FountainBlue's August 11 VIP Roundtable was on the topic of 'AR/VR Immersion Solutions'. Our executives in attendance represented decades of experience in the AR/VR space, with experience in everything from semiconductors to hardware, and from communications to gaming.
Definitions to start - wikipedia as source:
Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and computer-generated content. The content can span multiple sensory modalities, including visual, auditory, haptic, somatosensory and olfactory. AR can be defined as a system that incorporates three basic features: a combination of real and virtual worlds, real-time interaction, and accurate 3D registration of virtual and real objects.
Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), education (such as medical or military training) and business (such as virtual meetings).
Although our executives in attendance had a wide range of roles and backgrounds, they agreed that:
Delivering an immersive experience is not just fun but also useful for consumers and practical for enterprises.
Decreasing the weight, bulkiness and form factor while increasing the power and functionality for headsets and devices will increase the customer experience, usability, and adoption.
Transitioning traditionally consumer applications into industrial use cases will create larger audiences and larger opportunities.
Advancing AR/VR solutions has taken decades, but much progress has recently been made, and many more applications will be soon adopted.
Below are some exciting opportunities for AR/VR immersion solutions:
Sensor innovations:
Touch sensors to supplement seeing and hearing in AR
360 cameras with small form factors
sweat sensors
sensors which allow for 3D perception
Beyond sensor creation and data generation, software solutions with real-time data integration capabilities
Continue to evolve and deliver industrial solutions from automotive to training, from safety and security to flight simulation
Innovations in semiconductors, power and display which would help to optimize AR/VR experiences
Content creation and editing for immersive experiences, including personalization of content leveraging AI
The bottom line is that we are just beginning to scratch the surface of what AR/VR can deliver for us, going far beyond entertainment and gaming to more practical educational and industrial solutions which affect our day-to-day lives.