AR & VR are going to disrupt the way companies do their business

At this point, it would be difficult to say there are only two realms anymore. Beyond the physical and metaphysical realm, there is silently cropping up a cyber-physical realm that is bringing in elements from the real-world and computer-generated environments for users to enter, immerse themselves in and experience things like never before.

With Facebook joining the AR (Augmented Reality) and Virtual Reality (VR) — let’s call both mixed reality — bandwagon with the unveiling of Metaverse, we are sure stepping onto something groundbreaking.

Now that the concept of machines and mixed reality interacting with one another is gaining pace, how can businesses leverage their IoT solutions with AR and VR techs?

Is this even possible? Are there any prominent use cases and applications in this space? How does the future look for IoT and mixed reality? Well, let’s find out.

Why AR And VR Are The Two Most Underrated Tech Concepts Today

Despite being relatively old concepts, our mixed reality partners have been criminally underutilized. Their use cases have been reduced to super-niche implementations like that of in the entertainment space. Otherwise, they have been used in military, healthcare and manufacturing spaces, away from the reach of common people.

Key Adoption Barriers

There are a number of barriers to mixed reality adoption. If we had to divide the numbers projected by Finances Online, it would have these barriers:

• Poor user experiences, technical glitches and bulk hardware requirements — 26%
• Lack of innovative content that could deliver a complete mixed reality experience — 14%
• Skepticism showcased by consumers and business owners — 14%
• Legalities and regulations associated with mixed reality implementations — 13%
• Costs incurred by consumers — 10%

AR and VR hardly got the attention other tech concepts like AI, machine learning, data science and even IoT fetched after their respective launches. It’s only recently that newer use cases for commercial AR and VR through retail and real estate deployments that these technologies are being brought back to life.

That’s why this is the perfect time for a business to tap into the potential of mixed reality and transform the way they conduct their businesses, run operations, deliver services and more.

How AR And VR Can Impact IoT?

IoT deployments are home to invaluable data and insights. With data coming in real time from multiple sources and devices, proper utilization of it and presentation of it could help solve diverse real-world concerns in the most immersive ways possible. When a concept like mixed reality combines with a technology like IoT, the results are phenomenal. Let’s look at how AR and VR can impact IoT.

Equipment Health Monitoring And Detection Of Glitches

Industrial implementations of IoT technology can immensely benefit from mixed reality concepts. Since large-scale machinery and equipment can break down frequently, they could lead to halts in production, deterring productivity goals for companies.

With mixed reality, however, machines can be equipped with the ability to accurately show their concerns and malfunctions through AR technology. Technicians have to simply scan the equipment and get detailed information on the problem, wear and tear, last scheduled maintenance, age of spare parts and more. They can then take accurate service decisions to get the machine up and running again.

Better Visualization To Aid Decision Making

Like we mentioned, IoT is a treasure trove of insights and information. However, a major chunk of the data could go futile if not presented properly to stakeholders and consumers.

For instance, in a home automation system, IoT has the power to classify individual power consumption stats of every household appliance and device used. With this, users can know which consumes more power, where they could conserve energy, get ideas on lifestyle changes and more.

If such crucial insights are not presented to users in an immersive way, IoT would lose its purpose. That’s where mixed reality could come in and let users find new ways to learn their habits and consumption levels through interactable elements, videos from mascots, leaderboards and more. Through real-time projection of their expenses presented through VR headsets or AR apps, users can be exposed to life-changing insights in the most captivating way.

Remote Tech Support

Mixed reality not only creates artificial environments and puts users in the middle of them but bridges the existing gap between virtual spaces and physical spaces as well. That’s exactly what remote tech support and assistance through AR and VR concepts is all about.

Whenever your IoT ecosystem spots a concern, a space for improvement, a recommendation or schedule maintenance, it can trigger an AR request with a dedicated technician. This person could be in a remote location connecting with you to guide on explaining concepts, troubleshooting devices or helping you service a piece of equipment. Through VR headsets or even AR-powered apps, real-time tech support could be delivered by SMEs from around the world.

Real-time Virtual Training Sessions

Virtual training sessions are perhaps the best benefits of mixed reality combining with IoT. Imagine trainee surgeons witnessing a neurosurgeon conducting a complicated surgery in real-time through VR headsets. Or the impact of a CEO addressing new recruits and helping them get trained through AR or VR devices. Mixed reality allows for users to actively take part in diverse sessions from wherever they are and still go through the awe and experience of being there physically.

Real-world Applications Of Mixed Reality In IoT

Airtight IoT development solutions are paving the way for more dynamic use of mixed reality in their respective ecosystems. If you’re more curious on how mixed reality can blend well with IoT and offer convenient experiences, here’s a diverse list.

• Retail spaces can get the advantage of using AR and VR concepts to attract new customers, let them try products virtually before buying, get personalized discounts, get guidance on the right product they should get for their concern and more. From an operational perspective, mixed reality can help in inventory management through Hololens, train new recruits and sales personnel to handle customers better, manage supply-chain, optimize fleet management and more.
• mHealth services and apps can undergo a digital overhaul with mixed reality implementations. Virtual sessions could be replaced by virtual reality sessions and chatbots could be replaced by real-time healthcare support and access from professionals.
• Real estate and construction companies could foster a safe working environment for their workers and professionals with hazards and safety training through AR and VR. They can also optimize incident response time with AI-powered IoT. On the other hand, real estate companies could promote and present properties to potential buyers through virtual reality and let them save time by scheduling property visits to only the houses or apartments they genuinely like.

What Does The Future Hold?

Despite seeming interesting and immersive, there are umpteen number of challenges and hurdles to be fixed in the mixed reality and IoT space before they could go for large-scale implementations.

Mixed reality requires high bandwidth and stable internet connectivity for uninterrupted experiences. Devices and wearables are also a little too pricey in the market for consumers to get hands on with them without second thoughts. Besides, computational abilities of systems, airtight AR and VR app development expenses and more exist in this space.

With innovations happening, we could get to experience IoT and mixed reality together a lot sooner though. Meanwhile, all we have to do is come up with newer use cases of these two technologies so when they are commercially and economically viable, we could make the best use of them.