Augmented Reality Development Guide: Technologies, Devices and Platforms
Almost a decade ago, the idea of humans and machines evolving together was not only fictional but also sounded absurd to some. But, the advancement in technology has made it possible. Today, not only the coexistence of humans, and machines but also the dependence on each other is surreal.
But, this is just the start. Technology is in no way stopping. The boundary between the virtual and real world is slowly depleting. And, that’s where Augmented Reality came into the picture!
What is Augmented Reality?
Augmented Reality is a name given to technology that highlights the real-world experience with the aid of the virtual world’s interference. It is an interactive combination of real, and virtual worlds coming together. It begins by influencing the user’s perception of rather usual things, and surroundings, and finishes by making both worlds “Augmented”!
The purpose of leveraging AR can be to enhance user experience or to impart extra knowledge to them. Recently, in 2016 when the AR-based game named Pokemon go went viral, people came face to face with Augmented Reality. The game leveraged the camera feature of devices to provide users an “augmented” or heightened experience of catching virtual pokemon from the real world.
Ever since then, the AR field is getting a lot of attention. And, scientists, as well as IT professionals, are exploring this field.
“In a study, it is found that by the end of 2024, it is estimated that there will be around 1.7 billion mobile AR user devices globally! “
But, as simple as it may sound to leverage AR, the associated tools, platforms, and technologies need to be comprehended. We will discuss all this in detail here! But, first, let’s start by knowing what all types of Augmented Reality apps there can be!
Apps Built with Augmented Reality Development
As the technology is vast and hypothetically limitless, there can be several types of apps on the principle of AR. Some of these are-
01. Location-based AR Apps
Location-based AR apps leverage the location of the user to show precise virtual content. These apps track location with the help of GPS, a compass, or sometimes via an accelerometer. Apart from these, other technologies such as low-range Wi-Fi Direct, VPS or virtual positioning system, BLE(Bluetooth low energy) beacons, etc. can also be used to track the position or location of the user.
But, what all features, and activities users can execute on the app depends on how the developer has programmed the app.
02. Superimposing AR
There is a type of Augmented Reality app that can change your real surroundings by imposing a virtual image on it. This can be done via apps. The underlying principle involves replacing an object or superimposing an image on it, but all virtually.
For instance, to buy a new couch, you use an app to change the color of that couch to know which suits best for your home. This is an example of a cause-and-effect demonstration. Another example of superimposing AR can be a mobile app that helps you go back in time and see how your city used to look like years ago. This can be done by pointing a camera at a particular area of the city. And, that app then fetches a view from Google maps’ archives. These types of applications can be useful for other industries as well.
03. Marker-Based AR
The Augmented Reality applications that are based on some markers are known as Marker-based AR apps. These markers, however, can be QR codes, or any other image. The 3D image generated in an app is then placed above these markers. One example of such an app is the PlayStation 3 Wonderbook.
This is also the principle behind some of the Snapchat and Instagram features.
04. Markerless AR
While marker-based AR relies on certain markers, markerless AR, as the name suggests does not rely on any markers. It leverages the camera feature of devices. It detects environment patterns, and motion sensors to identify and place 3d objects in its surroundings.
Along with this, it also revolves around technologies like GPS, or other locations, digital compass, depth sensors, camera features, accelerometer, gyroscope, and others. In some cases, ML or machine learning algorithms are also known to be used in apps based on markerless AR technology.
These were the type of AR apps. But, what if we tell you the main applications of AR depend on which technology is used? Let’s discuss Augmented Reality technologies!
