Augumented Reality (AR) made it into the mainstream almost overnight with 2016’s Pokemon Go mobile game. That fad seems to be well and truly over for all but a committed few, and the costs at the time put it out of reach for more practical applications.
Now Apple and Google have both recently released free kits for their respective mobile devices to allow developers to build mobile apps featuring Augmented Reality (overlaying digital elements on live video from the phone). While it’s early days, and the kits are currently only available for the latest operating systems (iOS11 and Android 7), Augmented Reality shows a lot of potential for quick development of on the job training aids.
It lends itself naturally to process, product and troubleshooting applications; being able to point a phone or tablet at an object or location and instantly see related information, or an animation or video, could eventually do away with the need to have printed material on hand, and could even replace electronic manuals or guides.
There are some interesting examples being created, and with Google planning on enabling support for more Android devices soon, Augmented Reality is one emerging technology worth keeping an eye on.
For videos of Apple’s ARKit in action check out this link: http://www.wired.co.uk/article/best-apple-arkit-demos-apps
And to see Google’s ARCore being used go here: https://experiments.withgoogle.com/ar
Written by Alistar Wickens
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