Tag: mixed reality

Extended Reality (XR) is not a technological marvel. It’s a force that is reshaping how we interact with the world. This blog will help you discover how XR catalyzes the shifts in customer behavior and market demand. But first, let’s explore what Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR) are.

Join us as we unravel the layers of XR. A fusion that transcends technology and propels us into a realm of possibilities and unique experiences.

Extended Reality (XR): A Fusion of Augmented, Virtual, and Mixed Realities

XR is a versatile umbrella term. It includes a range of immersive technologies. They are changing how we interact with the digital and physical worlds. At its core, XR integrates three primary components: Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR).

•  Augmented Reality (AR) – Enhancing Real-world Experiences: AR enriches reality. It overlays digital elements on physical surroundings. This is done through smartphones, smart glasses, or AR headsets.
• Virtual Reality (VR) – Total Immersion in Alternate Realities: VR disconnects users from the physical world. It transports them to synthetic environments using headsets like Oculus Rift or HTC Vive.
• Mixed Reality (MR) – Seamlessly Integrating Real and Digital: MR blends AR and VR, creating a real-time interaction where digital and physical coexist. Devices like Microsoft HoloLens integrate holographic images, bridging the gap between real and virtual realms.

The Evolution of XR: From Novelties to Necessities

Over the years, XR has improved a lot. It has reshaped how we see and interact with the digital world. Initially, XR technologies were perceived as cutting-edge novelties confined to niche applications and experimental projects. But, fast progress and innovation have moved XR into the mainstream. It is widely used in many industries.

One pivotal aspect of this evolution is the distinction between XR and spatial computing. Spatial computing uses spatial mapping and computing to improve interactions in physical spaces. XR covers a broader range of technologies. XR integrates AR, VR, and MR, providing a comprehensive framework for immersive and interactive experiences.

As XR technologies matured, the focus shifted from novelty to practicality. Better hardware, graphics, and advanced sensors made XR apps more realistic and useful. This evolution has facilitated the seamless integration of XR into diverse fields, ranging from healthcare, education, entertainment, and enterprise.

Read More: Augmented Reality in Healthcare

XR: Transforming Customer Behavior and Igniting Business Opportunities

Extended Reality is reshaping customer behaviors and presenting businesses with unprecedented opportunities. The immersive nature of XR technologies has far-reaching effects, as shown below:

1. Enhanced Customer Engagement

XR transforms the customer experience, fostering deeper engagement and interactivity. In retail, for example, AR empowers customers to try products virtually. This reduces uncertainties and bolsters confidence to buy right. This heightened engagement correlates with increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.

2. Personalized Product Experiences

Businesses leverage XR for personalized product interactions. Customers can visualize products in real settings or explore virtual showrooms. This customized approach enriches the shopping process. Businesses can also gain deeper insights into customer preferences.

3. Improved Decision-Making Processes

In the real estate and automotive sectors, XR facilitates decision-making through immersive experiences. Prospective homebuyers can virtually tour properties. Car buyers, meanwhile, can customize and visualize vehicles in intricate detail. This expedites decision-making and enhances the likelihood of successful transactions.

4. Training and Skill Development

XR revolutionizes professional training with VR simulations. Businesses use realistic scenarios to build employee skills. This leads to better performance and lower training costs, making them more efficient.

Medical Simulation Training: XR is used in medical training for simulations. It lets healthcare pros practice surgeries and procedures in a virtual world. This addresses challenges related to limited access to real-life scenarios, enhancing practical skills, and reducing the learning curve.

In industries like manufacturing and construction, XR is used for training. It is for training on complex machinery and equipment. According to a PwC study, using AR/VR devices lets employees train four times faster. This led to a 275% increase in their confidence. AR/VR training emerges as a powerful approach. It substantially minimizes training duration and also helps eliminate training accidents.

5. Opening New Avenues in E-commerce

XR is reshaping e-commerce with AR try-on features and VR-enhanced virtual shopping. This evolution improves online retail, leading to higher conversion and lower returns.

AR Try-Ons in Fashion: E-commerce platforms integrate AR for virtual try-on experiences in the fashion industry. Customers can try on clothing and accessories with their smartphones. This solves challenges related to being unable to try items before buying. This enhances the online shopping experience and reduces return rates.

VR-Enhanced Virtual Shopping: XR technologies, particularly VR, create immersive virtual shopping environments. Customers can explore products in 3D. This addresses challenges from the lack of physical interaction in online shopping. This provides a more engaging and interactive experience, increasing conversion rates.

AR try-on technology in clothing retail boosts Average Order Values (AOVs). It also encourages repeat purchases. According to Threekit, 71% of consumers say they will shop more with AR in their customer journey.

6. Streamlining Product Design and Configuration

XR streamlines processes. These processes are critical for product design in industries like automotive and manufacturing. XR facilitates virtual prototyping in the automotive industry. Designers can create and change 3D vehicle models. This streamlines the design process and addresses challenges related to the cost and time of physical prototyping. It leads to more efficient and cost-effective design changes.

Fingent’s Guide to XR Triumph

Elevate your enterprise to new heights with Fingent’s unparalleled expertise in Extended Reality. Our tailored XR solutions redefine training, customer engagement, and product design processes. We specialize in creating immersive simulations for efficient employee training. Fingent crafts AR/VR apps that enhance customer experiences. We also streamline product design with virtual prototyping and 3D modeling. Seamless integration into existing systems ensures minimal disruption. While continuous support and optimization keep your enterprise at the forefront of innovation. Transform possibilities into reality with Fingent as your strategic XR partner.

