Chapter Five
Augmented Reality (AR)
Outline
I. Introduction to AR
II. The difference between AR, VR, and MR
III. The architecture of AR systems
IV. The application areas of AR
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I. Introduction to AR
 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.
 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.
 AR 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.
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II. The difference between AR, VR, and MR
Paul Milgram's Reality-Virtuality (RV) Continuum
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A. Virtual Reality (VR)
VR is fully immersive, which tricks your senses into thinking you’re in a
different environment or world apart from the real world.
 Using a head-mounted display (HMD) or headset, you’ll experience a
computer-generated world of imagery and sounds in which you can manipulate
objects and move around using haptic controllers while tethered to a console or
PC.
It is also called a computer-simulated reality.
 It refers to computer technologies using reality headsets to generate realistic
sounds, images and other sensations that replicate a real environment or create an
imaginary world.
Advanced VR environment will engage all five senses (taste, sight, smell,
touch, sound), but it is important to say that this is not always possible.
Using VR devices such as HTC Vive, Oculus Rift or Google Cardboard, users
can be transported into a number of real-world and imagined environments.
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B. Augmented Reality (AR)
AR, users see and interact with the real world while digital content is
added to it.
 If you own a modern smartphone, you can easily download an AR app
and try this technology.
There’s a different way to experience augmented reality.
 AR headsets, such as Google Glass, where digital content is displayed
on a tiny screen in front of a user’s eye.
AR adds digital elements to a live view often by using the camera on a
smartphone.
 Augmented Reality (AR) is a live, direct or indirect view of a physical,
real-world environment whose elements are augmented (or supplemented)
by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or
GPS data.
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C. Mixed Reality (MR)
MR sometimes referred to as hybrid reality.
It is the merging of real and virtual worlds to produce new environments and
visualizations where physical and digital objects co-exist and interact in real-time.
 It means placing new imagery within a real space in such a way that the new imagery is
able to interact, to an extent, with what is real in the physical world we know.
For example, with MR, you can play a virtual video game, grab your real-world water
bottle, and smack an imaginary character from the game with the bottle. Imagination and
reality have never been so intermingled.
The key characteristic of MR is that the synthetic content and the real-world content are
able to react to each other in real-time.
you interact with and manipulate both physical and virtual items and
environments, using next-generation sensing and imaging technologies.
 MR allows you to see and immerse yourself in the world around you even as you
interact with a virtual environment using your own hands all without ever removing
your headset.
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Augmented Reality vs Virtual Reality
Augmented Reality
 System augments the real world scene.
 User maintains a sense of presence in real world .
 Needs a mechanism to combine virtual and real worlds.
 Hard to register real and virtual .
Virtual Reality
Totally immersive environment.
 Senses are under control of system.
 Need a mechanism to feed virtual world to user .
Hard to make VR world interesting.
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• The 1st AR System were usually designed with a basis on three main
blocks
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
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III. The architecture of AR systems
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Cont..
• The Visual Unit can be classified into two types of system, depending on
the followed visualization technology:
1. Video see-through:
 It uses a Head-Mounted Display (HMD) that employs a video-mixing and displays
the merged images on a closed-view HMD.
2. Optical see-through:
It uses an HMD that employs optical combiners to merge the images within an open-
view HMD.
• HMDs are currently the dominant display technology in the AR field.
However, they lack in several aspects, such as ergonomics, high prices and
relatively low mobility due to their sizes and connectivity features.
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IV. Applications of AR Systems
Technology is ever-changing and ever-growing. One of the newest
developing technologies is augmented reality (AR), which can be
applied to many different disciplines. Main classes of applications:
1. Education
2. Medical
3. Entertainment
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Cont.…
Education
• Affordable learning materials -
• Interactive lessons
• Higher engagement
• Higher retention
• Boost intellectual curiosity.
Medical
• surgery (minimally invasive surgery)
• Ultrasounds
• diagnostics
• Diabetes management
• AR tools may also aid to detect the signs of depression and
other mental illnesses by reading from facial expressions,
voice tones, and physical gestures.
•
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Issues in Augmented Reality
Performance Issues
Real time processing of images can be a challenge and often can slow down
augmented reality systems.
 Interaction Issues
Users within a mixed environment because of augmented reality have
difficulties interacting with the environment as normal.
 Alignment Issues
People working in an augmented reality are more sensitive to alignment errors.
Proper calibration and alignment with the reference frame of the world is
crucial.
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AR Software
AR Software
BuildAR – Commercial license
ARToolkit – Open source libraries (build your own)
FLARToolKit (Flash implementation of ARToolKit)
SLARToolKit (Silverlight implementation of ARToolKit)
3D Tools
Google SketchUp (free/commercial)
Blender (Free)
Art of Illusion (free)
Autodesk 3D Studio Max, Maya (free/commercial)
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Self -check
1. What is AR and why we need AR discuss in details?
2. Compare and contrast AR, VR and MR.
3. What is Paul Milgram's Reality-Virtuality (RV) Continuum mean?
4. What is the difference between Video-see through and Optical-see
through visualization technologies?
5. List and describe five Applications of AR Systems?
6. What the main challenges of AR to implement list and Discuss?
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