Related link: http://tinmith.net/
Augmented Reality (AR) has been an emerging technology for a while now. As far as civilians are concerned, there certainly aren't many practical implementations of AR to speak of. I know this must be the case, because every time I mention it to a friend or colleague, they graciously smile and nod.
AR represents a form of computer graphics that is displayed (various ways, usually using some form of headset) on top of the real world in front of a user. This could range from a user seeing the names of restaurants floating in front of him while walking past them down the street. Or it could be seeing the location of an airstrip while looking down from an airplane in the dark. Just think of any type of computer-accessible information that could be geographically linked and imagine being able to "see" it right in front of you.
I want to see AR applied to my area of interest - mapping. While certainly AR has some strong ties to locational information in general, it could serve a very specific purpose in various industries using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and mapping. Many of the key data requirements for AR are readily available in GIS data managed by government and industry, specifically that of Digital Elevation Models (DEM).
We produce a lot of maps for field crews working in the forest. It would be great if they could have those maps digitally available through AR - projected in front of them. They could find the road turn-off to their work area easier, as it gets drawn as a thick line in their display. They could see the boundaries around their areas without having to hunt for small plastic ribbons tied on trees every few meters. Or, better yet, they could fly over areas in a helicopter and look down seeing their areas outlined in red on the ground. Then take it one step further and allow the user to virtually "draw" on the landscape below, having it stored in their database for reference back in the office. All this capability is shown well in real working examples at the http://tinmith.net link above.
This may sound so unnecessary and a "nice-to-have". But consider what happens with those hardcopy maps when they are out in the field. A continual process of matching mapped features to the real world occurs, over and over again, as the user goes through the day. The same thing that AR does but much more efficiently and way cooler!
I believe it's time to liberate that data from 2D conventional maps and start getting up front and personal with it in the real world. We need to start getting comfortable to wear wearable computer hardware including motion tracking devices and unintrusive head mounted displays. A lot of current prototypes are large and wouldn't hold up in my outdoor environments. But, I think the software is ready to be applied.
Wayne Piekarski's Tinmith project at the University of South Australia's Wearable Computer Lab has given me the hope for several years (now), that a usable and affordable solution is no longer just science fiction. Holodeck move over.
Download Wayne's demo videos , then check out what it's like to play Quake using AR!
Like AR, hate AR, sick of 2d maps? Let's hear it! If you want to see this type of thing "happen", let me know.
Categories
Design
Comments (8)
Read More Entries by Tyler Mitchell.
This visual ideas are almost developed. Be prepared... RIX
intro: http://www.interlabs.tv/proyectos/rix.php
AR and mapping
AR-based work is progressing at the Ordnance Survey(Britain's national mapping agency) exactly along the lines you mentioned. The Research & Innovation department (my area) has been working toward the creation of a virtual 1:1 map of the country intended for viewing using AR techniques. This will benefit not only our own small army of surveyors but as you may expect, carry applications in many other areas(tourism, wayfinding etc..). However, no one(especially our surveyors) wants to look like a Borg or be burdened with too much technology so we've gone with the "Magic Window" approach, using either a tablet computer or PDA as a display device. A prototype is in the making as I write this and we hope to have something to show before long.
Interesting
Actually, for AR, VR, and other techniques -- we've had the technology for quite some time. What we need are practical applications that can be in widespread use -- for either end-user visualization, or data-collection.
How it works
http://www.howstuffworks.com/augmented-reality.htm
How it works
This site has a good overview of AR, with photos too.
http://www.howstuffworks.com/augmented-reality.htm
Data Collection & Planning
Unfortunately the "look" of the gear in most cases is enough to garner snickers from people I talk to who say "I'm not going to wear that! Get real.". But we all know that technology gets smaller and smaller, so I'm hopeful :)
The pre-visualization of a plan is critical, especially if (like in my example) you are going to remove some trees as a result. We do it now, but using the "analog" method.
Tyler
Data Collection & Planning
It might look weird walking around town with that technology as your suit, but I think the possibilities for a three dimensional link to the field are inevitable. I can imagine that data collection alone would be enhanced.
Also, from a planning perspective you can image the possibilities of visualizing the possibilities first hand in the actual environment.
Site down?
Appears tinmith.net may be down at present?