Developed by Immerse UK’s Access to Funding and Finance Working Group, the directory includes public funding and private capital sources and will be regularly updated to keep you up-to-date with the latest investment opportunities.

PUBLIC FUNDING SOURCES

A variety of public funds are available for UK businesses developing immersive technology innovations and content.  These fall under four categories:

• UK Grant Funding. National and regional competitive, cost-recovery based grant schemes available for R&D, innovation, skills and business growth.
• European Grant Funding. Pan European competitive, cost-recovery based grant schemes open to UK based businesses for R&D, innovation, skills and business growth.
• UK Investment support.major sources of debt and equity finance and tax relief and capital allowance schemes available to UK based business.
• European Investment supportmajor sources of debt and equity finance and tax relief schemes available to UK based business.

PRIVATE CAPITAL SOURCES

Providers of private sector capital span an array of organisations, and come under the following four categories:

• AcceleratorsTime limited support programmes, open by application, offering pre-seed and seed investment together with mentorship programmes, business training and technology advice. 
• Angel investor networksPre-seed and seed funding, typically ranging from £100k to £1m for technical development and market entry, accompanied by strategic advice and mentoring.
• Corporate Venture Capital firmsmulti-national corporations that have created specific entities to invest in, develop and take equity stakes in smaller companies.
• Venture Capital fundsFunds managing money from investors seeking equity stakes in companies with strong growth potential. Characterised by higher investment levels (£1m+) for higher returns, with some exceptions, VC funds tend to focus on later stage deals.

 The directory can be accessed from the link at the bottom of the page here: 

The company began developing smart glasses for quality monitoring and for the assembly bolt-tightening process many years ago, but has only recently presented the prototype after the patent was issued.

A wireless interface is used for communication via the torque wrench and visor. The assembly worker will see the required tightening sequence along with the location of the next fastener and an overlay of extra information in the visor. Simultaneously, the torque wrench will automatically be set to suit the type of fastener. Once the task is complete, the action is assessed and documented.

Advantages of the AR technology include:

• Reduced training phases
• Increased fastener-tightening process
• Improved safety level
• Enable induction time to be reduced
• Enable work processes to be accelerated
• Boosts efficiency
• Demonstrates how torque technology can be integrated into production

A post on TechCrunch this week by Megan Rose Dickey revealed that Magic Leap has now confirmed series D round funding of $502 million.  Magic Leap is well known for the secrecy around its products as it’s not totally clear what the company is doing, however, it has certainly raised a lot of money in total – more than $1.9 billion to invest in augmented reality and mixed reality.

This week the company announced that it has raised $502 million in Series D round led by Temasek with participation from EDBI, Grupo Globo, Janus Henderson, Alibaba Group, Fidelity Management and others. Magic Leap authorized up to $1 billion in new shares.

“We’re excited to welcome Temasek and the other new investors in this round to the Magic Leap family,” Magic Leap founder and president Rony Abovitz said in a release. “We also greatly appreciate the strong support and partnership from our existing shareholders.”

To date, we’ve been able to gather that the company may be launching a device called “Magic Leap One.” And last month, Bloomberg suggested Magic Leap may be gearing up to ship that device to a “small group of users” in the next six months or so.

We wait with baited breath.

Highlighted snippets from the article include:

1. The bigger promise for AR (as opposed to the consumer market) which is estimated to become a $49 billion market by 2021, is for the professional hands-on workforce: Access to information and assistance on the go can make a huge difference in speed and efficiency.
2. General Electric is one of several companies quietly testing AR technology as a method for improving productivity and reducing errors.
3. Jay Kim’s comments focus on the excitement that was seized upon by early adopters wanting to make a difference to enterprises where real impact could be felt. “In an increasingly competitive global economic landscape, enterprise buyers look at every edge they can attain to maintain their competitive advantage over others,” Kim says.
4. Another AREA member, Lockheed Martin, is mentioned for their development of mixed reality in the aerospace industry.
5. According to a Forrester Research study, an estimated 14.4 million US workers will be wearing smart glasses in the workplace by 2025.
6. Earlier this year, Google Glass returned with an Enterprise Editionthat fixed many of the technical flaws of the initial product. It can now be tacked on safety glasses, making it suitable for more work environments.

