What is Augmented Reality?
Often thought of as some form of futuristic technology, augmented reality has in fact been around for years. Perhaps the earliest example of AR can be seen in the first digital HUD displays that started appearing in military fighter jets in the early 1990s. These rudimentary systems gave pilots quick and easy access to information such as the plane’s altitude, direction, and speed. Fast forward to today and AR technology is all around us, from simple photo filters on our smartphones to its uses in medicine – it might surprise you to learn that most of us use AR daily.
Mobile devices are some of the easiest and most convenient ways for people to access augmented reality, however, they’re not the only way this technology can be harnessed. Thanks to wearable devices like Microsoft’s HoloLens, AR immersion is becoming more convenient and more natural. While it doesn’t look wearables will be replacing smartphones and mobile devices anytime soon, both they and the overall technology have huge potential. The following are just two ways AR is currently being used.
Applications of AR
Augmented Reality Wayfinding
The introduction of GPS navigation and GPS-enabled digital maps revolutionized navigation. The fact that we could simply input our destination and follow a digital map, rather than rely on intuition and paper maps was a groundbreaking change – and AR wayfinding is taking this to the next level. Contrary to GPS navigation’s reliance on satellites to determine your position, AR wayfinding uses digital waypoints in order to determine a user’s location and help them get from point A to point B. Moreover, AR wayfinding can be incorporated with existing AR technologies and functions to further enhance a user’s overall navigation experience.
The technology can be used both indoors and outdoors but is particularly useful when helping users navigate complex buildings where GPS coverage may be an issue. Users can download event or building-specific AR wayfinding apps onto their smartphones and use them to easily navigate to specific areas. Furthermore, AR wayfinding apps can also benefit event organizers and businesses alike as they can help streamline foot traffic within a building or a venue, much like traffic alerts on GPS navigation apps, and even answer any questions users may frequently ask event or building staff.
AR in Education
It’s a known fact that we all learn differently and, up until now, educators or teachers were responsible for choosing a suitable instruction style based on their students’ needs. AR’s versatility and flexibility have opened a whole new world of possibilities to enhance students’ understanding of complex topics and, owing to AR technology’s inclusion in education, educators are now able to adapt education and training to suit a wide variety of learning styles.
AR’s attention-grabbing nature is especially useful in an educational setting and its fundamental interactivity enables active learning approaches, which have been proven to better communicate messages or educational content. Last but not least, as a result of technological advances in both hardware and software, AR technology in education is becoming increasingly cheaper, making it an attractive and cost-effective solution to solve issues that have been plaguing the education sector for years.
Work with Singapore’s Best Augmented Reality Company
As time goes by, there’s simply no denying that augmented reality is set to become a big part of our future daily lives. If you’re a brand or organization looking to establish your presence, get in touch with Untitled Project today and find out how we can help you stand out from the crowd.
