#AWE2014
3Gear DevKit

3Gear DevKit

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR Hardware Creator: Rob Wang, Chris Twigg, Kenrick Kin Organization: 3Gear Systems =*=*=*= Description: We’re three guys who believe that the future of human computer interaction isn’t a better mouse or a bigger touchscreen. We’re developing software and hardware that lets you use all ten of your fingers and both of your hands to interact with a computer like you interact with the real world. Our first product is a lamp that understands your gestures. Set it up on your desk like you would any other lamp, and it turns the space beneath it interactive. Grab virtual objects in 3D, spin them around, or pull the trigger in your favorite first person shooter. Our interactions are more ergonomic and more efficient than other gestural interfaces. Start interacting by lifting up your hand just a couple centimeters, with your arms still comfortably resting on the desk. Select objects or issue commands simply by pinching or grabbing. Use our device all day, with millimeter precision and without the gorilla arm. Nobody wants to explore their augmented reality with a keyboard and a mouse. We’ve built a powerful and comfortable new way to interact with computers. All you need to do is to put our lamp on your desk. Augmented reality screen shot credit: Keytree UK Where to find it:...

The AREngine

The AREngine

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR Hardware Creator: Metaio Organization: Metaio =*=*=*= Description: Every popular representation of Augmented Reality has the same thing in common: they depict the constant use of computer vision through a connected device. Iron Man, Minority Report, Terminator, Avatar- short films like Sight and many more. The reality is that there aren’t any devices that exist today that are prepared to run even the most basic AR experiences 24/7 without severe drains on power and running the CPU processors so hot that they could potentially melt (really). Metaio has been working on research for accelerating augmented reality experiences on mobile devices, and has since found that there is only so much improvement possible from the software side. In order to run these “always on, always augmented” scenarios there needs to be hardware specifically designed to run AR experiences- hardware that’s integrated down to the silicon level. The majority of the “work” being done on a given mobile device is processed through the CPU- display, camera access, connecting to the internet and downloading and uploading information can tax a CPU (thousands of picojoules) while severely draining battery power. Metaio designed the so-called “AREngine” to divert processing power specifically away from the CPU to allow it to run cleaner, cooler and faster. Features: – between 0.01mm^2 – 0.02mm^2 – modular and able to be customized to nearly any semi-conductor platform in nearly any device (mobile, tablet, glasses, embedded systems like vehicles or smart appliances) In initial testing, integrating the AREngine on SOC (silicon platform) resulted in: – up to 6000% faster initialization (recognition, tracking) of the experience vs. same experience running on unoptimized device – up to 60% reduction in power consumption while running AR experiences on the device – any latency in the experience virtually disappears – tracking becomes more than 100% more robust – device is able to process point cloud tracking configurations twice the size in a fraction of the time It’s the first chipset of its kind- the only chipset ever designed specifically to accelerate augmented reality experiences. Where to find it: On display at the Metaio showcase at AWE, booth 73 Platforms: Mobile, Glasses, Stationary Device, Gesture Device, Internet of Things, Location Technologies Additional Screenshots:...

Freedom Stories

Freedom Stories

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best Mobile AR App Creator: Andrew Roth, Harriet Tubman Centre and AR Lab Organization: Future Stories =*=*=*= Description: Augmented Reality Freedom Stories – true stories of the Underground Railroad for JK- gr.12 Augmented Reality Freedom Stories highlights seldom told African Canadian histories from the era of the Canada/US Underground Railroad including Harriet Tubman’s efforts to bring American slaves to freedom in Canada. Primary and secondary documents have been hand-crafted in consultation with community partners into a unique experience that has been approved for use in schools as part of an Ontario primary school curriculum as part of the Breaking the Chains history project. Built in Unity + Vuforia, Augmented Reality Freedom Stories is free to download and uses only paper markers, reproductions of historical photographs in our case — making it easy and affordable for schools to begin using AR as part of the standard curriculum and to imagine how AR can communicate new stories and become an expressive tool for children to use to tell stories about their own lives. The architecture of these 30 original stories is simple and designed to mimic a child’s pop-up or magic tunnel book. The small scale of the AR Freedom Stories makes it possible to hold these small storyworlds — and history — in your hands. Install the app on your iPhone or iPad for free and download the markers at: http://futurestories.ca/tubman/ This experience works best on iPhone 4s or later. Community Partners: Essex County Black Historical Research Society; North American Black Historical Museum, Amherstburg; Windsor Public Library; NorthStar Community Centre at Windsor, Ontario; the Michigan Underground Railroad Network to Freedom; Detroit River International Historic Site Initiative; Nathaniel Dett Memorial Chapel and the Norval Johnson Library at Niagara Falls; Central Ontario Network for Black History; St. Catharines Museum; Salem Chapel, St. Catharines; Sandwich Baptist Church; Wellington County Historical Society; Black Pioneers of Wellington County; Buxton Museum and National Historic Site. Where to find it: download from the app store – search Augmented Reality Freedom Stories Platforms: Mobile, Gesture Device, Internet of Things Additional Screenshots:...

