Using Mixed Reality for Shopping

As mixed reality technology begins to advance and develop, it is already taking a foothold in many aspects of our daily lives. For navigation, social media, healthcare, and more, mixed reality is the future. Although still in the early stages, mixed reality is now taking over retail shopping. Online shopping has been extremely convenient for consumers and mixed reality is now elevating their shopping experience. 

Interacting with Products

One of the drawbacks of traditional shopping online is not being able to know if you really like it or not. For example, buying furniture has always been tricky. Sometimes it’s hard to picture what the piece of furniture will actually look like in their home. With the use of mixed reality, consumers are able to interact with products and see how it will look in their homes. This will allow them to have a clearer vision of the products they want before making the commitment to them and purchasing. 

Boosting Business

By being able to see a product at all angles, more consumers are being comfortable with making bigger purchases. Because of this, more and more major retailers are adopting mixed reality technology into their online shopping platform. Consumers are becoming more drawn to retailers that use mixed reality. By incorporating this advanced technology, it boot’s a company’s business. This leads to far fewer returns and great customer satisfaction. 

integrating the Technology

As of now, only major companies and retailers have adopted the latest technology trend. However, mixed reality is gaining a lot of popularity and making major developments. Because of this, there will be more and more demand for the use of mixed reality in shopping. With a higher demand from consumers, using mixed reality for buying products will eventually become a norm. Over time, more and more retailers will soon adopt this technology into their online platforms.

The benefits of mixed reality in retail shopping are too great to not make further developments. Within the next few years, consumers will see more mixed reality in their shopping experience. 

Mixed Reality Glasses Replacing Smartphones

When smartphones first came out, they were the most revolutionary innovation to date. They completely changed how people communicate and in general how they lived. It was such an advanced piece of technology that many believed nothing could ever replace it. Now that it has become a major accessory and necessity in our lives, it’s hard to picture anyone living without one. However, smartphones may become a thing of the past. As mixed reality begins to advance and develop, It’s time to make room for Mixed Reality Glasses (MRG):

As mixed reality becomes more and more accessible, major companies are seeing the potential in this advanced technology. With these companies involved, consumers will see mixed reality becoming more incorporated in their lives. Companies such as Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and Apple all have a strong foothold in mixed reality. Each company has been developing innovative products and applications related to MRG to release to the public. Soon, consumers will be experiencing the revolutionary advancements of MRG. 

As mixed reality begins to advance, MRG’s have more and more potential to completely replace smartphones. MRG’s have technological advancements that are able to take crystal clear pictures and videos with filters and effects. Not only are these smart binocular glasses extremely light, but advanced features are also being developed that allow users to play mixed reality games at a first-person view, watch movies, answer phone calls, and receive app notifications including compatibility with social media platforms.  MRG technology shows no sign of slowing down.

The technology of MRG is still in the early stages. Although there is still so much to come, the technology is very promising. Designers and developers from all around the world are working to make mixed reality glasses more of a necessity and not a novelty. Instead of people looking at apps and social media on their smartphones, mixed reality glasses will make them experience the applications the way the view the world

This article was originally published on RickGarson.com

How STEM learning is Expanding With Mixed Reality

The STEM learning curriculum is quickly becoming a form of education that is being implemented by increasingly more learning institutions. The STEM acronym stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. These four broad courses of study are integrated to create one cohesive learning system that pre-exposes students to situations and challenges they will face in the real world, now and into the future.

Mixed reality is a form of computer technology that blends the digital world with the physical world, creating a type of alternate reality. This reality, however, is a genuine one that can be manipulated and worked in. Examples of these are augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) games and applications that you might have used already, but that is becoming more mainstream.

The Integration of STEM and Mixed Reality

Partially or fully immersive experiences that can be generated by AR and VR technologies allow students to learn about complex phenomena like electromagnetic waves or complex laws of motion. Students can delve deeply into subjects that were once complicated to teach and learn by experiencing aspects of it themselves.

It’s now possible to study the different parts of a human cell by actually touring it, in applications like MoleculE VR. VR Math and others like it are making learning mathematical concepts fun and engaging. Students can examine and learn from 3D graphs, vectors, and geometry in a close-up and personal way with these kinds of applications. It’s the integration of VR and AR technologies with the STEM curriculum archetype that makes this all possible.