Ready to embark on a journey of enhanced success?

Contact Fingent today.

Witness the transformative power of XR reshaping your enterprise’s training programs, customer interactions, and product design processes. Let’s redefine success together!

“The advance of technology is based on making it fit in so that you don’t really even notice it, so it’s part of everyday life.” 
– Bill Gates, Co-founder of Microsoft.
When we look around us today it has become exceedingly obvious that the world is moving at a much faster pace than we remember. If not all, most of the credit goes to the vast number of technological developments that take place almost every day. In this rapidly changing world, we can either choose to evolve with it or stay back and live with the feeling that we are completely out of place and out of our depth.
This blog will help you understand all the “realities” of today’s tech world and help you fit right in and create a future workplace, to move ahead of your competition.

Reality In Its Many Forms

Some of the fastest developing and most exciting branches of technology out there are Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Although some companies have already integrated this technology into their business practices to create innovative and sustainable workplaces, it is imperative for every business to invest in AR and VR. If they want to succeed in this overly competitive world that is.
Recent studies conducted by PwC show that VR-trained employees were up to four times more focused than their e-learning peers and four times faster to train. When trainees are taught with a VR experience, they learn more from the training and have superior outcomes. Creating a workplace that is equipped with this kind of technology will most definitely increase the work productivity of the employees.
VR and AR have evolved over the past years and have become more convenient both technologically and financially for business and learning. They affect companies in every industry and various organizations, from universities to social enterprises. They have become the new terminal between humanity and machines, uniting the digital and physical worlds.
Read more: Top AR and VR Trends to Transform Ecommerce in 2022!

Now that we’ve established the necessity of VR and AR for businesses and industries, let’s move on to understanding what exactly these technologies are and what they do.

Virtual Reality 

It is an artificial environment created by software and requires a special headset that plunges you into the new reality. It immerses the user within its virtual environment and in most cases, the user can manipulate objects or perform a series of actions.

Augmented Reality  

AR, conversely, does not give an absolute immersion. It adds digital elements to a live view usually done by using the camera on a Smartphone or tablet.

Mixed Reality 

Mixed Reality blends elements of AR and VR to co-exist creating a combination of virtual and actual realities, allowing you to interact with both simultaneously.

Extended Reality 

XR is an umbrella term used when all these computer-generated technologies are used together.
Read more: Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Mixed Reality Detailed with Real-life Examples

How do these technologies influence the future of a workplace?

Listed below are a few ways that AR/VR/MR/XR is influencing the future workplace.

Virtual Reality –

• Increased Connection and Collaboration – As opposed to video consultation, VR users feel like they inhabit the same space, resulting in more effective collaboration.
• New HR Practices – With access to employees across the world, hiring practices will widen to recruit top talent.
• Upgraded Training Techniques – VR training is especially favorable in perilous situations, as it offers a safe, engaging, and educational experience.
• Efficient Product Development – VR finds its use in product testing in a variety of scenarios, abolishing the need for costly physical paradigms.

Augmented Reality –

• Will Save Money – AR headsets and apps can replace costly seminars or classes.
• Improve Productivity – Increased engagement through collaborations with other companies using AR will change the way employees work.
• Cognitive Barriers – With the help of AR your workforce can train much faster. This will in turn lead to a more structured, competent, and productive team.

Mixed Reality –

• Better business operations – MR can help companies work efficiently by allowing engineers to try new ideas without wasting resources and reducing complex processes.
• Enhanced training – It can offer experiential training sessions which allow team members to experience a situation for themselves, in a simulated environment.
• Improved creativity – It improves project development by allowing teams to make important decisions and alter features without wastage or excessive resources.

Extended Reality – 

• Investment Banking – By using XR for broadcast, a firm could reach and interact with many investors over multiple locations in a robust and dynamic way while reducing costs, logistical challenges, and the need for travel.
• Trading Floor – XR replicates all the benefits of a modern trading floor along with advanced capabilities, plus the ability to access the trading environment from anywhere in the world
• Training and Compliance – Scenario models powered by XR, could be used to provide real-time training and ensure employees are well-equipped for real-world situations.

Read more:5 Real-world Applications of Extended Reality

Identifying Which Ecosystem Best Suits VR/AR/MR/XR

To determine which of these technologies better suit your ecosystem, evaluate the challenges your workplace is experiencing.
VR and AR thrive in fields of research and development, design, review, education, and training. MR’s combination of the physical world and the digital world is making notable changes in various industries, including medical, education and research, manufacturing, design, and construction. XR being the comprehensive umbrella that it is plays a more prominent role in various sectors and organizations, yielding clear benefits in numerous facets of work and business, including training, collaborative working, and marketing.
Irrespective of the technology you decide to go with, remember that every time new technology is implemented there’s a clear culture shift at the workplace, so be prepared for change.