Kosmodrom

Kosmodrom

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR Campaign Creator: Jana Rodic Marko Todorovic Organization: LiveViewStudio =*=*=*= Description: CHALLENGE Science Festival Belgrade is an annual event that, through education and entertainment, attracts national and international visitors and exhibitors to make science accessible to all. LiveViewStudio was approached by MTS, regional leader in telecom services, to design an installation that would promote the use of ICT in education. The challenge was to create a solution that would attract an audience, foster interactivity and promote the MTS brand as an innovator. The solution proposed by LiveViewStudio was to design an interactive AR based installation. SOLUTION Augmented puzzle is an interactive installation where children assemble a puzzle, which through computer vision and Augmented reality triggers 3d animations of iconic scenes from the history of space explorations. The puzzle represents a part of LVS’s larger interest in connecting the analog and the digital, and creating novel experiences where interactions in the real world (real-world interactions) have their virtual consequences. The interactive puzzle consists of 9 cubes that can create 6 different pictures. Each picture, when assembled, comes alive triggering a 3d animation representing scenes such as the Apollo landing, black hole or first space travel. By rotating the cubes, or using the magic hand children can trigger different interactive scenarios. The aim of the installation is to create an analogue/digital playground that would engage children in a cross-media play, exploring how the merging of physical objects with computer technology can create a new interface for children education and entertainment. Since MTS is the leading mobile operator, the installation also included mobile AR to communicate the possibility of using a smartphone to get extra information and entertainment overlaid on common everyday objects, but also to introduce the potential of AR in outdoor advertising. Before the festival opening date the shop window was used to intrigue the visitors. When viewed with smartphone and junaio augmented reality browser the print triggered the animation of astronaut with the audio from Apollo landing. During the festival, children could also play with interactive coloring postcards. Filling the pattern on the postcard users would create the a marker that triggers 3d animations. CONCLUSION The installation exceeded expectation attracting significant attention of visitors. Augmented Reality proved as an effective tool for engaging people, while the prolonged interaction of participants with different AR experiences also pointed to the positive implications of using this technology in education and learning environments. Also it was featured in numerous newspapers, magazines, tv shows, websites and blogs Where to find it: The project involved kiosk installation and junaio channel developed for the event in december 2012. http://www.liveviewstudio.com/blog/ Platforms: Mobile, Stationary Device Additional Screenshots:...

The 2013 IKEA Catalog

The 2013 IKEA Catalog

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR Campaign Creator: Metaio, IKEA, Mcann-Erickson Organization: Metaio =*=*=*= Description: The 2013 IKEA Catalog put the spotlight on Augmented Reality for millions and millions of mobile users. Released in July of 2012, the app quickly rose in fame and popularity to become the most downloaded branded & promotional app of 2012, according to Distimo (http://www.distimo.com/blog/2012_10_publication-the-2012-top-100-global-brands/). Augmented Planet awarded it 2012 Best AR Marketing Campaign (http://www.augmentedplanet.com/2012/10/readers-choice-awards-2012-results/). The app activates the 2013 IKEA Catalog with over 40 pieces of interactive content. It’s loaded with image recognition activations that give readers access to additional content, like videos, photo slideshows and additional product information. Even better, users can visualize select IKEA furniture animated and brought to life right from the page itself. To learn more about the campaign, check out http://creativity-online.com/news/mccannerickson-gives-new-ikea-catalog-a-vitamin-pill/236165 Results: – Over 200M catalogues distributed in over 30 countries – More than 5 million downloads in the first 3 months, of which 30% are new users (up from the 2012 Catalog) – More than 1 million social interactions (and counting: https://twitter.com/search/realtime?q=augmented%20ikea&src=typd) – Elevated Augmented Reality to a household status Where to find it: The 2013 IKEA Catalog App is a free app for Android and iOS devices. Optimized for both smartphones and tablets. Platforms: Mobile Additional Screenshots:...

