Have you ever been in this situation?
You’re shopping in a grocery store—one that’s in a remote location, not your day-to-day store—and you wander the aisles, looking for the specific brand of panko breadcrumbs you like. In fact, you can’t find any breadcrumbs, of any kind.
Finally, you give up and ask an employee (if you can find one), who shows you where they are—on a shelf you’re certain you walked past at least five times.
This scenario may soon become a distant, unpleasant memory, thanks to AR technology.
Advances in spatial computing—the technology that drives true three-dimensional interaction with an AR app—are poised to take AR to the next level, providing a fully immersive experience for the user through mobile devices, smart glasses, and even smart contact lenses.
Spatial augmented reality has immense implications for many areas of life, both personal and professional. Consider your supermarket shopping experience in the not-too-distant future:
Spatial augmented reality affords major advantages to the grocer as well. For instance, prices can self-adjust on the basis of market conditions. If everyone in town is running out to buy canned goods before a storm or chicken wings for the Super Bowl, for example, the price on those products could bump higher. Back at corporate headquarters, upper management can track and manage store conditions and inventory from the store manager’s device.
The augmented shopping experience just described has parallels in many aspects of commercial life, not just in retail. Consider these possibilities:
The advantages of spatial computing don’t stop there. AR will enhance on-the-job training and services for myriad professions in every industry, from groceries to factories to hospitals, at a far lower cost. Smart glasses are already beginning to guide manufacturing plant employees as they learn how to assemble new equipment. Retailers stand to significantly reduce the time it takes to train a new employee with AR tours and product descriptions.
For grocery shoppers and field service technicians and everyone in between, spatial AR technology is poised to improve the experiences of all. For iOS devices alone, the number of AR apps available numbers in the thousands, and sales of headsets and other mini augmented vision devices are expected to more than double each year for the next few years.
AR is now hitting its stride. The time to take advantage of it—as a consumer, retailer, factory owner, or field-service technician—is now.
Connect with Help Lightning if you’d like a demonstration of Help Lightning, and to discuss how AR-enabled remote visual support can help your business optimize operations and increase revenue.