On#nbsp;September 27, 2023, the IKSAR team held an#nbsp;open lecture for students and teachers of#nbsp;the Faculty of#nbsp;Computer Science at#nbsp;Voronezh State University (VSU).
IKSAR specialists discussed their perspective on#nbsp;the myths and realities of#nbsp;augmented reality (AR) with a#nbsp;focus on#nbsp;the development of#nbsp;such technologies in#nbsp;various industries.
Lecture attendees had the opportunity to#nbsp;experience and try on#nbsp;over 10 models of#nbsp;AR glasses from different manufacturers, including Rokid X#nbsp;Craft, RealWear Navigator 500 and 520, Vuzix M4000, Google Glass Enterprise Edition 2, MS#nbsp;Hololense 2, Quest Pro, and others.
During the presentation, the structural and software features of#nbsp;existing#nbsp;AR glasses on#nbsp;the international market were examined in#nbsp;detail. According to#nbsp;experts from the IKSAR team, one should not expect the emergence of "perfect" AR#nbsp;glasses that universally fit any use case in#nbsp;the near future, as#nbsp;each of#nbsp;the presented models has its own advantages and disadvantages.
The industrial sector imposes increased demands on#nbsp;devices compared to#nbsp;ordinary retail consumers. Production personnel may work in#nbsp;challenging outdoor weather conditions, high noise environments, and low lighting. Workers use personal protective equipment such as#nbsp;helmets, special clothing, gloves, and safety goggles. Environments can be#nbsp;dusty, and hands and gloves may be#nbsp;oily. There may not be#nbsp;frequent opportunities to#nbsp;charge mobile devices, as#nbsp;well as#nbsp;constant access to#nbsp;wired and wireless communication. AR#nbsp;devices must meet all these challenges, including the software developed for them.
Developers of#nbsp;specialised industrial software must personally visit numerous enterprises and engage with the people for whom#nbsp;IT solutions are being created. Only after this can they understand the real needs of#nbsp;both companies in#nbsp;terms of#nbsp;control procedures and the requests of#nbsp;end users who will be#nbsp;working with such devices and technologies.
During the lecture, IKSAR representatives also shared the most in-demand use cases for such technologies in#nbsp;various industrial sectors. Among the most popular scenarios worldwide are equipment inspections, maintenance and repair, quality control at#nbsp;various stages, field inspections and audits, assembly and disassembly of#nbsp;complex components and aggregates, commissioning work, as#nbsp;well as#nbsp;anything related to#nbsp;remote interaction between various geographically distributed participants in#nbsp;the production chain.
Each of#nbsp;these scenarios provides companies with both quantitative and qualitative benefits, as#nbsp;discussed through case examples during the lecture, showcasing savings of#nbsp;at#nbsp;least 100 million rubles annually.
The lively interest of#nbsp;the participants was accompanied by#nbsp;active questions on#nbsp;all topics, including the application of#nbsp;artificial intelligence technologies integrated with augmented reality.
In#nbsp;the concluding part, IKSAR representatives conducted a#nbsp;live demonstration of#nbsp;the capabilities of#nbsp;their own software on#nbsp;a#nbsp;test example, including the core features of#nbsp;the solution: graphical, textual, and voice prompts, checklist completion, data input, photo and video documentation of#nbsp;incidents, as#nbsp;well as#nbsp;making a#nbsp;video call to#nbsp;a#nbsp;remote expert and receiving instructions in#nbsp;augmented reality.
The event was attended by#nbsp;no#nbsp;fewer than 70 participants, and we#nbsp;hope that now each of#nbsp;them believes a#nbsp;little more in#nbsp;the idea that IKSAR software in#nbsp;combination with#nbsp;AR glasses will help employees access the necessary data at#nbsp;the right time right before their eyes, providing mutual benefits to#nbsp;both the company and the employee on#nbsp;a#nbsp;daily basis!