AR Knjaz

AR Knjaz

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR Campaign Creator: Jana Rodic Organization: LiveViewStudio =*=*=*= Description: Augmented reality game developed for Knjaz Milos mineral water. The AR app was a part of campaign promoting the new mineral water and its special combination of minerals (Ca and Mg). Scanning the label users trigger AR game. Augmented fun with Knjaz Milos mineral water! Download and install Knjaz Milos app. Press the “Skeniraj flašu” button and point your phone at the label. Click on the arrow appearing in live view to release the minerals and start the game. Tap them quickly and win point (2Ca+1Mg=1point). If you don’t have the bottle, use the image above as a marker. Where to find it: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/knjaz-milos/id553916408?ls=1&mt=8 Platforms: Mobile Additional Screenshots:...

The Mitsubishi Electric MeView

The Mitsubishi Electric MeView

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR for Enterprise Creator: Trak Lord Organization: Metaio & Mitsubishi Electric =*=*=*= Description: The Mitsubishi Electric MeView AR Enterprise App ->Quality of the Application: Includes elements of creativity and originality specifically applied to augmented reality solutions for the enterprise and industrial applications Mitsubishi Electric found out from independent contractors that potential buyers were opting 70% of the time for ducted HVAC systems rather than the more efficient Mitsbushi Electric wall-mounted units. When contractors asked the buyers why, the most common response was that the buyers didn’t know what the unit would look like in real life. Additionally, product catalogs were cumbersome, costly, and difficult to distribute to ensure the most recent and updated information. Mitsubishi wanted to streamline the delivery of information to their contractors while also solving the problem of providing better visual aids for potential buyers. Mitsubishi Electric was already in the process of developing an enterprise mobile program for their independent contractors, and with the findings of their study they set out to launch a visualization solution utilizing augmented reality to allow potential buyers to see the the HVAC units in real life, in their homes or office. They launched the MeView AR App and added it to the the MeSync enterprise program for over 500 contractors. Mitsubishi Electric then implemented entire 3-D maintenance scenarios and instructions that can be visualized directly onto an existing unit. -> User Experience: Includes design, ease of use, visual appeal, and an innovative AR user experience The user experience of the iPad app is very straightforward- opening up into the camera view, the user (the contractor) can navigate and scroll through different HVAC models. With a large removable self-adhesive picture marker Post-It note custom-made by 3M, the contractor can position the marker to the preference of the buyer. Once the marker is positioned, a detailed 3-D model of the selected HVAC system will appear, to-scale, directly on top of it in the camera view. The tracking has been The contractor can then easily cycle through more than 30 different models for indoor, outdoor, office or home use. There is an inherent screenshot function that allows the contractor to capture an in-app image, which the client can easily share with decision-makers and/or colleagues and family. The contractor can also easily seek more information about the product through the same app. For the 3-D maintenance portion of the application, the use experience is similar. Once the app is launched, the user (contractor / service technician) recognizes the type of unit using Metaio’s object recognition and continuous visual search technology. Once the unit is recognized, the app provides a list of potential maintenance scenarios. Through the camera view, the app highlights individual portions of the system with specific animated instructions. Metaio’s 3-D tracking technology allows the user to move around the HVAC system, providing an interactive and dynamic interface. Once the maintenance step is complete, the user can proceed to the next instruction. Content is lightweight to be understood better by the user while also keeping content production scalable. The 3-D content highlights and “paints” existing components, while adding small symbolic elements such as moving arrow indicators and tools. ->Impact: Includes the potential to impact how people use augmented reality to advance their business and how they work If the only thing that keeps a buyer from purchasing your product is the question, “What is it going to look like?”, Augmented Reality should be your first move. Visualization provides a more intimate and familiar understanding of a product over a 2-D interface like a product catalog or website. There is an undeniable emotional connection that people make when seeing and interacting with something that they can see in front of them, just as if it were there in real life. Additionally, with large product companies (furniture, appliances, HVAC) it’s difficult to bring products to the buyer’s home or office, with some being as tall as 2 meters and weighing considerably more than is convenient to carry. Augmented reality allows businesses like Mitsubishi Electric to put their products in the homes and offices of buyers easily and conveniently. In the case of convenience, this specific solution makes purchasing decisions go quicker, allowing contractors to make more sales visits per month, which in turn allows them to sell more Mitsubishi Electric units per month. Selling a single additional unit per month with this technology creates an additional $30 Million in sales. Mobile visualization apps also greatly reduce the need for extensive product catalogs, reducing printing costs by millions more. Over 500 Contractors are currently using the MeView AR App to visualize these HVAC systems for buyers. The 3- D maintenance is currently available on one unit, with the intention of rolling out the solution to more and more. If you’d like to see the MeViewAR app in action, please visit the Metaio booth at booth 73. In the meantime, please watch the 2 videos we’ve provided below. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz4ykMn3UR4) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__XFLscwbgM) Thank you for your time! Where to find it: Metaio booth @ AWE 2013, booth 73 Platforms: Mobile Additional Screenshots:...