Read more: How Is Extended Reality (XR) Impacting Customer Behavior

How To Affordably Deploy AR/VR/MR/XR With Fingent

Fingent has developed strategic software solutions for businesses across the world. By initiating your projects with Fingent you are backed up by a dedicated and skilled team who work round the clock. All our processes are customer-oriented and designed to reduce the cost of business developments.
Fingent merges Augmented Reality using 3D modeling, 360-degree imaging, real-time character identification, and orientation-based tracking with our reality to form immersive and personalized solutions. We help you utilize ARCore; Google’s AR platform, to fabricate a potent user experience through Android devices and ARKit for IOS devices.
With 3D models and simple user-friendly interactions, Fingent creates a customized Virtual Reality strategy that closely binds with your business structure and objectives. We help you analyze and grasp the growing abilities of Mixed Reality to reach your customer base in the most ingenious ways and since Extended Reality is becoming the new mode of communication between business and client, Fingent has systems in place to increase awareness, engagement, and conversation and help support large-scale communication.
If you’re looking for easy and affordable ways to make your workplace future-ready, this is your shot Fingent has got you covered. Give us a call.

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• Introduction
• A Brief History Of Metaverse
• A Simple Definition Of Metaverse
• Metaverse And The Future Of Work
• Metaverse Applications In Our Work World
• Potential Concerns Around Metaverse
• Metaverse: What Lies Ahead?

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Extended Reality (XR), is an umbrella term that encompasses immersive technologies – AR, VR, and MR that merge the physical and virtual worlds. While XR technologies are still widely used for gaming, social media and entertainment, it is being implemented extensively in industries and supplementing humans in unimaginable ways. Experts believe that the XR market will grow from 33.0 billion dollars in 2021 to 125.2 billion dollars by 2026, at a CAGR of 30.6%. This blog will take you through the top 6 reasons why your business needs to implement the rising capabilities of Extended Reality!

What is Extended Reality?

When put simply, XR is reality tech that covers VR, AR, and MR to extend reality by merging the real and virtual worlds. Here’s a quick look at what VR, AR, and MR are!

• Augmented Reality(AR): AR connects the physical environment with the virtual world through tablets, smartphones, smart lenses, and AR glasses to augment real-life scenarios.
• Virtual Reality (VR): This technology merges the physical environment with the digital one to create a whole new virtual world. Virtual Reality headsets and head-mounted displays help provide immersive experiences of the digital world.
• Mixed Reality(MR): With the help of MR headsets, mixed reality brings together the virtual and the physical environments to deliver unique experiences.

The term Extended Reality first popped up in the 1960s, when Charles Wyckoff filed a patent for his silver-halide XR film. The film was intended for photographing bright light events such as nuclear explosions. More recently, XR has moved into the mainstream with a few enterprises leveraging it to launch applications aimed at extending the customer experience.

Read more: Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and Mixed Reality Detailed with Real-life Examples

Industries Transformed by Extended Reality

AR, VR, and MR are developing at a rapid rate and transforming the way businesses are operating, communicating, and collaborating. Here are some of the business industries that have undergone a drastic change with these technologies.

• Marketing and advertising
• Healthcare
• Education and training
• Manufacturing and engineering
• Real estate
• Retail
• Gaming
• Art

XR offers endless possibilities and so any field can benefit by leveraging XR into their business processes.

Reasons Why You Need to Leverage XR Technologies for Your Business

1. Cultivates brand awareness

With changing customer demands and fierce competition, it is getting difficult to attract potential customers. Simply launching new products and services is not enough if you want to grow your business.

XR technology helps deliver a unique experience for users, foster consumer loyalty, and build brand awareness. For example, Gucci offers AR-fueled apparel and accessories try-on app that encourages users to try their accessories before buying thereby providing a stand-alone experience for users.

XR technology not only helps capture the attention of your customers but also promotes a positive experience with the brand.

2. Better customer experience

Customer experience is important for the success of any marketing strategy. XR’s ability to deliver immersive experiences will help you connect with your customers better and establish deeper emotional connections. XR helps transport your customers to different places and even attend live events without leaving the comfort of their homes.

L’Oreal leveraged AR technology to help their customers ‘try’ skincare products before buying and saw its conversion rate triple.

Read more: How Is Extended Reality (XR) Impacting Customer Behavior

3. Increases customer engagement

As per a report by Deloitte, 90% of the companies are implementing AR and VR technology in their business. Another report reveals that 40% of customers are willing to pay more if they can experience it through Augmented Reality technology. Yet another report reveals that 58% of customers are more likely to buy a product if they have tried it out.

These statistics suggest that extended reality technology must be implemented in your business if you want to grow. XR allows customers to get detailed information and visualization about the products and services. It enables them to try out various products in various combinations and even test patterns and colors before purchasing them.

With XR technology, brands can increase engagement rate significantly and attract more customers and also provide them with a positive experience.

Read more: Augmented Reality Vs Virtual Reality – The Future Technology

4. Offers convenience

There’s no denying that online shopping is convenient and now with the pandemic forcing people to stay indoors most of the time, it is only becoming more popular. XR helps brands improve the shopping experience and also makes it less time-consuming. It helps consumers find what they are looking for faster and eliminate uncertainty from purchase decisions.

IKEA, for example, allows consumers to use their Place app and place a piece of furniture in their home using their phone. This improves the level of convenience, delivers a better customer experience, and eliminates any uncertainty before purchase.

5. Smarter Libraries

Data is the key to thrive today’s digital era. XR technologies place data in the context such that users can get better results.

For instance, you can use smart glasses to get a visual walkthrough to understand the true impact of the data collected instead of poring through spreadsheets and dashboard metrics for hours. XR technologies can help you make better and informed business decisions.

6. Create positive associations

Extended Reality provides brands with endless opportunities to create and implement emotional campaigns for their products. Based on the visual cues you include in your brand campaigns, you could encourage consumers to conclude your brand’s qualities.

