Manufacturing Magazine July 2015 | Page 8

TECHNOLOGY
OVER THE LAST year , we have seen new breakthroughs in augmented reality and how it will soon merge our digital lives with our real ones . While this concept is moving in on multiple industries , the industrial and manufacturing environments are going to be a key stakeholder for this technology . Many of us have waited anxiously for high-tech glasses , watches and other wearables finally delivering what they promise . But all this has yet to materialise . The recent withdrawal of Google Glass and the general failure of wearables to meet expectations have influenced public perception of augmented reality and there is now a question of just how it will become valuable .
One area where the technology is already making strides is on the industrial plant floor . When considering how engineers and operators can be more efficient in resolving production downtime issues , there is a huge potential for augmented reality . Manufacturing operators can directly show plant floor problems to the
Augmented reality in action
8 July 2015