Anomaly UAR

Anomaly UAR

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best Mobile AR App Creator: David Pentz Organization: Anomaly Productions =*=*=*= Description: Anomaly Ultimate Augmented Reality (UAR) is the largest AR app ever created with over 50 unique individual AR items. Anomaly UAR allow readers of the Anomaly graphic novel to experience the rich back story of characters and places that just wasn’t possible to fit in the printed book. Pointing the camera at any of the listed pages, the user can see an animated 3D version of a character, item or place. And then tapping on the arrow button the reader has to the option to read hundreds of additional pages of text with additional art. With updates to the UAR app every few months, this is the first graphic novel that grows after publication! Notable AR items: – 27 fully animated characters and creatures that respond to touch – Voice activated character response. Yell at the Nolac monster, and he yells back! – A full mini game is included. Drive the hovercraft through the pylons to see if you can pass the simulation. – Three amazing panoramas. Drag your finger to look all around. – Behind the scenes look at pages. With voice narration and art, Brian Haberlin talks you through the step by step creation of various pages. Where to find it: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/anomaly-ultimate-augmented/id554828531?mt=8 Platforms: Mobile Additional Screenshots:...

TryPaint AR App

TryPaint AR App

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best Mobile AR App Creator: Swamy Irrinki Organization: RightSlope, Inc =*=*=*= Description: Concept Description: TryPaint AR App allows users to visualize and virtually try-out different paint colors before getting a wall/room painted. An innovative scaling feature built into the App allows users to expand the virtual color in horizontal direction or vertical direction, or both horizontal & vertical direction giving users the ability to see how the color looks along the actual wall dimension and for different form factor walls in a building. Our strategy was to develop a user friendly mobile AR app for home owners, paint contractors, interior designers, architects and for paint retailer sales teams to virtually visualize the color without actually doing sample paint. Qualcomm Vuforia technology is used to develop this App. Background rationale for App Development Many AR Apps focus on the “wow factor”, which fades away after few days. This is one of the main reason why many Augmented Reality Apps have not seen success in the market place. We are focused on developing mobile AR Apps which provide more efficient solutions than current methods and significantly improving the ROI. TryPaint AR app provides practical solutions using Mobile Augmented Reality Technology. Today, paint selection is a very tedious process, and it is very difficult to visualize the paint color unless you actually paint some portion of the wall, yet it is still tough to visualize the whole wall. In addition, this process is expensive, time consuming and very cumbersome. There are online tools and apps available where one can see the colors of pre- defined standard room designs, but this is not same as actually seeing in one’s own room/wall in their own house or office. Value Proposition & Differentiation 1 Innovative, as we combined Augmented Reality capability with scaling feature, allowing users to expand the virtual color in horizontal direction or vertical direction or both horizontal & vertical direction; giving user the ability to see how the color looks along the actual wall dimension and on different form factor walls in a building. 2 Imaginative, as we are applying very complex technology, such as: augmented reality to solve a very practical problem that all consumers all over the world can use right from their smart phones or tablets. 3 Unique, as our App provides the visualization of texture walls which look lot more lively and real than current alternate methods. App Use Cases: 1 Consumers: Consumer can visualize the paint color of the wall they are about to paint before actually painting. No messy sample paints or re-do’s of the paint. This saves time and money. 