XR helps connect with your audience in a way that activates their emotions and thus helps build a positive brand association. This will ensure consumers prefer your brand over others and establish loyalty. North Face, for example, launched an immersive VR experience of the Nepal landscape to its customers to identify with the brand’s identity.

Read more: Accelerating AR/VR Adoption Among Customers

Takeaway

Today, customers expect an intuitive experience from their brands and XR is becoming the new form of a conversation between brands and customers. Using immersive technologies, enterprises can nurture a culture of digital transformation and increase efficiency and profitability in the digital space.

Driven by immersive technologies, we at Fingent top software development company, can help your brand increase awareness, engagement, and conversion. We have systems in place to help support large-scale communication. If you have a project in mind, we can help convert it to reality. Call us today!

How Various Industries are Leveraging AR, VR, and MR Today?

Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality(VR), and Mixed Reality (MR) may sound the same to many of us. But do you know that each one is different? AR, VR, and MR are different tech concepts with characteristics that differentiate each from one another.

Here’s what you need to know about each of the technologies, along with a few examples.

Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality uses computer vision along with mapping and depth tracking to show the appropriate content to the user. This functionality allows the cameras to collect, send and process the data to show the appropriate content to the user.

AR is designed for unrestricted movement while projecting images or other objects that you are looking at and enhances the user’s physical environment with contextually relevant digital content in real-time. A user can experience Augmented Reality with a smartphone or special hardware.

Watch Video: Augmented Reality in Education Transforms Learning Experience

Some of the interesting real-world examples of AR

1. AR in Gaming

Games like “Pokemon Go” project a Pokemon on your screen, on top of whatever your mobile camera focuses on. Augmented Reality has beautifully combined the real world with the favorite Pokemon characters.

2. AR in Medical Training

Augmented Reality is finding its virtue in medical training today. For example, students at the Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University are learning human anatomy using AR headsets or glasses. AR allows them to examine the human body without the need for dissecting cadavers or watching live operations.

Read more: How Augmented Reality in Healthcare is set to Transform the Industry in Future

3. AR in Retail

The retail sector also has been taking advantage of AR to help customers have a more enjoyable and interactive shopping experience. For example, Harley Davidson has developed a unique mobile app for its customers that allows them to view a motorcycle in-store using AR and customize it by adding accessories, changing paint jobs, etc.

IKEA, the leading retail conglomerate, has rolled out AR-powered retail apps that allow customers to “try on” clothing remotely before buying them online.

Read more: How Top Brands Embrace Augmented Reality to Offer Immersive Customer Experiences

4. AR in Manufacturing

Augmented Reality enables the manufacturing industry to gain a competitive edge by helping companies improve quality and productivity. Workers can get assistance from AR gadgets to save time, reduce errors and increase efficiency. Some of the world’s biggest brands like Boeing and General Electric are already using AR in their manufacturing processes.

Using AR glasses allows Boeing’s technicians to easily view the wiring renderings in the aircraft fuselage without external distractions.

Augmented Reality enables GE mechanics to be more productive as the technology offers them step-by-step instructions and visuals directly within their line of sight. They also get alerts in real-time through AR smart glasses so that they can inspect every step before moving on.

Read more: How Augmented Reality Simplifies Equipment Maintenance

Virtual Reality 

Virtual Reality Environments (VREs) allow users to experience real-life scenarios via simulated counterparts and gain practical knowledge that would otherwise be difficult to comprehend in a real environment.

As the main focus of Virtual Reality is on simulating the vision, you will have to wear a VR headset such as Oculus Quest or HTC Vive Cosmos in front of your eyes that eliminates any interaction with the natural world (avoids distractions). Typically, two autofocus lenses are placed between the screen and the user’s eyes. The lenses adjust based on the individual eye movement and positioning. To render the visuals on the screen, you can use an HDMI cable connected to the PC or mobile phone.

Virtual Reality uses speakers, goggles, and even handheld wearables to simulate a real-world experience. You can also employ visual, audio, and touch simulation to create a more immersive reality.

A few real-life applications of VR

1. VR in Education

Virtual Reality can make learning more engaging and immersive. In addition to schools and universities, virtual experiences can help businesses train their staff. Currently, Unimersiv is offering VR educational content for institutions and companies.

Case Study: Using 360-degree VR simulations, the University of North Carolina offers an immersive campus touring experience to aspiring students. Download now! 

2. VR in Real Estate

For years, real estate agents have used photos and graphic designs to showcase properties to prospective buyers. Today, Virtual Reality has transformed real estate property tours, making them more personalized, immersive, and close to reality. Being an immersive technology, VR enables potential buyers to experience a 3D walkthrough and understand better what each property has to offer even before scheduling a physical site visit.

For example, Sotheby’s, one of the world’s leading luxury realty brands, offers Virtual Reality home tours and videos to its clients. Potential buyers can view properties and spaces from the comfort of their homes using a web browser, or a smartphone, PC, laptop, or through a wearable headset.

Read more:How Virtual Reality can Transform Your Real Estate Business

3. VR in Marketing

VR is helping businesses reach out to their audiences by launching immersive and engaging marketing campaigns. With the COVID-19 pandemic compelling people to shop online and companies to transform digitally, Virtual Reality is gaining more popularity as it is helping people get a feel for products without leaving their homes.

For example, IKEA has introduced a VR app that enables users to experience kitchen remodeling. Using the VR Kitchen app, you can explore the virtual kitchen and interact with the objects using a VR headset.

