Mixed Reality In Industry: The Impact of Immersive Content

One of the challenges of any new technology is ensuring users embrace its capabilities to benefit fully from it. Some of us are old enough to remember when the Internet came along, and the massive commitment that was required across organizations to learn how to use it to the best advantage. 

If you consider a crawl, walk, run scenario of phased technology adoption, organizations generally began by using email as a handy communication tool. That was the crawl phase. Then came the walking phase – building a website that could augment marketing efforts. The companies that really benefited from the internet ran with the new technology – they embraced the full range of features to provide online commerce and open new sales channels. It wasn’t just IT departments that needed to make that commitment – it was every level of a company or organization. 

The same dynamic applies to the growing use of mixed reality in industrial settings, where there are different levels of its usage. The initial stage of MR usage in an industrial setting is using it as a communication tool, and the next stage is providing frontline workers with the materials they need to complete tasks or perform on-the-job training. These uses in themselves can transform an organization’s operations, but this article will discuss more advanced uses. We’ll discuss how some companies and organizations are running – in some cases sprinting – with mixed reality. They’re the ones that are taking 3D content and putting it into the physical space to solve complex problems, streamline operations, and provide immersive experiences that provide better outcomes.

This article – the fourth in a series – aims to delve into the concepts and benefits of 3D content in mixed reality. Mixed reality, or MR, is the blending of the actual and virtual worlds to enhance interactivity and knowledge transfer. It requires the user to don a headset, but unlike virtual reality, the user has full sensory perception of their physical environment.  

Until recently, 3D models have largely been locked behind computer screens, or used within the enclosed world of virtual reality. Mixed reality liberates the models so they can be placed in the physical world. When used operationally, it can enhance efficiency, task accuracy, and workforce performance. 

When we talk about 3D content in mixed reality, we are speaking of three-dimensional holograms that display within the viewer’s line of vision while appearing within the physical space surrounding them. Let’s say it’s a piece of equipment. (Kognitiv Spark primarily focuses on industrial uses, which involve our customers working on a piece of equipment or solving complex troubleshooting issues. But these models can span a vast array of industries and subject material.) 

The viewer – or viewers if there’s collaboration – can rotate the model, or even have it animated to show processes. It allows the user to “check under the hood” virtually and understand fully the equipment under consideration.

Using this technology allows the visualization of complex processes. Given the hands-free nature of MR, users can manipulate the holographic machine before and/or while getting their hands dirty with the real piece of equipment in front of them. This allows users to better understand the processes involved in their tasks. It’s important to note that they don’t just understand the equipment better but also gain a broader appreciation of how they will interact with it before the task even begins. We should also remember that the user can access 3D content the entire way through the process without having to stop and search for their tablet or laptop.

Consider how revolutionary this can be in on-the-job training. An eager young engineer is assigned a task with some unfamiliar equipment, and they want to handle the task on their own. Their employer’s 3D content library allows them to view the equipment from all angles, even have it broken down step by step to understand how all the pieces work. The content can help walk the engineer through the task, and the content will be available to them in the future in case they need a refresher. 

Of course, not all machines are the same, and one company’s processes with a machine might be different than the next company’s. With the visualization capabilities of MR, industrial organizations can produce their own 3D content for use in the mixed reality space. One of the strengths of MR is its ability to help people collaborate, and 3D content is ideal for this state-of-the art collaboration. Two or more people can work effectively on a problem regardless of where they are. It allows remote experts to guide on-site workers through complex tasks by sharing relevant 3D assets rather than having to explain solely by voice or flat images. The fact that they can both view and discuss the content during this collaboration makes the conversation easier, more effective, and reduces the chances of them misunderstanding one another.

Taking this a step further, consider a manufacturing plant with multiple processing lines, each of which has unique pieces of equipment. To service these machines, the company would need a complex schedule of calls from specialists or OEM reps, and any conflicts or delayed visits result in lost production time.

However, a worker equipped with a mixed reality solution can connect with an expert to start troubleshooting right away.

Rather than being drowned in photos, texts, calls, and emails, this worker can pull from their library of 3D content, observing it in their physical space. These 3D models can be complemented by supporting assets like PDFs if needed. The result: the engineer is able to not only work confidently but also safely knowing that their following the correct steps to ensure the return of equipment to optimal operating conditions.

Operationally deploying 3D holographic models and content is an advanced layer of usage for mixed reality, but we have to stress that this is not science fiction. It’s not years or even months away from reality. It is technology that’s being used today, likely in your industry. If you’re not using it, there’s a good chance your leading competitors are. 

To sum up, using mixed reality is a key step in industrial organizations’ journey toward digital transformation. The companies and organizations that get the biggest benefit are those that embrace most fully, and that means working with 3D content to maximize the productivity of their workforces – especially frontline workers. In an era of scarce skilled labor, a company that uses technological advances to increase workers’ productivity and job satisfaction is a company that wins.