Tag: ar tech

Augmented reality is blurring the line between mobile gaming and reading

| March 14, 2014

AR technology is transforming children’s books and video games at the same time.

With the start of the augmented reality games in traditional books trend by Sony, with its Wonderbook for PlayStation 3, both of those forms of entertainment have been redefined and many other products are now being released to enhance the reading experience – particularly for children.

Among the most widely publicized successes of AR books for kids was iDinosaur.

However, it was truly the Wonderbook that sent augmented reality books into the mainstream almost two years ago. The idea behind this technology is that a physical book contains a number of different components that are not detectable to the human eye. The only way to be able to access and view them is to use a smartphone or a tablet and the right apps to bring them to life.

For instance, a child’s book could be read on its own, or include augmented reality components to allow for interaction.

When children’s books such as iDinosaur are viewed through the assistance of mobile devices and AR apps, the illustrations can appear to spring to the page and move about. Tyrannosaurus Rexes have since been leaping out of the pages to show their stuff – though in a much smaller and much more digital form, of course.

In 2014, the trend has continued through the French Connection. They have now released the first volume of a children’s story series, Jack Hunter, which will introduce their own interactive AR elements. This book will work as a standalone novel that can be enjoyed by itself, or it can be viewed with the assistance of mobile devices that help the reader to unlock a broader range of different interactive elements.

These include augmented reality images as well as additional interactive stories and games. Though this may seem quite complex to parents, the latest generation of youngsters is proving to be increasingly comfortable with touchscreens, apps, and the overall concept of smart devices. As many households now contain at least one of these mobile gadgets, it can make AR technology based books quite a comfortable fit into the overall reading experience.

Augmented reality launched on buses in Scotland

| February 3, 2014

Passengers on public transit in Aberdeen are now taking advantage of new technology based entertainment.

Commuters taking the public transit buses in Aberdeen, Scotland now have a brand new augmented reality experience available to them that will allow them to gain a great deal more entertainment out of their rides.Scotland Buses - Augmented Reality

Through the use of mobile devices, they can now enjoy high tech entertainment while onboard.

Using smartphones and tablets, passengers on these Scottish are able to open up an interactive video channel that gives the viewer the choice to view a range of different content, including information about the transit services, interviews with staff, movie trailers, and even the ability to purchase tickets or surf the web.

There are 35 First Aberdeen buses that have been equipped with this augmented reality feature.

To make this service more readily available to a larger number of mobile devices, the buses also feature free WiFi for riders. This initiative has been generating a considerable amount of activity from passengers. In fact, since it first launched in November, there have been thousands of individuals who have accessed the content available through this AR channel.

All that riders need to do to access the AR material is to follow the instructions on the bus seat backs for downloading the free First Scotland app from Google Play or the Apple App Store. The app makes it possible to aim the mobile device at the seat back to trigger the video channel so that it can be streamed into the smartphone or tablet.

According to the General Manager of First Aberdeen, Duncan Cameron, “Our new augmented reality channel brings our seat backs to life and I hope makes bus travel that little bit more interesting and enjoyable.” He also went on to say that the transit system believes that they are the first company of that nature around the globe that has implemented AR tech on the backs of bus seats in order to help to encourage ridership on their vehicles. The sheer number of uses that the feature has seen until now has revealed the type of interest that this can, indeed, draw.