4. VR in Healthcare

Virtual Reality helps doctors understand their patients’ needs better as it provides an in-depth look into human anatomy. Today, VR is extensively used in surgical training.

An educational project conducted by the University of New England (UNE) successfully used VR to teach empathy to medical and health profession students. The project used a VR tool called “Alfred Lab app” – to teach students about macular degeneration and hearing loss from a 74-year-old African American man’s perspective. Realizing an aged and ailing patient’s thoughts and concerns enables the residents to develop empathy towards such patients.

Read more: How Virtual Reality Improves the Standard of Medical Education and Training

5. VR in Travel and Hospitality

The travel industry is facing the hardest time ever in its history. However, vaccination rollouts on a global scale and international travel relaxations now give a fillip to travel, tourism, and hospitality. An early adopter of digitalization, the travel industry has already forayed into Virtual Reality. Travel businesses attract tourists and even promote holiday destinations through virtual staging and tours. Virtual Reality also allows people to explore the world virtually, especially those who cannot afford to travel.

Google StreetView is one of the best examples of how VR is being used in the travel industry. In addition to viewing panoramic images on a computer, it allows users to enable Google Cardboard mode for a Virtual Reality experience.

Mixed Reality

Mixed Reality, sometimes known as hybrid reality, combines the elements of both AR as well as VR. However, here the virtual content is not only overlaid on the actual environment but is fixed to and interacts with that environment. In simple terms, Mixed Reality lets you see virtual objects just like Augmented Reality, but these objects are capable of interacting with the real world. In simple words, Mixed Reality is more like immersive and interactive Augmented Reality.

MR is still in its nascent stages and may take time to create an impact like the other two technologies. One of the most remarkable Mixed Reality apparatuses is Microsoft’s HoloLens.

Opportunities provided by Mixed Reality

1. MR in Education

Mixed Reality allows students to see both the real world as well as the holograms. MR offers an immersive learning environment enabling students to understand better.

Case Study: Find how Fingent developed a unique Mixed Reality application for a leading university that enables users to identify people using facial recognition. Download Now!

2. MR in Manufacturing

Mixed Reality provides workers with real-time assistance, thereby facilitating manufacturing processes. The technology allows workers to see holographic instructions, so they know what to do. This minimizes human errors and improves quality significantly. Mixed Reality is also helpful for repairs and maintenance, especially in industries that require precision and expertise.

For example, Renault Trucks integrates Mixed Reality into its manufacturing process for enhancing engine quality control at one of its factories.

The blurring line between physical and virtual

While Virtual Reality takes you to the virtual world from wherever you are, Augmented Reality adds to the reality by projecting information on top of what you see. Mixed Reality combines both AR and VR. All these technologies, though powerful, are yet to make their mark with consumers. That said, they can completely change the way we use computing devices, gadgets, and technology in the future.

If you are eager to offer your customers immersive virtual experiences that surpass physical encounters, look no further than Fingent, a top custom software development company. Get in touch with us now!

How AR and VR augment employee safety training programs in industries

Employee Safety has taken on a new meaning as the world totters and tries to wrap its head around COVID-19. The pandemic spared no prisoners as it touched every aspect of our life, including our work and our businesses. It has changed the way people work and accomplish their jobs and altered the way employers look at employee safety training.

For starters, traditional employee safety training usually takes one of two forms: on-the-job and classroom learning, which might be a problem at this time. Fortunately, the latest training methods that feature immersive technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) demonstrate their ability to close the current gaps in employee safety training. This blog discusses the impact AR/VR has on employee safety training. Before we discuss that, it is crucial to understand why businesses require augmented and virtual realities now.

Read more: How Augmented Reality Can Simplify Equipment Maintenance 

The increasing significance of AR and VR in employee safety training  

Adapting to the new normal, most employees will continue to work from home. Others will face new measures and procedures when they return to workplaces. It can pose a challenge to employers as they struggle to find new methods to train new employees while following physical constraints like social distancing. 

Before we look at the solution, let’s have a look at a few drawbacks of the traditional classroom training: 

Drawbacks of the conventional classroom training

– Ineffective training procedures

Usually, safety procedures are taught with a combination of computer testing and classroom exercises. These methods do not allow repetition training. It is good but not good enough because it lacks effectiveness and does not encourage knowledge retention. Besides, social distancing norms make it difficult to arrange for classroom training.

– Doesn’t engage employees

As traditional learning techniques are not imparted in a realistic environment, they do not simulate the hands-on experience in scenarios that are tough to be recreated. Classroom learning is often not a useful or engaging teaching style for workers who are in highly mechanical roles. With such training, employers cannot risk a technician to perform their jobs effectively and safely on day one.

– Classroom trainings are expensive

According to the 2019 training industry report, on average, companies spent 1,286 dollars in 2019. The same report also mentions that, on average, employees received 42.1 hours of training. It proves that traditional training methods and materials are a significant expense for financials and lost work time. Employers must look for newer ways to train their employees. Thankfully, AR and VR technologies help support employee safety training. 

Read more: How Augmented Reality Is All Set to Transform the Workplace 

Top 7 ways AR and VR impact employee safety training

Workplace injuries cost businesses more than 59 billion dollars per year. However, companies cannot cut back on employee safety training under any circumstances. In professions where inadequate safety procedures are a huge risk to the employee, employers must ensure that safety training is practical and accessible.