Impacts on Education and Industry

Virtual reality and augmented reality applications have been used for a few decades already by professionals in the medical, science, and engineering fields. Improving their skills and advancing their careers might have necessitated using these types of applications. As technology advances and becomes more complicated, there will be more of a demand for VR/AR aided learning.

Universities all over the United States and the world are implementing this kind of learning paradigm into their curriculums. It’s the low-priced options for new VR and AR technologies that are making it possible for more learning institutions to incorporate them into their curriculums. Immersing students in math, technology, engineering, and science today can help the world prepare for tomorrow’s challenges. 

This article was originally published at RickGarson.net

What Mixed Reality Means for Enterprises

Mixed reality is predicted to have a significant impact on businesses in manufacturing. This new technology is blending the world around us with the virtual world by utilizing a headset. The most notable difference right now between the older augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) is that augmented reality is viewed through a flat-screen device, such as a smartphone or tablet. Mixed reality uses headsets such as the Microsoft HoloLens and Google Glass to see virtual information and virtual reality.

So how will mixed reality technology impact businesses, especially manufacturing in the future? One expert predicts that we would have business meetings conducted through a virtual reality world using mixed reality. Such a practice could reduce the need for traveling to meet with business partners. If this practice becomes widespread, it could impact the hotel and transportation industry. This idea is still a long shot and may never happen, though.

Another prediction made by an expert is that mixed reality could impact education, especially hands-on education. Mixed reality can provide information on how to assemble and repair a product right in front of our eyes using a headset. Will this mean that we will no longer have to train technicians to fix and assemble things? Once again, employees will still have to be trained to be familiar with parts and terminology. This does not mean that mixed reality cannot enhance education or provide us with new ways of learning.

By far, the most prominent implementation and use of mixed reality have been in the manufacturing sector. Companies such as Renault Trucks and Thyssen Krupp are giving their employees mixed reality headsets. The headsets let employees see in the form of mixed reality what steps they need to take to assemble or check a product.

Before mixed reality, assembly and quality control employees at Renault would have to resort to using paper instructions. The use of a handset is much more convenient and efficient. BAE Systems, a manufacturer of defense and aerospace equipment, says that its has reduced assembly times by over 50% since it gave employees mixed reality headsets.

Consulting company Deloitte says that up to 10% of Fortune 500 companies are testing or already using mixed reality technology to some extent. A business study conducted by Forester Research states that tens of millions of American workers could be using mixed reality glasses within a decade. The forecast is clear that mixed reality is set to slowly creep into the workforce and increase productivity in the workplace.

This article was originally published at RickGarson.org

The Future of Storytelling Using Interactive Mixed Reality

Storytelling continues to evolve, including the ways the world shares its tales. Oral stories, books, and film are traditional examples, but video games have become a big part of storytelling and have been doing well over the past three decades. It's no longer merely plumbers throwing fireballs or yellow circles eating dots. Now, more than ever, gaming as an art form is blossoming into a way to tell stories and deliver great experiences.

Versions of mixed reality have continuously come in and out of the gaming world, but the current landscape of Vive and Oculus Rift headsets is making a lasting impression. Here are two ways that MR is changing the future of storytelling, gaming, and other entertainment.

Visual novels (VNs) are essentially stories that are read and sometimes played just like a game. Using gaming consoles such as the Playstation or Xbox, you press buttons on the controller to retrieve text. On computers, pressing enter or spacebar has the same effect. Mario Brothers, Halo, Madden, FIFA, and Tetris are all well-known and global franchises. In Japan, an entire format has flourished around this medium, but its fandom isn't as popular yet in the West.

VNs aren't just text on a game cartridge or file. They often have other gameplay elements baked in, such as a basic Roleplaying Game (RPG), shooting game, puzzle game, or almost any other genre added to the text-reading format. Some of the best modern VNs are voiced as well and often include groundbreaking music that is sampled from other countries. This combination of narrated text, sound design, and artwork all come together to create a new form of modular storytelling, which means that any amount of words can be added to any story without the need for matching background images or animated cut scenes. Another benefit of the VN style is that it creates a possibility of alternate endings--and alternate paths even before the ending. Branching paths are a natural way to create a Choose Your Own Adventure (CYOA)-style game.

Hybrid reality (HR) is a method of overlaying digital images on top of a real-world display. Like a Head Up Display (HUD), it simply adds transparent, barely intrusive images to your viewpoint while allowing you to still see what's ahead of you. In storytelling, this can allow artists and developers to bring their tales into the real world. Holograms can be made more realistic by sending images of storytellers or digital graphics directly to headsets worn by people in libraries or their own living rooms.

