Support tools used by growing companies are now attracting attention!

Support tools used by growing companies are now attracting attention!

I think the most important thing for a company to grow is to improve productivity. If you can do the same thing with less effort than before, you will have more spare capacity. If you increase this spare capacity and start doing operations that were previously untouched, productivity will improve.

Realize remote support with smart glasses and AR glasses. Explain the use cases of each industry

Among the xR technologies (VR / AR / MR) that have been gaining attention in recent years, "smart glasses" and "AR glasses" are particularly expected as hardware for social implementation. In this article, I will explain the current status of "remote support" using smart glasses and AR glasses.

XR technology (VR / AR / MR) has been gaining attention in recent years. Because the computing power and display power of computers are improving day by day, and the network environment such as 5G is being improved, it can be used not only by some geeky engineers but also by general people such as games and business sites. It can be said that it is progressing.

Among them, "smart glasses" and "AR glasses" are particularly expected as hardware for social implementation. In this article, I will explain the current status of "remote support" using smart glasses and AR glasses.

Difference between smart glasses and AR glasses
Do you know what is the difference between smart glasses and AR glasses in the first place?

While AR glasses are devices developed for the purpose of "seeing screens and landscapes with augmented reality (AR)", smart glasses are mainly used for glasses and sunglasses, and through glasses. It is a device developed for the purpose of enjoying digital contents in the world.

Generally, it is easy to think of smart glasses = AR glasses, but there are subtle differences in the definitions as described above.

For more information on smart glasses, see the following articles.

Why remote assistance is needed

Today, there is an unprecedented demand for remote support solutions in various social lives that utilize these smart glasses and AR glasses. Below, I will explain the reasons in three parts.

Elimination of travel time and effort
The culture of businessmen commuting to work by connecting trains is gradually declining due to the shift to a new normal life due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection that occurred in 2020. Is it necessary for people to get together in the office to work? I think there were many companies that thought deeply about this agenda in the Corona disaster.

There is a video call system such as Zoom as one of the solutions to eliminate travel time and labor, but smart glasses and AR glasses can also be considered as devices to enrich communication there. I am.

Elimination of personalization
Responding to the personalization of technology and skills at manufacturing sites, mainly in the manufacturing and construction industries, is also one of the factors that require remote support. Because training other than classroom lectures is an important area such as OJT, learning on a 2D screen like a conventional e-learning system takes time to learn. As a result, the elimination of personality in work will not proceed well, so there is an increasing demand for the use of smart glasses and AR glasses that can be instructed and instructed based on the actual site scenery.

Please see the following articles not only for the use of smart glasses and AR glasses, but also for the use of AR / VR in technology and skill transfer.

Smooth troubleshooting
In the case of smart glasses and AR glasses, you can share images by wearing them on your face, so you can respond hands-free when trouble occurs.

For example, if a device malfunction occurs in a factory, there is a risk that the situation cannot be accurately communicated using only voice such as a telephone. Also, when explaining via the camera of a smartphone or tablet, it is necessary to hold the device in your hand and handle it, which is inconvenient and may lead to operation mistakes.

By utilizing smart glasses and AR glasses, hands-free support will be possible.

As you can see from the above factors, the following two technical characteristics are the reasons why smart glasses and AR glasses are required in the remote support scene in social life.

Hands-free operation
Real-time communication by sharing eyes
Specific examples of remote support

From here, we will introduce cases where smart glasses and AR glasses can actually be used in various industries.

Labor saving and efficiency improvement of multi-person work
In infrastructure and plant-related work, there are many cases where two people work together for double checking. As mentioned earlier, in society after 2020, employment in a dense environment tends to be discouraged, and due to the declining trend of the working population, a small number of people are required to respond on-site.

By having field workers wear smart glasses / AR glasses, it is possible for the other member to remotely check the work status and provide support whenever necessary while referring to the manual at the site.

Efficiency of construction management and site supervision
At the construction site, construction managers and site supervisors manage the site staff. In particular, construction managers often try multiple sites in parallel, which not only increases travel costs, but also tends to increase communication costs when something goes wrong at a remote site.

By having the site staff wear smart glasses / AR glasses, construction managers can centrally grasp the situation of the site while staying in one place, and can also give instructions to pinpoint members as needed. Will be.

Streamlining inspections and inspections
The outer walls of condominiums and office buildings where we live every day have a risk of falling off due to deterioration, etc., so it is necessary to perform regular maintenance. In the partial amendment of the Building Standards Law Enforcement Regulations in 2008, it is obligatory to conduct a full percussion survey every 10 years on the outer wall of the part that may cause harm to pedestrians.

By utilizing smart glasses / AR glasses, for example, one person will perform a percussion inspection and the other person will have a drawing to record the floating and cracks on the outer wall and take a picture. I can. Please also refer to the case of "AR Takumi RESIDENCE", a joint solution by Haseko Corporation and outsourcing technology.

Remote instruction for medical surgery
Smart glasses / AR glasses are also effective when doctors perform surgery.

For example, various physiological indicators such as the patient's heart rate and blood pressure information can be displayed on the screen through the glasses worn by the surgeon, which improves the surgeon's ability to recognize the current situation and enables more efficient surgery. Probably. Of course, as in the case above, the screen can be shared externally in real time, so surgery can be carried out with the instructions of a more experienced doctor.

In addition to the above-mentioned real-time surgery, for example, in preliminary member-to-member simulation, it is possible to check in 3D information on the affected area of ​​a patient with the position of an organ between smart glasses / AR glass wearers. It could also improve awareness.

For reference, please also refer to the following articles regarding the utilization of AR technology in medical care.

Support for assessment work for automobiles, etc.
In automobile assessment, in addition to information such as vehicle year, mileage, accident history, modification history, etc., it is necessary to evaluate functional parts such as the engine of the car and the appearance of the exterior and interior. .. In order to evaluate various car models, it is necessary to have appropriate experience and intuition for checking.

By utilizing smart glasses / AR glasses, even new staff will be able to proceed with appropriate assessments by providing remote support from staff with many years of experience and detailed staff.

Precautions when providing remote support with smart glasses or AR glasses

In this way, smart glasses / AR glasses can be said to be effective in various business categories, but there are some precautions when using them.

First, for binocular displays, you need to design your solution so that your view is not obstructed while you work. For example, if the field of vision is temporarily blacked out due to a loss of communication, it will lead to a big mistake if you are doing precision work, and it will be life-threatening if you are doing dangerous work. It will also be.

Also, if you want to receive remote assistance with smart glasses / AR glasses, you need to keep it on for a long time, so you need to make sure that the device itself is not too heavy. No matter how versatile it is, if it is heavy enough to make you tired just by wearing it, it can be difficult to continue working.

Smart glasses / AR glasses that can be used in various tasks
So far, we have introduced remote support cases for smart glasses and AR glasses. You can see that it can be used in a variety of tasks because it is hands-free and real-time communication is possible by sharing the line of sight.

Since the network environment such as 5G has been improved and the number of cases of social implementation has increased, why not consider using smart glasses and AR glasses in your business?