In recent years, the term AR has become more and more popular. In this article we would like to discuss in more detail the functioning and possible applications (for example 3D configurators) areas of Augmented Reality. But let`s start with a clarification of terms.

We can define Augmented Reality as the integration of digital information in realtime with the user`s environment. This integration thus leads to an extension of reality from which the term AR derives.

The following shows you some examples:

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The term was coined in the early 1990s by Thomas Caudell, a Boeing researcher, and has become more and more accepted ever since.

How does AR work?

But how does AR work? It can be implemented in different ways and different device types:

Mobile applications: Certainly, today`s most popular and best-known AR form is a mobile app for smartphones und tablets that uses various smartphone hardware components such as gyroscope, GPS, acceleration sensor and camera. With an AR app, you can see on your phone`s screen the environment you are in through your phone`s camera, enriched with additional information that is not available in the real world. A machine, for example, can be used as a concrete example in an AR business application. The machine could be enriched with technical data, maintenance videos and other information.

AR glasses: Another form of AR are AR glasses designed by the X Lab team. These glasses must be worn with a particular camera and around a display above the right eye, where additional information overlap with reality. In truth, it is undoubtedly one of the best-known AR projects, but it is certainly not the most successful. Other companies have suggested and developed AR viewers such as Epson, Sony and Microsoft, who are still the most attractive offer on the market with their Hololens.

So far we have seen how you can benefit from AR, but what are the possible application areas? The question is almost provocative, since AR is such a new and powerful technology that there are almost no limits to its use. Today, it is used in the medical field for remote operations, in industry to monitor work centres, in the military to identify targets, in training to involve students, in gaming to invent new games, in marketing to transport emotions … practically every area is conceivable as a field of application. If you have an idea or a problem to solve and need a partner for the technical implementation, please contact us.