Applications For Augmented Reality Glasses

The technology required to create AR glasses is incredibly complex. It includes sensors to pinpoint your physical location, displays that overlay information on the full breadth of your field of view, and processors for processing this data.

TI offers integrated circuits and reference designs to build lightweight, reliable systems for AR smart glasses. Find products and download datasheets for more details.

1. Enhanced shopping

When shopping online, it’s often difficult to tell if an item will fit or work with a customer’s home or lifestyle. As a result, return rates are high and many people avoid buying products without trying them out first. Augmented reality helps to eliminate that problem by allowing shoppers to see how a product will look in their own environment before purchasing it. Several brands are already using AR to enhance their ecommerce shopping experiences. For example, cosmetics retailer Sephora uses facial recognition technology to let customers try makeup on their faces in a virtual way and eyeglasses retailers like Warby Parker use the same technology to allow shoppers to try glasses on virtually.

Other companies are experimenting with AR in retail stores and in the home. For example, a smartwatch with built-in augmented reality could display nutritional information on foods as they’re scanned by the wearer. This would be useful to health-conscious consumers. And in a store, a pair of AR smart glasses could display prices and promotional offers on items as a shopper approaches them.

Apple’s upcoming consumer AR glasses are expected to have a camera, though Grobman declined to provide any details on which manufacturers the company is working with. Using geolocation and object or environment identification technologies, these glasses will be augmented glasses able to identify markers in a user’s real-world scene to overlay digital 3D images or holograms.

2. Enhanced communication

Augmented glasses can enhance the way people communicate. The technology can help them stay connected with their friends, get directions when they’re out, and access information quickly and easily. It could also improve health and fitness by providing real-time feedback on exercise routines, or even allow them to learn new skills by delivering interactive tutorials.

AR headsets can display a user’s current location on maps, and also offer search, price comparison features, and promotional offers while they are shopping. It can also be used by a variety of industries to support their frontline teams with work instructions, SOPs, and guides.

It can be employed in a variety of simulated military training activities as well, where virtual displays give soldiers visual info on their surroundings. It can be useful for medical professionals to provide training on new surgical techniques, and also aids in educating patients by using visualizations to demonstrate complex processes.

AR-enabled smart glasses can allow users to interact with digital content in their immediate physical environment, including projecting images or animations that resemble objects or other elements within it (Hilken et al., 2018). It can also be augmented with functionalities that simulate physical control or customization of this content. Vodafone’s FLE, for example, uses AR to “draw” servicing instructions onto customer WiFi routers, while the IKEA app allows customers to use it to place holograms of furniture into their homes (Carrozzi et al., 2019).

3. Enhanced gaming

Gaming using augmented reality is one of the most exciting applications for AR, especially for gamers who want to experience more immersive and realistic games. A headset can be used to see more details of the game environment, interact with virtual objects, and even play multiplayer games.

The AR headsets are able to overlay holographic images and information over the user’s real-world field of vision. Some AR headsets also come with a head-tracking feature to follow the movement of the user’s eyes and heads, which allows for more natural interactions. The technology can also be used for navigation, providing 3D maps or directions that can help users to reach their destinations.

There are a variety of different AR headsets on the market, from lightweight and portable options such as Google Glass, to more expensive ones such as the Microsoft HoloLens. Most of these AR headsets work by using a camera to identify pre-loaded markers or other features in the real world, which can then be digitally overlaid on top of the user’s view.

Due to privacy concerns, most smart AR glasses do not have a built-in camera. Instead, some manufacturers use a directional button on the headset, a touchscreen on the display or a pointing device worn on the wearer’s finger to navigate. Some of these devices are designed for gaming, while others can be used to watch movies or TV shows.

4. Enhanced learning

Smart glasses offer a host of augmented glasses educational applications, from augmented reality experiences to real-time language translation. These innovative tools are changing the way students learn and grow.

AR smart glasses work by combining and superimposing computer-generated or digital graphics, images, videos, animations, and three-dimensional holograms on top of the user’s environment or scenes at their points of view to enhance them. These headsets are also known as head-mounted displays (HMDs).

Educators can use Google Glass to provide students with real-time feedback and to streamline administrative tasks, giving them more time to focus on instruction and student support. According to one study, students whose teachers used the HMDs performed better on tests than those whose teachers did not wear them.

Emteq’s emotion-tracking smart glasses help teach social emotional learning by letting students understand their own emotions and those of others, fostering empathy and self-awareness. They can also track facial expressions and physiological responses, giving educators a glimpse into what’s going on inside the classroom.

Vuzix M400 smart glasses allow students to participate in remote training sessions with experts from across the globe, allowing them to gain valuable industry experience and prepare for the workforce. The headsets also enable students to collaborate on projects in a virtual space, enabling them to feel more present and connected with their peers.