1. No more trial and error

Specific jobs, such as working in power plants or manufacturing units, require that employees be trained before assuming full responsibility. Augmented and virtual reality help make simulations that allow for training that is safe and free of consequences. Employers can create an exact simulation of their operations and enable new employees to practice repeatedly. Such training allows them to see and correct their mistakes before they start using the actual equipment. 

2. Risk-free immersive training

AR and VR technologies allow instructional designers, animation engines, and game designers to combine fun with practical learning. It raises levels of engagement in trainees. Besides attractive and fun components, AR and VR appeal to learners because of the risk-free training element. It eliminates the need for employees and trainees to be in the same location during the training session. 

3. Increased retention and skill acquisition

Practice is the best way employees can sharpen their skills. It is a well-known fact that we retain much more information when we combine learning with “doing.” Compared to discussions, reading, lectures, or even audio-visual learning, hands-on-practice is the best way to retain information. AR and VR technologies allow for such training that increases knowledge retention and skill acquisition. These technologies enable employees to practice the concepts they have learned immediately.

4. Allows self-paced learning

Each employee is different with varying levels of learning abilities. AR and VR allow each person to learn at their own pace. It means they can work on the same concept multiple times without the risk of injury to themselves or the machinery. This risk-free approach allows for self-paced learning and the ability to take the training until they master a particular concept. 

5. Enhance the effectiveness of learning

Most employers have deemed it unsafe for their workers to share headsets to receive safety training in the current situation. Augmented and virtual reality allows employers to develop solutions where an employee can point his phone camera to a portion of the training manual that opens up additional materials or resources on his screen. This technique allows companies to train their employees about specific products, solutions, or services. 

Read more: Impact Of Augmented Reality In Education Industry 

6. Prepare employees for emergencies

Augmented and virtual reality are ideal for training employees to handle real-life situations. This technology is apt for safety training. It can minimize damage to the equipment and the cost of training. AR and VR allow firms to train employees to handle emergencies or real-time threats such as controlling a shooting situation. 

7. Easy to customize training

Each organization and its requirements are different. Employees may encounter unique challenges and problems because of location, weather, or just the project’s complexity. AR and VR provide a considerable advantage in terms of flexibility and costs to offer company-specific training. It can accommodate a more tailored training experience. 

The future of AR and VR in employee safety training

The safety risk is a real challenge that all industries face. Whether it is theft or operating potentially dangerous machinery, employees face risks, including physical hazards. Besides, the pandemic has necessitated a transition to a new way of life. There is currently a desperate need for new solutions that allow businesses to continue with some semblance of normalcy. AR and VR technologies provide organizations effective ways to train their employees while still preserving physical distancing norms. The use of augmented and virtual reality in employee safety training will become the new normal! 

Case Study: A unique mixed reality application for a leading university that enables users to identify people using facial recognition

Want to explore how you can start with Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality technologies? Talk to us right away. 

How we can expedite customers’ move to emerging tech like AR & VR

Many real-world scenarios have shown us the need to keep up with technology. The COVID-19 pandemic, for example, has proved to be an unanticipated catalyst in accelerating customers’ move to the new and emerging technologies and tools. As millions of consumers go into lockdown, they are forced to work from home that impacts their day to day habits of digital connectivity. 

Though COVID-19 has created a major drag on the world economy, it is playing an active role in accelerating the development and commercialization of several emerging technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR). This is especially true for innovations that automate processes, reduce human-to-human contact, and increase productivity during social distancing. This article examines how new technologies such as AR/VR can influence various industries.

Wholehearted Support for Virtual Health Care

In a survey conducted by Perkins Coie LLP, a vast majority of the respondents found healthcare and medical devices as one of the top potential growth areas for AR and VR technologies.

Telemedicine had previously not received enough support from healthcare providers, financers, and patients. But now, the need for virtual healthcare advice is accelerating the adoption of telemedicine. Various countries have authorized their healthcare professionals to expand telehealth consultations to make it easier for patients to speak with their healthcare providers.

This pandemic is also spurring the interest in asynchronous healthcare, a form of telemedicine that eliminates the need for face-to-face appointments in managing and monitoring chronic health conditions. New technologies in AR/VR allows a healthcare provider to remotely assess and diagnose a patient in an ambulance two miles away. 

Related Reading: Is Mixed Reality the Future of the Healthcare Industry?

Promising future for the Real Estate Industry

Though the present scenario has stirred unrest in certain industries, the real estate sector need not come to a standstill at this time. The use of AR/VR technologies can facilitate communication and collaboration within the industry. As a useful tool for design communication, AR/VR has the ability to ensure virtual co-location of the teams making it possible to transfer messages and work cultures.

The new tech line (AR and VR) allows all project stakeholders to take a ‘walk’ inside the project before it is built. Such an understanding of project data can reduce errors, facilitate faster and better decision-making, and achieve greater business and profitability. In this period when physical mock-ups and on-site prototyping are no longer viable, VR-enabled online libraries can add accuracy to design projects without additional cost.

Related Reading: Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality: Transforming The Real Estate Industry

Use Chatbots Instead of Human Punching Bags

The COVID-19 pandemic has induced changes in customer behavior and business models, which might persist well after the crisis abates. Meanwhile, chatbots can be used to reduce the surge in customer frustration. Various websites are using chatbots to answer general FAQs asked by the customers providing them a better customer experience. 

AI-powered chatbots can communicate with humans in real-time. Such personalized chatbots can be developed for your websites, social media profiles, and SMS services to generate automated responses using pre-defined keywords and categories. COVID-19 has complicated the role of the customer service representative. They have to lead the delicate dance of balancing policy and empathy with frustrated customers. 