The full article can be read here.

Epson have developed the Epson Moverio BT-300 (FPV) Drone Edition glasses for digital photographers who utilise drones as part of their work, according to an article on WindPowerEngineering.com

The glasses enable users to view the drone camera in the form of a HD transparent ‘screen’ while being able to follow their craft; this keeps them within FAA guidelines. Photographers will be able to guide their crafts with better ease, making sure they can avoid hazards while being able to access preferred camera views.

Due to their partnership with DJI, Epson are also developing the first comprehensive AR app for smart glasses-enabled drone piloting. The initial version of this app will present a virtual experience allowing drones to be tested and trained remotely.

Article source can be found here.

Highlighted snippets from the article include:

1. The bigger promise for AR (as opposed to the consumer market) which is estimated to become a $49 billion market by 2021, is for the professional hands-on workforce: Access to information and assistance on the go can make a huge difference in speed and efficiency.
2. General Electric is one of several companies quietly testing AR technology as a method for improving productivity and reducing errors.
3. Jay Kim’s comments focus on the excitement that was seized upon by early adopters wanting to make a difference to enterprises where real impact could be felt. “In an increasingly competitive global economic landscape, enterprise buyers look at every edge they can attain to maintain their competitive advantage over others,” Kim says.
4. Another AREA member, Lockheed Martin, is mentioned for their development of mixed reality in the aerospace industry.
5. According to a Forrester Research Study, an estimated 14.4 million US workers will be wearing smart glasses in the workplace by 2025.
6. Earlier this year, Google Glass returned with an Enterprise Edition that fixed many of the technical flaws of the initial product. It can now be tacked on safety glasses, making it suitable for more work environments.

The legal challenges discussed in the article are as follows:

• Privacy – AR apps must abide by data protection laws. Users are entitled to a copy of their data and access to delete it as well as data security and transparency. AR collects a lot of personal data including user’s phone storage and GPS location.
• Security – AR apps are susceptible to malware. Developers should address data protection from the start of the app development process.
• Sanctions – if AR companies do not comply with the rules, they will face fines, negative press, and be expected to issue compensation to individuals who have suffered damage due to their data not being kept private.
• Copyright – there are complex copyright issues in the AR industry, so developers require appropriate rights clearances for their apps to protect them from copyright infringement.
• Advertising – there are lots of opportunities for AR advertising; however, any advertisements will have to abide by regulations, such as not misleading customers.

“Beyond that, the construction and building industry, specifically, has faced increasing regulations and has at times been slow to adopt new technologies. Construction productivity has decreased by 20 percent in the last 40 years as a result. When labor, materials and overhead account for up to 75 percent of building costs, it is critical that this industry finds ways to improve efficiency, reduce waste and increase competency.

Recently however, the construction industry has quickly become one of the breakout success stories for applications in Augmented Reality (AR). The construction space is ripe with opportunity to take advantage and be a leader in the adoption of AR. As the user interface of the future, AR allows the use of technology to interact with the world in 3-D, the same way users evolved to interact with the world in real life—with hands and eyes.

Because of this, AR technology lends itself particularly well to the entire lifecycle of the commercial construction process—all the way from conceptualizing and designing structures through to post-construction inspections and ongoing maintenance.

Too many construction projects go on and on, with multiple budget revisions and missed completion dates. One of the largest unplanned expenses in construction is associated with change orders and required modifications due to improper planning, errors or unforeseen circumstances. From the outset, AR can show tremendous value by allowing the architect and engineering teams to visualize and show the finished product (or stages) right on-site or within a building. The ability to modify and “view” changes and how it will impact the design can really connect everyone on-site, minimizing errors and significantly reducing lost revenue. Augmented reality can also utilize existing BIM information to provide accurate and detailed overlays ensuring all parties on a construction project are on the same page.

