Augmented Reality In Business

It appears that the business world has finally woken up to the power of augmented reality. The concept is actually much simpler than you might think. Companies of all sizes are now realizing the importance of having augmented reality technology integrated into their business model. Augmented reality in business has many ways of usage. This article will discuss what this means for the business world, as well as how to get businesses involved in the first place.

Augmented Reality in Business: Benefits and Applications

Augmented reality in business terms refers to using high-resolution images and virtual information technology to provide a rich, life-like experience to the customer. Augmented reality can be implemented in industries like gaming, entertainment, retail, electronic marketing, education, and utilities. Even manufacturers of cars, appliances, consumer electronics, home cinema surround sound systems, watches and more have been exploring possibilities to implement the technology. One of the largest sectors benefiting from this technology is healthcare professionals. Due to the fact that medical professionals require a high level of expertise and detail to provide effective treatment, they often rely heavily on documentation, videos, and images taken by other healthcare workers. Augmented reality helps healthcare professionals provide information about their patients to patients in an engaging and personal manner. Many such applications also allow healthcare professionals to interact with patients and learn about their medical history and condition from a different, human perspective.

AR technology in healthcare

By utilizing augmented reality technologies, health care professionals are able to answer questions, give advice and perform a variety of other tasks. Take the example of a physician seeing a patient. The doctor can search the digital images of the patient’s x-ray or prescription file to look up specific details and see what condition the patient may be suffering from. In doing so, the doctor not only visually examines the patient but reads the file electronically, allowing the physician to provide a more accurate diagnosis. Moreover, it would be possible to use augmented reality during surgeries and medical treatments, which could increase efficiency and minimalize the risk factor. Thanks to AR tech it would be possible to avoid/decrease deaths caused by human flaws and errors. Instead of constant guessing, health care professionals should be able to work with more accurate data. Of course, at the end of the day, it would still be doctors, nurses, and emergency medical technicians (EMTs) who are responsible for other human lives and their wellbeing, but now they could get much-needed help.

AR in office

Another example of augmented reality in business terms is found at the office. Instead of looking through a computer screen, employees in the human resources department may actually be able to manipulate digital files via their smartphones. They could also be able to present the file to their boss through their smartphone, which would allow them to share the information with other co-workers. This allows a team to efficiently communicate with each other in real life. It also gives the human resources department a faster way to reach out to potential employees, especially when they have a presentation to make.

Augmented reality home

Augmented reality can also be applied at home. Rather than driving through traffic or walking through your house with the lights on, you could be able to virtually step into your own living space. For example, the home maker’s virtual lawn could be created with augmented reality AR technology. You could walk through the lawn and view it from a bird’s eye view. You could then move closer to the plants and see more clearly where you should place a flower or plant for a particular smell or texture. Many companies offer 3d visualization services and often make deals with furniture brands for making their products available in the 3d AR app so that you can place them virtually anywhere you want.

AR making it easier

Some companies may have found augmented reality so useful that they have started to utilize it in their workplace. Some companies use it in their conference rooms to show presentations that include video and audio, which means that employees will not have to miss anything that is going on because they are not in the actual room. In addition, augmented reality will soon be available in stores where consumers can experience augmented reality big time.

Augmented Reality in the gaming and entertainment industry

Well, for example, we have Pokemon Go, which is an AR-based gaming app, specifically designed for smartphones. It was the „big-boom” when it comes to the augmented reality in the gaming industry. After the game was launched, it became clear that it’s just the beginning. Companies specializing in designing games started to focus on what augmented reality can actually do, and how they may profit from it. AR gaming offers their customers an open space, freedom, and the possibility to move around without any hesitation. Before all that, it was a computer, Nintendo, or a different kind of equipment, and you. You were stuck in one room, now when augmented reality has made it this far, and combined virtual effects with the reality we can enjoy AR games at any time and any place. So far so good, but we don’t recommend using it at work though. You may want to read about smart glasses which are way more private, your boss won’t simply know if you watch a movie during every boring meeting.

