooms to patients’ bedsides to offices and clinics.
• Technological advancements are in areas like battery power, CPU performance, Wi-Fi capability and software upgrades
• The simplicity of smartglasses may give the product an advantage over bulkier and more expensive VR and AR headsets which could affect vision and interfere with patient conversations.
• Doctors and patients seem to like smartglasses and value them

The future could focus on functionality beyond scribing and data retrieval and develop functions like care assistance reminders, content delivery and tasks and analytics.

An article on Shacknews provides information on the debut of the HoloLamp at CES this week.

Instead of using a headset to produce Augmented Reality, the HoloLamp uses a projector to project holographic images in a small area like a table.

The demos shown of HoloLamp reveal that the device scans a designated area and finds any objects it can interact with. It then can add a host of holographic Augmented Reality effects to those objects. HoloLamp can project an entirely holographic playing field without the need for additional objects.

The idea is to provide a more immersive experience by allowing users to engage their surroundings without the need for headsets or special controllers.

An article on Nanalyze discusses Osterhout Design Group’s (ODG) recent investment in Augmented Reality. Following last year’s release of their R-7 AR headset, this month they closed a Series A funding round of $58 million. ODG’s R-7 features a HD 3D screen and has a lighter design than previous versions; it also provides sufficient power for complete integration without requiring an outside source.

The article lists areas in which ODG’s R-7 is already being utilised:

• Deskless field workers: AREA member Atheer partnered with ODG earlier this year, combining their Augmented Interactive Reality platform with the R-7 to provide cloud-based management, collaboration, and data-sharing to deskless workers.
• Vision impairment: NuEyes partnered with ODG, and provided features such as text-to-speech and media streaming to the R-7 smart glasses to help those who suffer from visual conditions like macular degeneration.
• Military and police: Ried System Electronic partnered with ODG to provide essential applications to the police and military such as remote viewing of thermal imaging cameras.
• Manufacturing: Vital Enterprises partnered with ODG in January to help manufacturing organisations with quality assurance by bringing data visualisation and remote consultations to field service workers. This reduces risk to employees as well as improving quality and productivity.
• Medical training: Advanced Medical Applications partnered with ODG to improve healthcare by enabling medical workers to share video streams and communicate with experts.

Other potential uses of the R-7 mentioned in the article are:

• Consumer entertainment
• Industrial applications

Energy and utilities

An article on PR Newswire reported on the $2 million seed round which developer of brain-computer interface (BCI) technology, Neurable, has raised for its software platform. The round was led by Brian Shin from Accomplice’s Boston Syndicate, and other investors include Kraft Group, Loup Ventures, and NXT Ventures.

The new tech measures and interprets brain activity to allow real-time control of connected devices. A software development kit is also being developed by Neurable, which is to be integrated with Augmented and Virtual Reality devices.

Ramses Alcaide, the co-founder and CEO of Neurable, is quoted to have said that the company’s aim is to create a new platform for interaction between humans and computers. Neurable analyses complex data with machine learning and gives an important advantage in terms of accuracy and speed for determining the intent of the user.

The final section of the article discusses Neaurable’s role in Augmented and Virtual Reality applications. The company offers a hands-free, wireless, non-invasive method for interacting with devices, and avoids the restrictions of eye-tracking or voice control. Its software development kit is also compatible with various headsets such as Microsoft Hololens, Oculus Rift, and HTC Vive.

A press release dated December 21 2016 revealed that Meta has begun shipping its Meta 2 Development Kit, the first augmented reality (AR) product that delivers a totally immersive experience.

Meta 2 enables people to use their hands to interact with holograms so they can touch, grab, create and share digital content. Customers receiving Meta 2 units in this first shipment include select individual and enterprise developers.  They will develop compelling market-specific applications across a number of use cases, including product and building design, education, manufacturing and medicine.

Meta looks forward to working closely with developers to create compelling market-specific applications for Meta 2 across a range of industries, including medicine, education and manufacturing.

The Meta 2 Development Kit is the company’s second-generation AR technology and was designed with input from nearly 1,000 users of the Meta 1 product. This included developers, early adopters and academics.

Details revealed in the press release about the Meta 2 Development Kit are as follows:

Meta 2 offers numerous capabilities for AR that are only available with the Meta platform: including the widest field of view of any augmented reality product on the market, the most intuitive access to digital information, and support for direct hand interaction with digital content and holograms.

Field of View (FOV)

Meta 2 has the largest FOV of any product on the market, making it the most immersive AR experience available today. The 90-degree (diagonal) FOV and high-resolution display eliminate the limitations of screen size, making it easier for users to work, collaborate, and create or design.

