What is Augmented Reality?
Augmented Reality is the enhancement of perception through the use of technology. What we see, hear, touch, or smell with our senses is "reality." Adding additional information enhances what our own senses can perceive, and "augments" our real world perception.
How technology enhances our senses
We use technology to augment our reality almost every day. For instance, we can enhance our perception of the world by simply lighting candles at a dinner party. While looking at our world through a flickering flame, we see our world differently, we might feel something new as our experience has changed: by adding a candle to our experience, the candle augments the natural light. A candle is pretty basic technology, but you probably get the idea about how any technology can change what our senses perceive, so what happens when we apply computing technology, which is what most people mean when they refer to the term augmented reality.
Computer-based augmented reality
One example of augmented reality is already in modern automobiles. Some new cars come equipped with rear-view safety monitors mounted on their dashboards. While backing-up, cameras directed at the driver's rear-view provide a more effective view of the world than the simple use of mirrors can accomplish. But there is more to this system than merely a rear-view display: sophisticated sensors supplement a driver's perceptions as the dashboard display offers sounds (flurries of beeps) and flashing graphics if the vehicle gets too close to a solid object. The additions of audio and graphical warnings to the dashboard display enhance a driver's perception of the world: that's Augmented Reality.
Smartphone augmented reality apps
With sophisticated cameras, Internet access, location sensors, and high-resolution displays, it was only a matter of time until someone started creating augmented reality apps for smartphones. A common use of augmented reality in smartphones is for travel and location information. By accessing the Internet, smartphone apps can retrieve information about almost any location and overlay it on your screen; all you need to do is point your smartphone camera at a building, store, or street location, and additional information from the Internet appears on your display.
Wikitude is considered a leading augmented reality development app and is available for app developers to use for both Apple iOS and Android smartphones. While at a location, point the app at a building, and it will display additional information about the structure overlayed on top of the image. You can view examples of apps that use Wikitude for augmented reality in their showcase, which includes examples from Time magazine and TripAdvisor. Apple and Google also have augmented reality apps available their respective app stores. One new app that is uses Apple's own augmented reality development tools for iOS11 is the Ikea Store app, available in late September 2017; the app allows you to use products from the Ikea catalog and superimpose them on a room so you can see how your design looks.
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