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Module 5- Augmented Reality
The fundamental idea of AR is to combine, or mix, the view of the real environment with additional, virtual content that is presented through computer graphics. Its convincing effect is achieved by ensuring that the virtual content is aligned and registered with the real objects. As a person moves in an environment and their perspective view of real objects changes, the virtual content should also be presented from the same perspective. Augmented reality (AR) is a form of emerging technology that allows users to overlay computer generated content in the real world. AR refers to a live view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are merged with augmented computer-generated images creating a mixed reality. The augmentation is typically done in real-time and in semantic context with environmental elements. By using the latest AR techniques and technologies, the information about the surrounding real world becomes interactive and digitally usable. Through this augmented vision, a user can digitally interact with and adjust information about their surrounding environment Augmented Reality (AR) as a real-time direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment that has been enhanced/augmented by adding virtual computer-generated information to it. Augmented reality is the integration of digital information with the user's environment in real-time. Unlike virtual reality, which creates a totally artificial environment, augmented reality uses the existing environment and overlays new information on top of it. A live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data. 5.2. Virtual reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR) vs Mixed reality (MR) With constant development in computer vision and the exponential advancement of computer processing power, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) technology is becoming more and more prominent. With some overlap in the applications and functions of these emerging technologies, sometimes these terms get confused or are used incorrectly. The main differences between them are explained below (see Figure 5.1). On the other hand, virtual reality programs require specialized VR headsets, noise-canceling headphones, cameras to track room space and boundaries, and sometimes even motion capture technology. Some of the biggest names in VR tech today are the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PlayStation VR. For the enjoyment of simple VR videos, there are affordable makeshift VR headsets like the Google Cardboard, which work by running a video in 360 modes on your smartphone and inserting the phone into the headset. Mixed reality hardware is still emerging and hasn’t quite broken into the mainstream consumer market, most likely due to the price. The consumer releases of the Microsoft HoloLens and Magic Leap One retail for over $2000 USD, which is 3 to 4 times the cost of the PlayStation VR and HTC Vive VR headsets. However, mixed reality applications sometimes require exponentially more processing power and thus require more powerful hardware. For example, the Microsoft HoloLens includes a built-in microphone array, binaural sound capabilities, a built-in camera for recording, a depth sensor, head-tracking cameras, and an inertial measurement unit which helps track your head movement. On top of the traditional CPU and GPU, Microsoft also created a Holographic Processing Unit to help track where the user is looking and understand command gestures. 5.3. The architecture of AR Systems The first Augmented Reality Systems (ARS) were usually designed with a basis on three main blocks, as is illustrated in Figure 5.7: (1) Infrastructure Tracker Unit, (2) Processing Unit, and (3) Visual Unit. The Infrastructure Tracker Unit was responsible for collecting data from the real world, sending them to the Processing Unit, which mixed the virtual content with the real content and sent the result to the Video Out module of the Visual Unit. Some designs used a Video In, to acquire required data for the Infrastructure Tracker Unit.