Read our case study: Using Chatbots to Create an Enhanced and Engaging Learning Experience

Chatbots provide proactive customer service and help protect the emotional well-being of the agents. Onboarding and training new customer service representatives are not viable options when the work volume increases. Chatbots allow you to scale-up teams and multiply output within seconds. Additionally, now chatbots can be used effectively to sell products directly to users via WhatsApp (WhatsApp for Business). 

Powerful Cutting-Edge Technology: Face-Recognition 

In the span of a few weeks, COVID-19 has reshaped how the world works. This new paradigm has opened the door to the deployment of latest technologies such as facial recognition. During this period of social distancing, business and government agencies are increasingly turning to facial recognition technology. Also, face recognition payments are growing in popularity. 

Read our case study: The Future of Communication and Security Using Augmented Reality

Grand View Research, Inc. forecasts that by 2027, the worldwide facial recognition market will increase at a CAGR of 14.5 percent to reach 9.93 billion dollars.

Face recognition is already getting a lot of momentum since it avoids touching surfaces and potential infection. Another benefit to face recognition is that it can enable thermal scanning to check body temperatures, minimizing the risk of the sick infecting other workers.  

The Race To Keep Pace

Today the globalized economy is in fierce competition. Technology helps increase efficiency across industries especially during this pandemic. That is why AR/VR is emerging as a critical solution. From accelerating user collaboration to streamlining processes, the use cases of AR/VR technologies in business will only get stronger. And as IT infrastructure increases in complexity, these new technologies will deliver multiple benefits to businesses as a whole. 

Fingent top custom software development company, helps accelerate your move to new and emerging technologies such as Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and Mixed Reality. Get in touch with us to find out how we help our clients deliver a compelling reality experience using these technologies. 

How Extended Reality Is Transforming Business Environments?

Picture yourself diving into crystal-clear Grecian waters or taking a walk on the moon, all the while sitting in the comfort of your home.  As fantastical as this may seem now, Extended Reality is making this possible as we speak. What is Extended reality and what are its powerful real-world applications? Let’s check.

Understanding What Extended Reality Is

Extended Reality is a blanket term that encompasses all virtual and real environments generated by computer technology. This includes components such as Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and Mixed Reality. Extended Reality is poised to completely revamp the way businesses interact with the media and has the potential to allow seamless interaction between the real and virtual worlds allowing its users to have a completely immersive experience. 

Three Remarkable Components of Extended Reality

These components fall under the category of immersive technologies that can affect our perceptions. Here is a little bit about them:

Virtual reality: Virtual reality transposes its users to a different setting through a simulated digital experience. It makes use of a head-mounted display (HMD) to create an immersive experience by simulating as many experiences as possible. Virtual reality app development has witnessed significant adoption in industries like healthcare and real estate. 

Augmented reality: Augmented reality services have emerged as a powerful tool in various industries, including healthcare and real estate. With the development of augmented reality apps, businesses can enhance user experiences by overlaying digital elements onto the real world. This technology offers exciting opportunities for immersive and interactive interactions, transforming the way we perceive and interact with our surroundings.

Mixed reality: Being the most recent advancement among reality technologies, mixed reality is experienced through mixed reality glasses or headsets where you can interact with physical and digital objects in real-time. 

Related Reading: Augmented Reality Vs. Virtual Reality – The Future Technology

The implementation of these technologies through extended reality is enabling businesses to create innovative solutions and increase customer engagement, reduce human error and improve time efficiency. 

5 Powerful Real-World Applications 

“The market for Extended Reality is expected to have a compound annual growth rate of more than 65% during the forecast period of 2019-2024,” says Mordor Intelligence. 

Check out these five real-world applications of extended reality:

1. Entertainment and Gaming

The entertainment and video games industries are the foremost users of Extended Reality. Camera tracking and real-time rendering are combined to create an immersive virtual environment, allowing actors to get the real feel of the scene, thereby improving their performance. The extended reality also allows for multipurpose studio environments, thus reducing the cost of an elaborate movie set.

Video gaming is enhanced by the ability of Extended Reality to create a comprehensive participation effect. This allows users to dive into a completely different reality. Other entertainment events such as exhibitions and live music can also be enhanced by the capabilities of Extended Reality. 

2. Employees and Consumers

• Training: Extended Reality allows employees to be trained and educated in low-risk, virtual environments. Medical students, surgeons, firefighters, pilots, and chemists can closely simulate risky scenarios with minimal risk and less expense. The experience they gain will prove invaluable when they handle real-life situations.
• Information: Replacing physical manuals, Extended Reality can enable technicians to focus on the task without having to flip the pages of a manual. It can even connect an expert remotely to the real-time issue for his expert advice. This would save organizations a whole lot of money, and more importantly save them valuable downtime as they wouldn’t need to wait for experts.
• Improve customer perspective: Simulating virtual experience brought on by specific diseases and impairments can help doctors and caregivers receive empathy training. 

Related Reading: How Top Brands Embrace Augmented Reality for Immersive Customer Experiences

3. Healthcare

Extended Reality is improving healthcare by streamlining medical procedures while enhancing patient care. Allowing surgeons to visualize the complexities of the organs in 3D, it is enabling them to plan each step of a complicated surgery well in advance. Essentially, it is ensuring that surgeons can perform surgeries in a more safe, effective and precise way.