During the construction process, every attempt is made to improve efficiency from saving time, reducing waste and improving safety. With AR-based tools, everyone can be an “expert” by ensuring that they have best practices and expert knowledge in front of them at any stage of the project. From the framer to the electrician and plumber to the site supervisor, information and best practices are key to keeping a project on schedule and within budget. For example, being able to visualize blueprints, see holographic guided instructions for installation of mechanical equipment, or the proper install locations of fasteners will all add to keeping a project on track and progressing efficiently.

Project managers can benefit with AR-based remote assistance tools by being able to support multiple sites and crews from any location, knowing that each project has the required support and direction, without logistical delays. Further, integration of internet of things (IoT) information into the AR view will continue to improve efficiency, reduce time and improve safety on many tasks on the construction site.

Using an AR platform, construction companies can also leverage built-in analytics to capture various data points such as timing information around how long it takes to perform a single step or a procedure overall, as well as checklist verifications, images, videos and measurements. At the completion of a project, construction companies will have an extensive database of analytics from the entire project which will verify that steps and procedures were completed according to specifications, significantly reducing the risk to the construction company post-completion.

The knowledge and assets from the construction process will be used for years ahead from inspection to renovations and repairs. These assets will save massive time and costs by not only being able to verify how the work was completed, but also by being able to overlay as-built information, such as electrical wires within walls, plumbing and even viewing live data associated with mechanical equipment and preventative maintenance measures.

Construction is an industry primed to benefit in every aspect from the use of AR tools and applications. The ability to clearly and effectively communicate information is the foundation of a successful construction project, and having everyone on-site as an “expert” will drive enormous improvements in the overall construction process from planning, to execution, inspection and repairs and renovations. AR will be a key driver in the instant delivery of expert knowledge, but the long tail will be associated with the retention of and access to assets and knowledge captured during the construction process for years to come.”

An article on ZDNet describes how Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, has concerns about the capabilities of Augmented Reality headsets, despite having a positive outlook on the future of AR in general.

Important points mentioned in the article include:

• Cook believes that the technology to build AR glasses and headsets in a “quality way” isn’t available, as he claims there are “huge challenges” with display quality, field of view, etc.
• An issue that many companies have noticed with HoloLens is the narrow field of view
• Cook has suggested that Apple will take a while to develop a quality AR headset product
• Producing AR applications on the iPhone rather than developing a new headset increased commercial opportunity
• Cook predicts that AR will have a similar rise in popularity as the App Store did, by starting off slowly and then increasing exponentially

Company CEO Brian Ballard says the hardware is beginning to mature, but what’s been missing is a development tool for creating content more easily. The latest update to the company’s Skylight development platform includes several new pieces to increase the use of augmented reality inside large companies.

For starters, the company has added a couple of tools that simplify app creation including an Application Builder with pre-built user interface cards that enable non-technical personnel to drag and drop these cards to build a simple workflow application without any coding skill. Skylight Connect is another new piece designed to tap into a company databases without any coding. Upskill claims to handle the connectivity for you in the background. You just point to the database and it does the rest.

If the legacy application is a bit tougher than something Connect can handle, there is also an SDK designed for enterprise programmers to connect to systems that prove a bit more challenging. Finally the company includes Skylight Live, a Facebook Live-like experience that allows a person to broadcast what they are seeing through their smart glasses.

Upskill hopes that their update will bring large companies one step closer to deploying AR applications at scale. Very few enterprises have large scale deployments yet, although ones such as Boeing and GE are seriously testing proof of concept.

Most enterprise companies have a vast legacy infrastructure and the AR applications often have to work with these legacy systems to pull information like inventory, documentation or back office data. This requires a platform that’s been built to handle those kinds of connections.

Skylight has always aspired to be that platform, but the upgrade enhances that and adds tools to bring less technical personnel into the content creation mix.

What’s more, when companies go to the trouble and expense of building an AR app that pulls data from various systems across the company, they don’t necessarily want to be tied to a smart glasses proprietary development system that locks them into a single hardware manufacturer. With Skylight, they can move much more smoothly from headset to headset type without having to redo the code in a substantial way.