The hologram takes shape as a new interface
An article in Venture Beat, “Move over, voice: holograms are the next user interface”, explores a topic I have become increasingly interested in as it is more widely used: augmented reality, not just for handling of objects and training, such as the application developed by BMW I studied in class many years ago, or in HoloLens surgery, but for additional monitors or images, such as Citigroup’s HoloLens design for its traders.
Such applications are a particularly active part of the Netexplo innovation monitor I contribute to each year, drawing on the multinational character of my students: projects from all over the world using augmented reality for everything from education to communication or decoration, from the expansion of traditional interfaces with on all kinds of platforms, with or without dedicated devices, some based on smartphones and others not. A lot of money is being invested in applications that we will start to see in more and more places and that will play a key role in a transition to everyday use from what we would have considered science fiction not long ago. Immersive virtual reality, with its origins in the world of video games, may once have attracted more attention, but the signs are that augmented reality will be more widely used soon.
How might it be applied to your sector? As an academic required to assess the participation of my students, trying to remember each of them as I give them their marks would be a lot easier using a virtual representation of my classroom with my students each sitting in their assigned places. Generally, I manage to identify most of my students by name, but when it comes to evaluating their participation, I usually use a sheet of paper with a passport photograph that may not be that recent. An up-to-date photograph of my classroom where I can see students in their respective seats, would drastically improve the process, boosting my confidence in my evaluation system. Usually, when assigning marks, I set up a monitor next to my laptop with the list of students, and in another I visualize their exercises (I don’t usually use and additional monitor, although I find it very useful); could this image of my class be used to help visualize an individual student in context? It’s not so far-fetched, and would be relatively easy to set up.
While virtual reality seems to be focusing mainly on entertainment, augmented reality offers a range of more practical, everyday uses, creating an increasingly powerful ecosystem. We may well be seeing the consolidation of an interface set to become an integral part of our daily life.
(En español, aquí)
