AR Weekly Digest #61

This week there was a funny tendency – two the most discussed topics related to augmented reality were dinosaurs and AR glasses. Let’s have a look at them:

1. Meta Pro Augmented Reality Glasses Open for Pre-Order

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Google Glass may not offer the augmented reality experience the company initially promised, but other companies, for example Meta, seam to stick to their words. After experimenting with see-through optics and sensor arrays and making prototypes for the past few years Israeli startup Meta is starting production on its first generation of units for developers and taking pre-orders for a consumer-facing version of its product. A developer edition priced at $667 will begin shipping today, while a consumer-ready Meta Pro model is now available for pre-order for $3000.

MetaPro uses dual immersive transparent displays made up of premium quality Carl Zeiss lenses with a 40º field of view and 3D HD display. Both lenses have a resolution of 1280×720 pixels. It has a 9-axis motion tracking which includes compass, an accelerometer and a gyroscope. It also features digitally precise 3D surround sound, a miniature HD camera,  real-time depth camera, and time-of-flight 3D sensor.

The MetaPro pocket computer will include an Intel i5 CPU, 4GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.0, and 32WHr battery, which should yield at least 4 hours of battery life. The glasses weigh in at 180 grams and support prescription lenses, which are attached via a magnet. The MetaPro will include a virtual phone, laptop, and tablet.

“It’s a very grand project. We’re purporting to become the replacement for phones and computers in the not-too-long run,” CEO Meron Gribetz says. “We replace the keyboard and mouse… We want people to wear this as much as they use phones and tablets.”

URL: http://techcrunch.com/2013/12/17/meta-pro/#!

2. Atheer Labs launches Indiegogo Сampaign for 3D Augmented Reality Glasses

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On Thursday, Atheer Labs started a $100,000 Indiegogo campaign to promote its new 3D, augmented-reality glasses platform and it has already raised over $70,000. Silicon Valley’s Atheer Labs has added the third dimension and hand-based gesture controls that shows you the real world with a virtual layer.

The developer hardware consists of glasses, weighing 75 grams, and a pocket-sized computer to power the apps. The glasses have twin high-definition, 1024×768-pixel displays, and a 36-degree field of view (equivalent to a 15-inch tablet at half arm’s length). The Atheer SDK will cost $850 and be available in the first quarter of 2014. It will come with access to the developer portal including design guidelines, documentation, samples, support and bug tracking and reporting.

The Atheer One glasses will have a 65-degree field of vision display (similar to a 26-inch tablet at half arm’s length) and be priced at $350 for those who preorder it via Indiegogo.

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“There are a lot of considerations to make with a wearable system, for example people cannot wear glasses that are more than 100 grams for longer than 20 minutes. We were able to get all of the functionality and immersive experience in 75 grams, and we’re now putting it in the hands of the developers,” said Itani, the CEO of Atheer Labs. “We will support them as they create the next generation of immersive and engaging applications.”

The team hopes to distribute its SDK to developers early in an effort to allow them time to create software for the device. It is told that Atheer devices will run Android.

URL: http://www.engadget.com/2013/12/19/atheer-labs-smart-glasses/

3. Google Glass App for iOS Finally Available to Users

Google has just released that companion app to Apple’s App Store making it possible for iOS users to set up the device, manage contacts and Glassware apps, view texts, as well as remotely navigate with turn-by-turn directions right from their smartphones.

In Android app for Google Glass you can pair up your phone with the Glass, so that your phone can provide Internet connection to the headset. However, in iOS, the app acts a device manager. MyGlass will run on any iOS device running iOS 7 or later, although Google says it’s optimized for the iPhone 5.

Special attention should be aid to the screencast feature. It mirrors the Glass display onto the phone. With this feature, you don’t need to pair your phone and Glass. But you will be able to screencast only when these devices share the same Wi-Fi network. When this feature works properly, you can successfully make a call, send a message, install new software as well as browse the apps which are already installed with MyGlass.

URL: http://mashable.com/2013/12/19/myglass-ios/

4. Paradise Wildlife Park Delivered Dinosaur Trail

photo 2bParadise Wildlife Park at Broxbourne, Hertfordshire has launched an exciting new attraction, the 3D Woodland Dinosaur Trail. The attraction is going to coincide with the release of Walking With Dinosaurs, the 3D Movie.

Using a smartphone or a tablet to download the ‘Augment’ App visitors of the park can see the dinosaurs come to life. The dinosaurs are all life-sized so they have a great impact on those who see it! There are 9 of them in total and Marketing Manager of the Paradise Wildlife Park Alex Smale tells that soon animation will be added to them to make experince even more thrilling.

Paradise Wildlife Park is a big zoo and impressive family attraction with over 400 animals and lots of special events and fun activities including. Dinosaur Trail is not the first application of augmented reality by the park. Augment platform was used for a few different trails and now such as a pumpkin hunt at Halloween and a reindeer hunt for Christmas.

URL:  http://www.alexsmale.co.uk/2013/12/the-3d-dinosaur-trail.html

5. Walking with Dinosaurs at Westfield

hghTwentieth Century Fox is promoting the launch of its latest film Walking With Dinosaurs with an augmented reality experience at Westfield Stratford, shopping centre in east London. Visitors are able to enjoy installation of Patchi and other dinosaurs walking around them brought to life using augmented reality technology.

The project has been delivered by PS Live and more than one million visitors are expected at Westfield’s augmented reality site during the week.

Campaigns like this are not brand new, but still engaging. Readers of the digest may remember “Frozen Planet” campaign sponsored by BBC and AR installation in Paris this autumn.

URL: http://www.eventmagazine.co.uk/Destinations/article/1225151/in-pictures-walking-dinosaurs-augmented-reality-experience-hits-westfield-stratford

AR applications:

  1. RosAtom
  2. MPI Offshore
  3. Stadion Lublin
  4. Realtree
  5. Emotional Box
  6. Brunner
  7. SeaOrbiter
  8. loc8ar
  9. Marsa 3
  10. NESCAFÉ Sa7Sa7
  11. Himmapan
  12. Drive’n’Destroy
  13. Delusion AR
  14. Photo Emotions
  15. LanikAR
  16. Point at me
  17. Kazooloo Z
  18. Santa Visited Me
  19. D’Greetings

Prepared by:

Augmented Pixels
3D Augmented Reality Solutions

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