In this article, we discuss what Augmented Reality is and how it works. Also, find out about the technology, examples, history, and uses of augmented reality. The term “augmented reality” refers to the process of adding digital information to the world that the user is experiencing in real-time. AR users see the actual environment with produced perceptual data superimposed on top. This is not the same as virtual reality (VR), which produces an entirely artificial world.
Augmented Reality (AR)
Augmented reality can give users more information or change how things look in the real world. Augmented reality lets people use their phone or glasses to get information about their sight, hearing, and other senses. Adding this information to the device helps the user have a smooth experience in which the information from the device changes the way the user sees the natural world. The information on top can either add to a place or cover up a part of the natural environment. Google Glass, heads-up displays (HUDs) on car windshields, and smartphone games are the most well-known augmented reality (AR) technologies that consumers can use. But the technology is also used in many other fields, such as healthcare, public safety, tourism, oil and gas, and marketing, to name a few.
Main goal of AR
Augmented reality can be shown on a wide range of devices, from cell phones and tablets to glasses and other eyewear. Also in the works is technology that can be used with contact lenses and ads to the real world. Without a central processing unit, different sensors, a display, and different input devices, the technology can’t work. Because of this, people can now use augmented reality in their everyday lives much more easily. The Global Positioning System (GPS) can be used to figure out where the user is, and the device’s internal compass can be used to figure out which way the device is facing.
The military may also use machine vision, object recognition, and gesture recognition when training with more advanced AR systems. Because AR may need a lot of processing power, a device that doesn’t have enough processing power may send the data processing to another computer to meet AR’s needs.
Augmented reality apps are made with special 3D tools that let developer’s link motion or other digital information to a marker in the real world. Augmented reality is made up of apps, which are made with these tools.
AR vs VR
Virtual reality (VR) is a computer-made simulation of a place that can trick people’s brains into thinking they are really there. Almost everyone who wants to enjoy virtual reality wears a headset that lets them see and hear.
AR utilizes the actual environment and adds virtual information to it, while VR immerses users in a totally virtual world. Mixed reality is another name for AR. The person using AR is immersed in a kind of mixed reality, while the person using VR is taken to a completely different, simulated world.
There are also a variety of tools used for this activity. Virtual reality can be experienced with the help of head-mounted displays, which show and play sounds and images that are not real. Augmented reality (AR) technology that is less limiting is often used in smartphones, eyeglasses, projections, and heads-up displays (HUDs) in cars.
Virtual reality puts people in a three-dimensional world where they can move around freely and interact with their surroundings. Augmented reality (AR), on the other hand, keeps people grounded in the real world by adding a layer of digital information on top of it.
Top ways to use AR
• Augmented reality may be used to overlay a virtual game on the actual environment, or it might allow users to utilize their faces in imaginative ways on social networking sites.
• With augmented reality, a route to the user’s destination can be shown on top of a live road view. This will help you find your way. AR technology that is used for navigation might also give the user information about businesses in the area.
• Mobile devices may use augmented reality to measure 3D points in the user’s surroundings. This may be accomplished with the use of various instruments.
•Augmented reality might help architects see what their building projects will look like better.
• Miliary: Military information can be shown on the windshield of a car to show how to get to a place, how far away it is, and what the weather and road conditions are like right now.
• AR has helped archaeology by making it easier to rebuild sites. Future archeologists and museum visitors might use 3D models to look at excavation sites as if they were really there.
AR: Some examples
• The “See it in Your Place” function of the Target app allows users to snap a photo of a room in their own house and then view how an item, like as a painting or a chair, would appear if it were placed there.
• Apple Measure app, which is available for Apple’s iOS, works like a tape measure and lets users figure out how far apart two or more places are in their immediate area.
• Snapchat uses AR to add a filter or mask to a Snap or picture taken by a user. There are Snapchat filters you can use.
• One of the most popular augmented reality (AR) games for mobile phones is Pokemon Go. It uses the user’s geolocation data to show where Pokemon creatures can be found so that the player can catch them.
• Google Glass is the first time the business has attempted to commercialize wearable augmented reality (AR) technology. Google Glass was developed by Google Inc. This wearable computer can be moved and controlled without the need of the hands. Businesses such as DHL and DB Schenker utilize Google Glass and third-party software to increase the productivity of their frontline staff in the fields of global supply chain logistics and bespoke shipping. Google is also developing a set of glasses capable of displaying a live transcription or translation of a person’s handwriting.
Futures of AR technology
The more people utilize augmented reality games and applications such as Pokemon Go and retail shop apps, the better the technology becomes. The proliferation of 5G networks might facilitate the usage of cloud-based augmented reality, for instance, by providing AR applications with greater data throughput and reduced latency. This is because 5G networks are anticipated to reduce the time required to transmit data.
Apple’s ARKit is an open-source suite of tools for developing augmented reality mobile applications. The firm is still making modifications and improvements. Target and Ikea have created the greatest augmented reality shopping applications for the iPhone and iPad, and both employ ARKit. With the introduction of ARKit 6, users may now create 4K HDR or high dynamic range augmented reality. It also makes photography and filmmaking simpler. The Depth API, which was introduced to ARKit 6 last year, leverages the per-pixel depth data that a device’s camera captures to determine the size and shape of an item. It also includes scene geometry, a method for displaying the structure of a place, as well as other enhancements. This enhancement was done.
ARCore, the Android equivalent of Apple’s ARKit, is likewise being developed and enhanced in the same manner. ARCore, for instance, utilizes a geospatial application programming interface (API) that retrieves data from Google Earth 3D models and Google Maps Street View image data. The ARCore Depth API, which is very similar to the ARKit Depth API, has been enhanced to detect depth from a greater distance.Technology like Google’s smart glasses, which can instantly translate spoken words into text, will make it much easier for people who speak more than one language to communicate. When immersive technology is added to augmented reality, there will be more options and types of media.
Conclusion
In addition to industry-specific apps, augmented reality apps are used in many fields to find, monitor, and fix technical problems. It could also help in non-physical situations, like when marketing is used as a tool for advertising, entertainment, and events so that people can get information on their phones.
About Author: The content is written by Maha. She has five years of experience in writing technology articles.