Pratt DAHRC has received the Microsoft HoloLens Wave 1 Developers’s status. There will be a number of applications to be developed in the category of art, design, medical, entertainment, and fashion.
Aaron helps Francesca get up and running with the HoloLens
If multiple HoloLens units are available, it is possible to see and interact with the same Augmented Reality content, making shared experiences possible.
Paul and Aaron on their Favorite Respective Devices
One thing about the holograms: THEY STICK!
Once the holograms are placed, they do not shake or jitter. The tracking capability of the HoloLens in constantly scanning the 3D environment geometry to continuously place the holograms rapidly aligned with the physical world is near-flawless. The performance is impressive, creating the magical illusion necessary to allow comfortable user experience.
The 3D tracking performance is among the best we have seen in any software or hardware to date.
Microsoft has really nailed this one, probably at the level of how Apple had perfected the feel of the trackpad on the laptop computers, contributing to the enormous success and popularity of their laptop hardware.
This was the second test of the Microsoft HoloLens while driving a vehicle in NYC. Here are some facts and highlights so far:
- 45 minute Drive from NJ to NYC midtown.
- The ergonomics were found to be quite comfortable.
- Similar feel in weight and movement to a reasonable duty bike helmet, only without the ceiling portion.
- No problems with visibilities of the road, the exterior environment, and the people outside.
- The 3D scanning of the interior of the vehicle was met with some challenges, probably due to the transparent windows, the complex geometry of the dashboard and console of the car, and the complexities and rapid changes occurring outside the vehicle
- While stopped at a traffic light, I managed to place the browser windows and hologram objects onto the various parts of the interior and the dashboard.
- The visibility of the digital content was decent when placed on the darker areas of the interior space of the vehicle, but not too high when placed in areas where direct sunlight was shining onto surfaces, or when bright areas of the exterior scene were behind the holograms.
- The head-driven cursor and the finger-gesture clicks brought some concerns to be able to execute them while driving the vehicle in safe manner. I would not recommend trying to operate the HoloLens interactive manner while driving. This may perhaps be an obvious point, but I believe it is nevertheless important to validate through actual testing and make the recommendation.
- Unlike the Google Glass which had received tremendous pre-release publicity, the HoloLens in comparison seems to be fairly unrecognized by the public at this point. The responses from the people were neither positive nor negative. Most people were fairly oblivious except for a few exceptions, who took notice and asked what the device was and which company makes it. The anything-goes culture of the NYC probably helped the device fit in more to the environment. The NYPD police officers did not even take notice.
- More comprehensive review of the technology and the experience will follow soon.
Vi Hart using the HoloLens to spice up her home:
Jon Schull of e-NABLE tries out the HoloLens for the first time:
With the HoloLens technology, it is possible to combine any digital content interact with the physical environment.
With development of additional interfaces, it is possible to have the holograms stick onto the moving parts of the human body:
Stay tuned for the AR content and tools to come from DAHRC. Please feel free to comment and inquire within for collaboration interests.