4. Real Estate

Extended Reality makes it easier for real estate agents and managers to close a deal by enabling prospective homebuyers to get a real feel of the property. The layout scenarios that are enabled by Extended Reality enhance customer experience while providing strong business opportunities. 

Related Reading: AR and VR- Game Changers of Real Estate Industry

5. Marketing

Extended Reality enables marketers to give their consumers a ‘try before you buy’ experience. It allows consumers to be transported to a place, immerses them in that world and motivates them to explore it. As an example, Cathay Pacific used a 360◦ video with hotspots to help potential customers experience the brand firsthand. That increased customer awareness by 29% and brand favorability by 25%. 

Face the Future with Extended Reality

There are many more advancements and applications to be discovered with Extended Reality, and it is soon going to be imperative to competitive advantage. Don’t let your business fall behind. Consult with Fingent, a top custom software development company, today and ensure you stay ahead of the curve. 

Mixed Reality Promising a New Improved Healthcare Industry

Mixed Reality makes it possible for surgeons to perform an operation on a patient thousands of miles away. It makes it possible for nurses to hone their skills and perform hundreds of operations virtually before even touching a patient. Mixed Reality is making the impossible possible. 

Mixed Reality combines the real world with the virtual to create solutions that we never thought possible. It enables effective collaboration between physical and digital objects and has found an integral place and application in healthcare. This blog explores some radical ways in which healthcare is using Mixed Reality for better quality treatment and customer experience. 

Mixed Reality Working Wonders in Healthcare 

By 2026, AV/VR in the healthcare market is expected to reach 7.05 billion USD showing that Mixed Reality is finding increased application in the healthcare industry.  From enabling pre-procedural planning and visualization before surgery to training nurses as they virtually workout challenges they could encounter during real-life procedures, and improving the collaboration and communication between doctors and patients – Mixed Reality is making great things happen.  Here are some ways in which this is becoming possible. 

1. Immersive Learning for Nurses and Medical Students

Skilled nurses are critical to the healthcare industry. Simulations are the most effective method of educating and preparing nurses to respond appropriately to a variety of situations they might encounter. Mixed Reality can place a nursing student in those specific or rare situations, which may be difficult to arrange for in real clinical settings. Such immersive simulations are much more cost-effective than traditional nursing simulation devices. The education company Pearson has collaborated with Microsoft to launch apps called HoloPatient and HoloHuman. These tools use holograms of patients and help in training healthcare professionals as they diagnose and treat medical problems. 

As another achievement in Mixed Reality, St. George’s University in Grenada worked with SphereGen Technologies to develop what is called the ‘Learning Heart.’ The Learning Heart is a study aid that enables users to view the hologram of the heart from all directions and examine its functions. It responds to touch and voice commands and allows users to separate all the parts of the human heart, thus making learning immersive for medical students.

2. Reduced Time and Reduced Human Error in Reconstructive Surgery

Reconstructive surgeries enabled by Mixed Reality with the use of HoloLens have proven to be very successful at the Imperial College at St. Mary’s Hospital, London. According to the team guided by Dr. Philip Pratt, Mixed Reality helps surgeons locate and reconnect major blood vessels. With HoloLens, surgeons are able to use holographic overlays to see the bones and identify the course of blood vessels which aids them in their surgery, improving the outcome for the patient. An article in The Times entitled Holograms to get surgeons under the skin of patients showed examples of a 41-year-old man and an 85-year-old woman on whom such reconstructive surgeries were performed successfully. 

3. Revolutionizing Surgery

In December 2017, Dr. Thomas Gregory undertook a live transplant surgery with the help of HoloLens. It helped him access the patient’s medical information and anatomical pictures in 3D during the surgery. Since HoloLens is a standalone computer worn like a helmet by the surgeon, his hands are free for surgery. Additionally, the use of microphones and sensors allows the surgeon to communicate with other surgeons in different parts of the world making collaboration easier. All these features, along with the simulations and information it can pull up, make Mixed Reality a valuable asset in improving surgical performance.

4. Improving the Patient Experience

Building trust through efficient communication is an important aspect of a doctor-patient relationship. Mixed Reality makes this possible in a more immersive way.  For example, in a recent interview with Sirko Pelzl, CEO and CTO of apoQlar, he spoke about Virtual Surgery Intelligence (VSI) and said: “physicians can use VSI to show patients their own MRI scans and explain the surgical procedure in visual detail. We were able to illustrate in a recent study how greatly patients appreciated this education and communication.”

Mixed Reality also helps in reducing response time and improving surgical accuracy, which contributes to the smooth and successful patient experience. For example, when the surgery is complicated or the patient is critical, diagnostic images with Mixed Reality can serve as a twin of the patient. This helps doctors discuss, plan, and walk through their treatment protocol, thus reducing response time in patient care.

Mixed Reality also gives doctors all the information they need about a patient and enables real-life simulations to help him in his decisions and actions. Commenting on a prototype application called “Cinematic Rendering for Surgery” Christian Zapf, head of the Syngo Business Line at Siemens Healthineers said, “The error rate dropped from 14.1 to 0.8 percent for surgeons in training and from 11.1 percent to 0.8 percent for qualified surgeons.”

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The Future of Mixed Reality

Mixed Reality has already made deep inroads, especially in medicine. It will continue to improve the quality of healthcare and medical training as it positively impacts the medical industry. Fingent has helped many clients build custom healthcare software solutions, which integrate applications with the latest technologies like Mixed Reality. Get in touch with us and let’s discuss how we can make Mixed Reality possible for you.