Augmented reality has taken technology to a new level for consumers and businesses. Not only that, augmented reality has opened up a whole new way for businesses to showcase products and further engage consumers. Mixing the real world with virtual reality isn’t anything new, but new technology through mobile devices is growing in popularity. Augmented reality exemplifies that mix and allows consumers access right in the palm of their hand. From geo-location to 3D games and from education to bringing print advertising to life, augmented reality, or AR is being embraced by industries as diverse as healthcare to retail. Below are video links to notable augmented reality examples:

Tourism:
The Museum of Modern Art New York developed an augmented reality art exhibit that is permanently on view in and around the MoMA:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9T2LVM7ynM

Site see historical landmarks with augmented reality overlays of their development:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=gwtmk1ZjhY0&NR=1

Use augmented reality apps to find your next destination:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR2qqpYFRog

Education:
You can now engage kids through augmented reality children’s pop-up books. Here’s an example of “Who’s Afraid of Bugs?” by Helen Papagiannis:
http://vimeo.com/25608606

Healthcare:
Augmented reality can be used as a tool for medical training to explore a 3D organ and virtually see how things work on your body:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZSDWbLZ4ns

Entertainment:
The movie Avatar was promoted with augmented reality marks that bring alive an Avatar toy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JWk_JIE3Ow&feature=player_embedded

The movie Transformers was promoted with an augmented reality poster that immerses you into a 3D game:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE4yn-GW-ho

Singer John Mayer created an augmented reality music video of “Heartbreak Warefare”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZtRHVMcZjI&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PLB6E59CE135E9EFA1

Product Promotion:
Adidas integrated augmented reality with their sneaker and encouraged consumers to purchase their product to see the virtual Adidas world to play games and share entertaining photos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRcognsyqNY&feature=player_embedded

Tobi.com is using augmented reality with a virtual fitting room to allow you to see their clothing on yourself before you buy in an effort to increase their retail sales:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn_iPjGKd0M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-N85srjA-GQ

See the Toyota IQ through a dual marker to see this 3D vehicle in action and analyze the quality components of the vehicle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_koxFhslHU

Commercial Real Estate:
You can now find office space listings, retail locations and warehouse space for rent by simply pointing your iPhone or Android device at a building or city block. Quickly find out rental rates, sizes and who to contact to see the commercial space:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LL5i85nF8k

If you’ve seen any interesting augmented reality applications or are interested in learning more about how augmented reality could be integrated in your marketing strategy, please contact me at vlacoste@boelterlincoln.com.

Augmented reality (AR) is actually a pretty broad term, since it applies to almost everything between virtual reality and actual reality. It’s any juxtaposition of computer-generated content into what we perceive to be real. From virtual haptics to heads-up displays, AR enhances our senses. Scientists, programmers and industrial designers have been toying with AR since the 90s but it really hasn’t caught any attention until recently. The main reason AR has taken so long to catch on is because the core concept relies on transparent video screens – expensive, poorly functioning transparent video screens. Luckily, our everyday mobile devices now have the processing power, the large screen size and most importantly the live camera capability to simulate a transparent display, which has allowed the concept to finally come to fruition.

For instance, Yelp.com has a mobile application that allows you to view information and comments on nearby businesses. That’s common in an app, but shake your phone three times and Yelp transforms your phone into a viewer that actually sees this data posted in real time on the buildings as if they were signs hung in their doorways. Boelter+Lincoln has recently created an AR app for the iPad that to allowed tradeshow reps the ability to use their tablet computers as virtual X-ray goggles. Potential customers could see through the casing of their product to a life-size computer generated cross-section. Clever activists at Occupy Wall Street have even used AR to create a virtual protest. View the Wall Street area through this app, and you’ll see a legion of virtual protesters in a place where real protesters were evacuated long ago. The possibilities are endless! What if Howstuffworks.com let you virtually look inside any of the machines they explain? What if Rome had an App that overlaid renderings of the past over their ruins? What if you could visit civil war sites and view an AR battle in-place? There’s so much content to be delivered, AR is clearly going to gain momentum in years to come.

If you’ve ever seen a sci-fi movie in which a soldier receives data on a target via a tiny screen in his goggles, that’s where augmented reality is headed. The military has actually been using transparent monitors to superimpose data into soldier’s line of sight for years, but with a hefty price tag. As the technology becomes cheaper it will certainly enter the consumer market. One of the first places we could see this used is the automotive industry. Back in the 90s I used to drive a Nissan Maxima that projected the speedometer onto my windshield, so it can’t be too far off in the future that we see all of our car windows becoming capable of AR. Imagine taking the family on a road-trip in an enhanced “cAR”. The kids in the backseat could be learning about the different landmarks and animals they see as you drive simply by pointing to them on the window. They could bring up relevant web searches and videos, and share them with friends, all on the otherwise invisible pane of glass. Meanwhile the driver up front receives heads up visual GPS directions across the entire windshield. A simple voice command could have your smart windows find the nearest gas stations and highlight the ones with the best prices. It could even highlight oncoming hazards and obstacles, enhancing the driver’s awareness and improving reaction time.

At the rate these technologies are weaving themselves into our lives, that doesn’t seem like too distant of a future. I think its safe to say that augmented reality will become less of an add-on feature and more of a necessary method of information delivery. So what’s all this have to do with advertising? Hey, if ever there’s a screen that people are watching, there’s ALWAYS available ad space.

So, what’s our latest cool technology infatuation, you ask? Well, Projection Mapping and Kinect Hacking are certainly getting wide spread use, and Instagram too. However, the one that’s been getting the most buzz—and is already starting to deliver the goods for our clients—is augmented reality.

Augmented reality (AR) is the art of super-imposing computer-generated content over the onscreen view of something through a camera-equipped smart phone or tablet. Specifically, augmented reality connects 3D models with printed materials, similar to the popular Nintendo 3DS gaming system. One part entertainment, one part service, this free app can tell a product’s story in a fun, creative and educational way. There are tons of potential uses for it, such as letting consumers see realistic 3D projections of products before they purchase them. This hands-on experience truly engages the consumer with the product, bringing it to life and, in many cases, bringing out their inner child.

Several B+L clients are now using augmented reality. Pentair recently dove into the world of AR to introduce a high tech, environmentally friendly electronic water purification system. Augmented reality played a key role in the “soft launch” of this technology at the world’s largest water industry trade show, Aquatech Amsterdam. Used to virtually demonstrate the technological inner workings of non-operational product models in the trade show booth, the app was a major hit, and is currently being adapted for use by Pentair—and a new industry partner—at coming shows in the US.

Augmented reality is equally suited for consumer applications. For example, the cover of the 2012 Wisconsin Dells Vacation Guide, as viewed through an AR-enabled smart phone or tablet with camera, will become a 3D interactive space with videos and links to the Dells VCB’s mobile website as well as to a more robust, digital version of the guide itself.

In our opinion, these examples are just the tip of the AR iceberg. Though it may be derived from consumer video games, the potential business applications of this technology cuts across almost all categories, from the most technical of B-to-B marketing to the most family oriented of consumer campaigns. It’s a safe bet that augmented reality won’t lose its place on B+L’s “cool tech” hotlist any time soon.