As enterprise mobility has advanced in manufacturing the last decade, we have seen an increase in use of augmented reality technology.
Catavolt has partnered with The Augmented Reality for Enterprise Alliance (AREA), the only global non-profit, member-based organization dedicated to widespread adoption of interoperable AR-enabled enterprise systems, to write a three part series on the barriers of AR adoption.
Last week, Catavolt featured Greg Babb, editor of AREA on his thoughts on communication barriers faced when implementing augmented reality technology. Today, we feature the technology barriers that organizations face when implementing AR technology:
How does the security and lack of integration on mobile devices create an obstacle for implementing AR technology?
Today augmented reality is implemented mostly on mobile devices so you can’t separate AR from the capabilities and limitations of those devices. Examples of such issues are their processing and rendering power, display, weight, and a host of other influencing factors like possible lack of security and integration with IT systems. The latter two are important because they determine the extent to which the devices get used in the workplace.
At the Augmented Reality for Enterprise Alliance (AREA), our members use dedicated workplace devices for their augmented reality projects, so BYOD and its issues are avoided. Nevertheless many companies haven’t yet fully embraced mobility in the workplace, so comprehensive device security and privacy policies haven’t been defined at even the most basic levels. For example, many factories don’t authorize workers to carry camera-enabled devices around on the plant floor, and any move to accept cameras would also require buy-in from workers’ unions. Such concerns make full integration of mobile devices in organizations a long and slow process.
AR seems to work best hands free. What do you think devices need in order to make AR technology more effective?
I think an ideal AR experience is ideally positioned directly in the user’s field of view. This allows a user to work hands free while the system overlays contextually relevant data and guidance on the worker’s view of the physical world. This latter aspect reduces the need for attention switching—when a user has to stop a task to consult information elsewhere, perhaps to find a work instruction in another area of the plant—thus interrupting workers less and helping them be more productive.
Smart glasses are the devices I have in mind here. Currently a lot of AR pilot implementations use tablet computers like iPads and Android tablets because the devices are robust and have sufficient processing capabilities for accurately rendering and displaying digital assets in real time. Many smart glasses models are available on the market but all still suffer from weight, bulkiness, and insufficient battery life. The good news is that every half year a new generation with better form factors appears.
What do you think is the most crucial obstacle of AR technology at this time in industrial environments?
Hardware and software for delivering better AR experiences are improving all the time, so I’m very optimistic about the ability of smart glasses and other AR-enhanced mobile devices to satisfy human and technical requirements for doing everyday maintenance and production tasks in the future.
That said, there’s still a lot of work to be done in introducing technologies and policies for security and privacy. Jim Novack, CEO of eyebeam Talent Swarm, introduced a seven-level model for security in his talk at the ARise ’15 conference. According to this trust-building model, AR security should minimally provide or assure:
An unalterable device ID (similar to a cell phone IMEI), in order to account for each device being used
A trusted network with confidentiality and integrity of messaging and availability
Verification of the identities of transmitters and receivers
The accuracy and source of information to ensure authenticity
Auditing of user activities in a trustworthy way to potentially determine whether someone did something with malicious intent
Privacy for users, for example, to ensure unauthorized recording doesn’t occur
A do-no-harm approach to all endeavors for fostering goodwill and trust
To learn more about how augmented reality is improving processes in the industrial manufacturing industry, click here to read Catavolt’s “5 Ways Augmented Reality is Changing Manufacturing” blog post.
To read more content about the adoption of augmented reality technology in your industry, click here to visit The Augmented Reality for Enterprise Alliance website.