Discover how to integrate Mixed Reality into your company with Microsoft's HoloLens 2

At Invelon we are experts in offering Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR) and Mixed Reality (MR) solutions tailored to the needs of each company.

Experience has led us to merge both types of technology, Virtual and Augmented Reality, together with interaction with the real world. This union gives us a new technology called Mixed Reality (MR) which is applied using hardware designed for this technology, such as Microsoft's HoloLens 2, one of the best Mixed Reality models.

At Invelon we are official distributors of Microsoft Mixed Reality equipment such as the HoloLens 2.

What is Mixed Reality?

Mixed Reality (MR) is the combination of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality, creating a hybrid experience through electronic devices. This produces new spaces where real people and objects interact with virtual ones.

This combination of technologies aims to bring the real world into the virtual one, without losing information about, or sight of, where we are and the objects around us. A 3D model is therefore created with virtual information about the real space. The experience obtained thanks to this technology, which is completely immersive, provides valuable content to the user.

The work process begins with the generation of a 3D map, after scanning the environment, and then analysing the surface and placing all the visual elements you want.

What are the HoloLens 2 like?

The Microsoft HoloLens 2 is a new product that improves on the internal features of its predecessor, in order to compete with other headsets on the market. Microsoft is very clear about the audience it should target: professionals. After all, it knows exactly who its target is, businesses, and what its goal is, how to help them grow through Mixed Reality.

These Mixed Reality glasses let you rotate, enlarge and move holograms with your hands, as well as play a piano or press virtual buttons, as they track hand movements without the need for controllers. What is more, they feature facial tracking technology, eye tracking, and voice control, which follows the movement of the eyes to scroll and follow spoken instructions. In this way, the device adapts the holograms to your eyes, as it detects the direction of your gaze and what you intend to do.

This eye-tracking sensor is the Kinect Azure, a dedicated ARM processor that is able to accurately track a person's gaze. Kinect Azure also doubles the user's field of view, going from viewing at 720p to doing so in 4K.

In addition, the new model has an HPU (Holographic Processing Unit) that includes a secondary chip for artificial intelligence. This adds extra precision when recognising surfaces such as walls, doors or windows. Thanks to this chip, spaces and contexts are distinguished far better. It achieves this by mapping the space to build a digital outline of everything in the location.

As the main improvement over the previous model, the new glasses offer twice the field of view area of the earlier version, together with 47 pixels per degree of vision. They also include unrivalled calibration of the user's hands so that body movement is as precise as possible.

Its improved design brings multiple benefits: it is a much more comfortable accessory, the field of view is much wider and you can wear it over your prescription glasses. In addition, the visor can be flipped upwards so that it sits out of your line of sight, with no need to take the headset off when it is not in use.

Features of Microsoft's new HoloLens 2

Enjoy an immersive experience

The ultimate HoloLens 2 device lets you see more holograms in a much wider field of view at the same time, twice that of the first generation. It offers industry-leading resolution and image quality, which makes it possible to read text and discover details in 3D images far more efficiently and comfortably. You can also manipulate and move them easily with the movement of your fingers and control them using the voice assistant.

Enjoy an ergonomic design

You do not need to take off your prescription glasses to use the new HoloLens 2, because it adapts to them. In addition, the visor lifts up out of your line of sight when you want to switch activity. This device promises to be durable and comfortable, and includes a dial-based fit adjustment system designed for the longest possible use.

Work with an intuitive interface

You can touch, grab and move objects, that is, holograms, more naturally, as if they were 100% real objects. You can sign in to HoloLens 2 using only your eyes thanks to the Windows Hello system. The smart microphones allow voice commands to work flawlessly even in noisy, industrial environments.

Move freely, with nothing holding you back

This device allows you to move freely, without being tied down by cables or external packs that could get in your way. It is a completely standalone headset with Wi-Fi connectivity.

Get maximum customisation for your company

As we have already mentioned, Microsoft focuses on businesses and their needs. That is why the HoloLens 2 are considerably changing the way people work, thanks to all the possibilities they offer. Microsoft also allows these headsets to be customised, as it seeks to adapt to the specific needs of each sector and/or company and the particular application they will be used for.

Applications of the new HoloLens 2

This technology is designed to meet the needs of each company. It is therefore an immersive tool that can be adapted to multiple industries, because it supports the tasks and requirements that each industry needs. This hardware makes it possible for you to collaborate with people appearing as holograms from all over the world. Below, we detail the different applications of HoloLens 2 for some industries:

Industry

Mixed Reality is considerably changing the industrial sector, from better employee onboarding to increased operational efficiency. These technologies help reduce manual work to increase business productivity.

If you have a production line that is not 100% effective or not profitable enough, HoloLens 2 will let you reduce downtime. In addition, if workers have a manufacturing problem, they can receive remote, hands-free assistance in real time, which will make the technical support process easier for them.

Healthcare

Mixed Reality technology brings faster medical diagnoses and shorter waiting and healthcare times. Thanks to this immersive technology, specialist teams, clinical and administrative staff can collaborate remotely. They can hold virtual patient consultations and thus reduce diagnosis and treatment times. It is also a very useful tool for simulating operations, in order to optimise the process and the outcome of the real operation on patients as far as possible.

Education

Thanks to Mixed Reality, learning processes, their effectiveness and student engagement can all be improved. By using these tools, students learn much faster and retain knowledge better.

HoloLens 2 can be a good tool for making this process completely self-directed by the students themselves. Mixed Reality simplifies the learning of subjects such as anatomy, molecular chemistry and architectural design, among others.

Other industries in which these technologies could be implemented:

• Marketing
• Design
• Architecture and construction
• Tourism

Mixed Reality software compatible with HoloLens 2

At Invelon we have software that adapts to and works with HoloLens 2 technology.

• Aurora VR. Our Virtual Reality software, Aurora VR, makes it possible to manipulate and analyse 3D engineering models in a completely immersive way. It considerably reduces product design and ergonomics problems. It also lets you validate product finishes and reduce the time and costs of the design cycle.
• PTC's Vuforia Studio. This PTC software is designed to boost workplace productivity, as it improves processes and products, with greater safety and productivity. In addition, Vuforia Studio takes advantage of the capabilities of Microsoft HoloLens 2 to perform actions and voice commands, as it is a hands-free device.

Benefits of implementing HoloLens 2 in companies' production processes

In summary, thanks to the HoloLens 2 tool together with specific software, such as Aurora VR or PTC's Vuforia Studio, a company can take advantage of the following benefits of Mixed Reality, always tailored to its industry and needs:

• Time savings
• Cost savings
• Improved productivity
• Improved quality of products or services
• Greater professionalisation of employees

Ultimately, Mixed Reality is establishing itself as one of the definitive technologies, as it unites Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality, allowing people to interact with virtual models in the real environment.