When telling stories about the past, overlaying images and videos of artistic renditions can bring history alive. Museums use this technology to enhance masterpieces. In addition, visitors to fields that were once rivers or lakes, or parks that were once grand forests, can now be taken back in time through MR headsets.

This article was originally published on rickGarson.com.

How the US Army is Using Mixed Reality to Innovate Tank Training

Mixed reality is now a reality in the U.S. Army. SCOPE, the Synthetic Collective Operational Prototyping Environment, is the Army’s newest training protocol for its armored cavalry units. Developed at the Institute for Creative Technologies at USC and in conjunction with the Army Training Ground at Aberdeen and tank trainers at Fort Benning, SCOPE uses mixed reality to train its future tank commanders. In the past, trainees used role-playing as a training medium, but SCOPE will use AI to accomplish the tasks of tank gunner and loader.

The trainees are placed into a simulated, 3D battlefield environment with the objective of improving their skills, either during a training exercise or out on the battlefield. Tank commanders must learn to quickly consolidate and process input from both mission command and incoming enemies, then make whichever decision will best protect the lives of their crew.

TALK-ON, an early version of SCOPE, has already completed three rounds of testing at Fort Benning, and researchers are optimistic about their positive results. TALK-ON uses cognitive training and communications, but SCOPE will use a sophisticated sensor tracking system to train its commanders.

The project has taken almost two years to develop and is a combined effort of researchers and programmers, many of whom have military experience. This unique approach to tank training uses sensors to track the position of a person’s body and uses a headset to track eye movement so that specific areas can be targeted for additional training. Simulated repetitions enable tank commanders to become more comfortable with their tasks and more proficient at their jobs so they can save time and lives. 

Initially, three commanders will engage in simulated training that will test their performance levels in combat. Eventually, four commanders will participate, which will be representative of a full platoon of tanks. Training will be conducted at Fort Benning and commanders will use a 3D control box and a replicated joystick that will interface with their helmets. 

Each mission will consist of a briefing and various simulated exercises. The data amassed by SCOPE will provide a more comprehensive training regimen for future tank commanders by interpreting the way trainees translate incoming information into a decision. This will enable the Army to maximize the efficiency of its training methods by understanding the motivations behind the commanders’ decisions. Eventually, AI will be used to simulate crew responses as well.

The Army plans to start formal testing of SCOPE in the fiscal year 2020.

This article was originally published on rickGarson.org.

Mixed Reality and Healthcare

Mixed Reality, or “MR,” is the superimposition of virtual images onto real spaces. It is a relatively new technology, but it is already having a major impact on society. One field that is being impacted by MR is healthcare. Here are a few ways that MR is impacting medical practices around the globe.

Educating Young Professionals

Mixed Reality is a useful tool for educating young medical professionals. MR programs can help immerse students in the things that they are learning in a simulated, safe environment. One such program is called HoloPatient. Created by textbook publishing company Pearson in conjunction with Microsoft, HoloPatient uses HoloLens technology to provide students with interactive holograms to help them learn about the human body. These holograms show, in vivid detail, how the parts of the body work together and what they look like when they fail. They could have lasting effects on how professors teach medical students things like anatomy, chemistry, and more. 

Providing Continuity of Care

Mixed Reality could also help doctors provide better continuity of care for patients. It is an unfortunate reality that one doctor or nurse can not provide care for a single patient at all times. However, MR imaging could help doctors and nurses get relevant information about patients faster. Doctors and nurses who use MR are able to quickly learn about a patient’s medical history and relevant conditions, and they are better able to share this information with other medical professionals. With this information, practitioners are better equipped to respond to emergency situations and to provide better, more consistent care to patients who need it.

Making Surgery Easier

Mixed Reality is also making surgeries much easier and safer. Using MR, surgeons are able to see overlays of a patient’s vital data– as well as projections of the patient’s organs, provided by CT scans– overlaid over the patient’s body. According to an article published in the Acta Orthopedica, doctors who use MR technology “might [see] an improvement in outcomes for both surgeon and patient, without reducing the safety of the procedure.” This is because MR “provides a gain in accuracy and safety in the procedure which finally might result in the time-saving and correct positioning of the implant.”