The word ‘augment’ means to make something great or increase its value according to its literal definition. And, augmented reality refers to integrating digital information into the real world, hence enhancing our reality. It is a tool to visualize digital objects created in the real environment. This technology acts as a bridge between the physical and virtual worlds, where objects of both worlds co-exist seamlessly.
History of Augmented Reality and Its First Applications: Ivan Sutherland, the father of computer graphics, developed the first AR tech product in 1968. He developed an AR head-mounted display later modified by university labs and was first used to super-impose information such as overlaying of terrain with geological info, whose simulations were run and used for military, aviation, and other industries.
Augmented Reality vs Virtual Reality: VR is a computer-generated virtual environment based on the data input that reproduces a physical setting that can be digitally experienced. VR can give one a high-end immersive experience than AR; it makes one feel that you are actually inside the simulation. However, AR technology doesn’t require any external resources such as headsets in VR and can be accessed through technology as simple as a smartphone used on a daily basis.
AR in architecture and design
Augmented reality is prominently used as a tool to visualize in the field of architecture and design. Designers intend to use it from the concept phase to execution, creating interactive resources for exhibitions, museums, and galleries.
Tools and current techniques: One of the simplest uses of AR is overlaying digital images onto the physical world through serving applications such as NORA on a phone screen. With tools like Microsoft’s HoloLens, one can provide measurements of physical elements precisely; hence can be used for site surveillance, analysis, and documentation. Gadgets like AR gear, glasses help one overlay the actual draft onto the site to determine any inconsistency or error before the final phase. It has been proven of immense help to visualize the interiors of a shell, even before the start of execution, so that the client can provide feedback based on the experience in real-time and scale, hence saving time, resources, and energy.
An application such as ‘AUGMENT’ can allow one to view a 3d model in real-time when scanned through a given plan or a drafted design. It is generally available on smartphones and tablets and used by product designers or interior designers as a source to develop a digital prototype with a certain degree of optimization and reduce initial production costs.
GAMMA AR, as an app, uses AR tech to overlay the BIM three-dimensional models into the shells, inspect, and analyze the site’s current condition with proposed services such as plumbing, HVAC, or electrical, henceforth avoiding additional expenses and possible future errors.
AR as an interactive experience
AR to create interactive exhibitions and galleries: One of the most common and simplest AR experiences is found in museums and galleries. Many museums across the world have started to implement AR tech to let people perceive things from a unique point of view. To explore around, a GPS-based system is used to navigate and create an interactive environment. Pokemon Go, an AR-based game was developed with a similar concept.
Cleveland Museum of Art provides a facility where one can visualize an artifact or a product super-imposed on their body in real-time on a screen, creating a better sense of understanding in terms of its scale, purpose, and value. Museum of Celtic Heritage, located in Salzburg uses AR to guide a visitor through a 3d modelled ‘museum guard’, who pops up on the screen, explaining the facts and history related to the display artifacts when scanned through the respective applications on mobile/tablets. An idea of a 3d pop-up from a 2d image was used by artists in the Center on Contemporary Arts through an application called CoCA Pop-Up. Museums with paintings and sculptures also use this tech to display information directly on people’s devices, avoiding clutter surrounding it. Such immersive experiences can attract more visitors and can bring exhibitions to life.
Use of AR in interiors | Asian Paints: An AR product visualizer app that consisted of an entire range of furniture and lighting was developed to help the customer realize the actual scale, form, and texture of the product in the context of their home or office. It also developed an app called ‘Colour with Asian Paints’ where one can scan their room, which recognizes the surface and enables the customer to visualize the color of their choice before any decision.
AR tech as a medium to revive the past: AR can allow one to travel across space and time by recreating historically ruined sites through 3d models, which one can view when scanning the actual site through their devices. It can bring the long-gone site to life, integrating life-sized objects and developing a real-world environment.
Although there seem to be many identified advantages of Augmented reality, some unseen risks follow any form of modern tech. Prolonged use of headsets can cause dry eyes and irritation. A human body is not naturally made to live in a simulated environment. And hence, can cause a mental delusion of indifference between the real and the virtual objects. However, with precautions kept in mind, AR as technology can boost the performance of a business at an exponential rate and allow designers to use interaction as a medium for space-making.
References:
Morozova, A. (2018) How to use augmented reality in museums: Examples and use cases, Jasoren. Available at: https://www.jasoren.com/how-to-use-augmented-reality-in-museums-examples-and-use-cases/#:~:text=AR%20technologies%20can%20attract%20people,Bring%20exhibitions%20to%20life. (Accessed: 23 February 2024).
The mainstreaming of augmented reality: A brief history (2016a) Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2016/10/the-mainstreaming-of-augmented-reality-a-brief-history (Accessed: 22 February 2024).
Augmented reality in architecture: Applications and prospective (2023) CloudTweaks. Available at: https://shorturl.at/ruLM7. (Accessed: 25 February 2024).