Intuitive Access to Digital Information 

Meta 2 has been developed to work in the most intuitive way for the brain. While allowing people to use the traditional means of interacting with technology through keyboards and other devices, Meta 2 enables people to easily access, manipulate and share digital information in ways that are natural and enhance productivity and collaboration. Examples of AR applications built on interfaces designed to work like the human brain include 3D modelling and multi-monitor viewing.

Technical details are included in the press release, which can be read in full here.

Last week, an article on Global LEDs/OLEDs discusses the global head-up display (HUD) market, as it has been analysed by Transparency Market Research in their recent report.

Significant points in the article include:

• It is predicted that the global HUD market will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.1% between 2015 and 2022
• In 2014, the global HUD market was valued at $1.76 billion; this is expected to increase to $7.05 billion by the end of 2022
• By application, the market is divided into aviation, automotive, and others
• In 2014, the aviation segment accounted for over 79% of the total demand for HUDs; however, the automotive segment is predicted to grow most quickly during the forecast period
• Currently, HUDs are integrated in premium cars and sports cars, although it is yet to be incorporated into mid-range cars
• HUDs have been integrated in military aircrafts for many decades, but have recently been introduced to helicopters and civil aircrafts
• Market drivers include: increased demand for active safety systems in aircrafts and automotive, technological developments of Augmented Reality in HUDs, high military modernisation, and increased luxury car industry
• Limitations of the market include: the high cost incurred on producing HUDs,
• In 2014, North America was the largest market for HUD; the region has many driving factors for the HUD market
• Europe was the second-largest HUD market in 2014 due to the involvement of luxury car manufacturers such as BMW AG, Audi, and Mercedes Benz
• The Asia Pacific HUD market is predicted to have the highest CAGR from 2015 to 2022 (19.4%) due to  increased demand for high-end cars

Key players in the global HUD market include:

• BAE Systems PLC
• Rockwell Collins Inc.
• Thales Group
• Delphi Automotive PLC
• Yazaki Corporation
• Microvision Inc.

A recent article by Michael R. Blumberg examines major players in the industry of Augmented Reality who have developed solutions in field service and maintenance in addition to use case scenarios. A number of AREA members are included.

The article initially discusses the multiple components which should be integrated in order to make AR applications successful: viewer technology, such as a mobile device or smart glasses; the application allowing the device to access what the engineer is viewing in real time, which produces extra content such as sound or graphics; also video streaming from the onsite engineer to a remote engineering expert.

AREA members APX Labs, iQagent, NGrain, Scope AR, and XMReality are all mentioned in the article as key industry players, in addition to AR Media, Epson, Fieldbit, Microsoft, and PTC. AR technology from each organisation is noted and described:

• APX – Their AR product Skylight is a platform which integrates with wearables such as smart glasses.
• iQagent – Their mobile-based AR app scans QR codes to provide information related to maintenance.
• NGrain – They have various AR applications, such as ProProducer, Viewer, Android Viewer, SDK, Consort, Envoy, and Scout.
• Scope AR – Their Worklink application provides instructions as well as 3D images on the mobile or wearable screen. They also produced Remote AR, which enables onsite employees to remotely communicate with experts.
• XMReality – Their product XM Reality Remote Guidance also enables onsite employees to receive visual instructions from remote experts.

A recent article by Karl Guttag discusses waveguides, which are optical devices involved in the components in devices such as the Microsoft HoloLens. Light enters the thin piece of glass, projecting a small image on one side of it; using total internal reflection inside the piece of glass, the image exits in a different place.

The article discusses a major disadvantage of waveguides; the light that enters the glass has to be at 45 degrees, then at 45 degrees again when it leaves. This means that the image is often of a worse quality, as not all of the light makes the correct turns. ‘Waveguide glow’, as Karl Guttag calls it, is another issue that can occur, which causes a glow around high contrast objects or text.

The conclusions made by the article are:

• The waveguide did not significantly decrease the size of the HoloLens
• Waveguides worsen the image quality compared to simpler combiner designs
• HoloLens’ use of waveguide restricted them to only using certain display devices that are compatible; they are unable to use OLED or tech which emits a broader spectrum of light
• Even if the device was smaller, getting more SDKs in developers is important sooner rather than later

Readers can read the full article here.

Readers may be interested in a perspective article on High Tech Forum about Augmented Reality in Business.

The article draws on other articles and includes historical information about user interfaces, and moves onto AR interaction and how AR technology can relieve constraints, representing the first real change in the way information age people interact with their information infrastructure.

The article moves onto discuss how AR is being used in the enterprise, mentioning industries such as agriculture and aviation. AREA members Boeing and DAQRI are mentioned.

Topics discussed in the article are:

• The use of holograms in AR
• Networked holograms
• Creating holographic content
• AR communications infrastructure

The article can be read in full here.