AR can be also used in the media and entertainment sector which consists of movies, radio, television, and print. They include movies, tv-series, tv shows, music, newspapers, magazines, books, and a little different forms like concerts or live events. Imagine a live concert by your favourite performer or a band, and what you see on a large screen on a stage is a dragon flying right over your head. That is exactly what happened at the League of Legends Opening Ceremony in the 2017 Championship’s Finals in China. A year after their Opening Ceremony included augmented reality dancers who danced together with real artists. AR dancers were animated versions of original artists who recorded the song for the ceremony. Now think about this, you put your smart glasses or maybe even smart lenses on and you actually see a dragon right next to you. Not on a screen but right next to you! You can see it, hear it, smell it as if it was happening for real. That is what ar can do, augment your mind and senses to a fantasy level.

AR in education

Augmented reality can be used in the education field as well. Let’s imagine a class full of students (seems like years ago in a pandemic era, right?) and every piece of typical school supplies such as board or stationery. Every kid is almost asleep, doesn’t really care about anything that his or her teacher has to say. Then try to imagine a completely different reality. Kids working together on an exciting project, sharing their knowledge with each other, or simply enjoying classes and being active. So we are guessing that it rarely happens, maybe besides the situation when a teacher says that kids will finish early if they start to participate. What education seems to lack is this thrill, an excitement, that makes this process a lot more pleasant and enjoyable. AR can transform boring classes into something that will make students want to take part in. Live visualizations come in a form of animations, pictures, 3d models. At least they will remember some material after your class.

AR in manufacturing

AR in manufacturing may help the manufacturers with planning, creating models, as well as with the material production process. Engineers may benefit from this type of technology because of the fact that AR can guide them through every step. Just like with healthcare institutions, AR can eliminate human flaws from the production process. The software can suggest other solutions, show the errors made by a human in real-time, not after production, and analyze every step of human work. It’s not going to replace engineers but make their work easier, faster, and much more effective.

Augmented reality in retail and marketing

Just like in the sales sector augmented reality can accelerate marketing efficiency. Public relations, digital marketing, or any other form of marketing can benefit from AR tech. Promoting any product by visualization can increase sales and boost consumer attention. So what about retail? AR in retail may simply make the customer experience way more enjoyable. It can be used in clothing and electronics stores, drugstores and pharmacies, supermarkets, and grocery stores. So, basically in any retail store. Customers may see the prices by a phone or smart glasses, they can try clothes on without actually trying them on (they can take a picture of themselves on a special screen and pick any product available), or they can watch tips and tutorials on their phone after scanning the code on a particular product.

How can you use AR? Everyday AR

The idea behind augmented reality is that you will be able to enter a scene and look at it from the point of view of a particular device. For example, instead of walking into a restaurant with a device that shows you a menu, you will be able to view it from your phone or tablet computer. Another use of this technology is in the health and fitness field. There are already many apps out there that help you keep track of your calorie consumption, as well as those that help you plan out your meals. You can use it in any way or any business you want. The possibilities are endless. When it comes to everyday usage, all you need is to consider how augmented reality can help you the most and decide if it’s home arrangement, healthcare, work, playing games, your hobbies, or something so simple as choosing a restaurant. AR is in GPS systems as well, synchronizing smart glasses with GPS gives you a view on every turn, guideline, and if it has an AI voice assistant such as Alexa or Google Assistant you can ask for the nearest gas station and AR smart glasses will show you the way.

In conclusion

The best thing about using augmented reality in business is that everyone on the team will be using the same platform, and there will be real-time communication between them. For example, the chef can tell the cook what to prepare, and the cook can tell the manager what to prepare. It is much more efficient than calling in orders over the phone or tablet. By integrating augmented reality into your business, you will be able to provide a better customer experience, while also increasing efficiency at the same time. It’s all up to us how this technology will develop in the future.