Augmented Reality: An Emerging Technologies Guide to AR

By Greg Kipper and Joseph Rampolla

With the explosive growth in mobile phone usage and rapid rise in search engine technologies over the last decade, augmented reality (AR) is poised to be one of this decade's most disruptive technologies, as the information that is constantly flowing around us is brought into view, in real-time, through augmented reality. In this cutting-edge book, the authors outline and discuss never-before-published information about augmented reality and its capabilities. With coverage of mobile, desktop, developers, security, challenges, and gaming, this book gives you a comprehensive understanding of what augmented reality is, what it can do, what is in store for the future and most importantly: how to benefit from using AR in our lives and careers.

• Educates readers how best to use augmented reality regarless of industry
• Provides an in-depth understanding of AR and ideas ranging from new business applications to new crime fighting methods
• Includes actual examples and case studies from both private and government applications

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Release date: Dec 31, 2012
• ISBN: 9781597497343

Greg Kipper

Gregory Kipper is a futurist and strategic forecaster in emerging technologies. He specialized in IT security and information assurance for 17 years, working for the last 11 years in the fields of digital forensics and the impacts emerging technologies have on crime and crime fighting. Mr. Kipper has been the keynote speaker at select industry events, a digital forensics instructor, and a trusted advisor to both the government and commercial sectors. He has published books in the fields of digital forensics and emerging technologies, including: "Investigator's Guide to Steganography," "Wireless Crime and Forensic Investigation," and "Virtualization and Forensics."

Book preview

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Chapter 1

What Is Augmented Reality?

Information in this chapter:

• What is Augmented Reality?

• How Augmented Reality Works

• A History of Augmented Reality

• Augmented Reality of Today

• The Differences between Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality

• Challenges with Augmented Reality

• The Opportunities for Augmented Reality

The Definition of Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality (AR) is a variation of a Virtual Environment (VE), or Virtual Reality (VR) as it is more commonly called. Virtual Reality technologies completely immerse a user inside a synthetic environment and while immersed, the user cannot see the real world around him. In contrast, Augmented Reality is taking digital or computer generated information, whether it be images, audio, video, and touch or haptic sensations and overlaying them over in a real-time environment. Augmented Reality technically can be used to enhance all five senses, but its most common present-day use is visual. Unlike Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality allows the user to see the real world, with virtual objects superimposed upon or composited with the real world. Therefore, AR supplements reality, rather than completely replacing it as depicted in Figure 1.1 Augmented Reality can be thought of as the blend, or the middle ground, between the completely synthetic and the completely real.

Figure 1.1 A 3D Graphic or Model is Superimposed on the Real-World Object Through the Use of a Smartphone

One of the easiest examples is a heads-up display, or HUD, used by fighter pilots. It is likely we have all seen examples of a HUD in movies or television documentaries. A HUD gives the pilot a digital overlay that shows an artificial horizon, the digital altitude, digital speed, and other information while looking out the cockpit window as shown in Figure 1.2 Another example that has appeared in the past few years is the artificial first down line Figure 1.3 that helps football viewers watching the game on TV know how far the offensive team needs to go to get a first down. These examples are somewhat straightforward compared to some of what we will explore in the rest of this