3D Software

HoloLens gets an industrial mixed reality upgrade from Arvizio

Mixed reality is the combination of AR (augmented reality) and VR (virtual reality). At enterprise level, it is used to add another dimension to product design and visualization. As a potential outcome of the process, and important part of industry 4.0, additive manufacturing is often linked to explorations of AR, VR and mixed reality.

As a digital platform, mixed reality can be accessed by anyone from anywhere on the globe, meaning collaboration no longer has to be site-specific (or done sitting at a desk).

Complex 3D models like aircrafts, or architectural projects, are of course made from hundreds and thousands of individual parts. One smart way of managing this data for view in mixed reality is through the use of point clouds.

Instead of digitally crafting each inch of a product, point cloud data creates an image as a collection of dots, saving a significant amount of processing power.

Arvizio is an enterprise-level provider of mixed reality services. To enhance the existing abilities of its proprietary MR Studio™  platform for the Microsoft HoloLens and other headsets, the company has now integrated high-definition point cloud data produced by DotProduct 3D scanners.

According to Arvizio CEO Jonathan Reeves, the integration will allow “team members and stakeholders to collaborate in a new, highly efficient ways.”

View of a mechanical room made from a Low Density Point Cloud. Image via DotProduct on Sketchfab.

Used in the real-world

DotProduct’s 3D scanners are handheld devices made for use in the field. They have been deployed in a range of projects including electrical utilities, building renovation, offshore oil facilities and hardware engineering in the U.S. Navy.

In one example use-case, multinational construction and development company Skanska used DotProduct scanners for a bridge renovation project. Appraised by Anna Greenfield, Skanska Field Engineer, “The point cloud measurements are at least as accurate, and definitely more consistent” than the field-measured equivalent.

Portion a bridge measured using a DotProduct 3D scanner. Image via DotProduct
Portion a bridge measured using a DotProduct 3D scanner. Image via DotProduct

More than science ficition 

In partnership with Arvizio, any point-cloud data created by DotProducts scanners is automatically rendered for view on a HoloLens headset. As a mixed reality product, the integration allows customers to multitask using virtual display channels straight out of science fiction.

In addition to an interactive 3D product view, users can host a video chat with colleagues, and simultaneously pull up any relevant data about the project to make edits or consider different options.

Tom Greaves, DotProduct CMO, explains, “The ability to deploy DP scans as 3D holographic models will provide our customers and resellers with an integrated solution that will streamline and enhance new and existing projects.”

Making the science fiction of project development a reality - multiple virtual display panels in MR Studio. Image via Arvizio
Making the science fiction of project development a reality – multiple virtual display panels in MR Studio. Image via Arvizio

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Featured image shows inside a point-cloud generated mechanical room. Image via DotProduct