Augmented Reality

AR has been around for a long time, but has received a tremendous push in recent times with even a low end smartphone possessing capabilities like GPS (various standards), digital compass, NFC, barometers, gyroscope, accelerometer, various kinds of proximity sensors and needless to say – very high resolution stereo image/video capturing (depth capabilities) and processing capabilities.

While there are specialized devices for AR, smartphones offer an immense potential for enabling several features/functionalities that have immediate commercial applications in areas including but not limited to gaming/entertainment, education/information dissemination, utilities and tools for daily use, positioning/tracking, maintenance/repair and retail/e-commerce.

Given Whirldata’s strategy of working only on commercially viable/immediately deployable technologies and with AI/ML being the core of the company, the focus today is on equipping smartphones with AR capabilities (powered by AI/ML solutions) that allow for – increased revenue generation, cost reduction and/or enhancing customer experience.

Whirldata has chosen brick and mortar retail and maintenance/repair as areas with immediate opportunities for deploying smartphone based AR applications that are powered BY AI/ML.

Opportunities exist today for enhancing the in-store shopping experience in a brick-and-mortar store that enhances a shopper’s experience. Enhancements could be in the form of additional product information, comparative information, spot discounts, customer-specific augmented information (based on their profile), virtual fitting rooms and several others.

AR also can fill an immediate need-gap in the area of equipment maintenance/repairs where complex repairs can be carried out by less skilled technicians and cost-effective training can be enabled on expensive machinery.

Whirldata’s AR team work towards building prototypes/proof of concepts on combing AR with AI/ML on a smartphone platform.