2 Paint Contractors: Goal of the contractor is to complete the color selection that the client prefers as quickly as possible, rather than spending lot of hours in the selection process. This App allows contractors to work with clients to select the paint colors that clients actually like, leading to satisfied customer and more referral business for the contractor. 3 Interior Designers/Architects: Goal of the Interior Designer/Contractor is to complete the color selection that the client prefers as a part of overall interior design. This App allows, designer/architect to work with client to select the paint colors client actually likes leading to satisfied customer and more referral business for Interior Designer/Architect. 4 Paint Manufacturers: We plan to develop the custom Apps for each paint manufacturer with their own branded color options. A branded “TryPaint AR” App from a paint manufacturer will enable building of brand loyalty and satisfied customer. With this APP, paint retailers can lower the investments in demo centers. This App will also improve the productivity of sales reps when helping customers on paint/texture selection. App ROI: Some of the branded paint retailers sell 8 oz. containers of sample color for $6.95 + S/H. Some brands offer 3800 sample colors as try-out samples. TryPaint AR app currently has 90 colors(will add more in future versions) for virtual try-out If some users try-out 10 colors and some want to try out all 90 colors via traditional method of sample paint purchase it will cost $80 (10* 6.95+ $10.50 for S/H) or $650 (90 * $6.95 + $24.50 for S/H). ROI for 10 sample case is 80%; ROI for 90 sample case is 650%. In addition to cost savings, this App provides significant savings in time for not doing sample paint work. Company Description: Right Slope is a start up in San Jose, CA, USA with a development center in Hyderabad, India focused on developing Mobile Augmented Reality Apps for iPhone/iPad/Android and related Digital Marketing Solutions. Where to find it: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rightslope.trypaintar Platforms: Mobile Additional Screenshots:...

Wearable LED Display

Wearable LED Display

Nomination for Auggie Award: Best AR Hardware Creator: Anders Nelson Organization: Erogear =*=*=*= Description: We have been working to solve a problem endemic to all wearable electronics – how to create something that is easy to integrate with wearable items and live with yet gives us the special functionality we want. In our case, we wanted to change our outward presentation in the real world at will. People all over the world have been visually augmenting themselves through smart clothing and accessories that act as extensions of their emotion, activity and style as they move through life. While wonderful in their effectiveness, these implementations have fallen short of being widely available, affordable and durable. Erogear’s mission is to bridge the gap that separates this medium for expression and the millions of people who can put it to good (and even life-saving) use. Erogear’s new RG5 platform consists of both a hardware and software element. The hardware is an extremely thin and flexible LED display encased in fabric, capable of receiving real-time, full greyscale graphic streams wirelessly. The software is a code library that provides video processing, networked device management and a simple but flexible API. Any imagery an application can create can be sent to the RG5 panels instantly and jitter-free. The system was designed from the ground up to be as low-cost as possible, and we can confidently offer it at a cost comparable to mid-range fashion/athletic accessories. This fact allows for new paradigms in fashion, event participation, human connection, athletics, cycling safety and myriad other applications to be experimented with now, not ten years from now. We hope you’ll consider us for the Auggie Award and are extremely excited to be part of this group! Where to find it: Our Android API and demo software can be obtained by contacting us. Platforms: Mobile, Internet of Things, Location Technologies Additional Screenshots:...

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