Reveal things we can't yet see... with AR glass
Our AR glass can change our view of the world.
There’s a whole new reality waiting for us – things in front of us that we can’t yet see. Bicycling directions without looking down. Critical oxygen levels displayed right on a firefighter’s helmet. Equipment status on a manufacturing employee’s safety glasses. A patient’s vitals pulsing on a surgeon’s headset.
Augmented reality (AR) glass will reveal it all.
When these realities open up, the magic starts, says Xavier Lafosse, Corning Advanced Optics commercial technology director. The magic is AR glass’ ability to bring us together.
“I get really excited because AR could really connect people,” Xavier said. “Imagine a group of teenagers working on a school art project – a 3D model of a sculpture – all from different parts of the world. Wearing AR glasses, they can collaborate on a physical structure, virtually, and then make it a reality with a 3D printer.”
In AR, an image is superimposed over the user’s field of view – think, for example, of how scrimmage graphics appear on a football broadcast, or how a paint company can allow DIYers to preview a new color in their room with an app.
With an AR wearable device, an image is projected through glass and diffracted off optical gratings. This requires more than just your average piece of glass, and Corning has a highly specialized solution.
With the release of their new 2.0 high-index glass composition, Corning’s Advanced Optics business is pushing the progress of AR and mixed reality (MR) diffractive waveguides for consumer devices. The new 2.0 glass technology will present headset wearers with larger and clearer digital content for a more engaging and immersive experience – delighting customers when it was unveiled at the SPIE conference in January.
“Judging by the number of samples that were requested at SPIE, customers are excited about the potential Corning’s glass holds for their devices,” said Charles Philip, commercial manager, Precision Glass Solutions.
“Corning has been a key player in AR for almost a decade. We pursue our mission to enable this technology to happen and be accessible to all. On top of new glass compositions, Corning brings state-of-the-art metrology instruments to ensure that headset makers have super flat glass – a necessity for their AR technology. And with in-house automated laser cutting , the glass can be precisely extracted for any eyepiece shape,” said Quentin Hayet, product line manager, Augmented Reality Solutions.
But Corning’s hand in AR is more than just quality; it’s a drive for glass innovation.
“It’s what we do,” Xavier said. “Starting with cathode ray tubes 80 years ago, to leading the industry in LCD glass, Corning has reinvented itself with technical glass for TV. And then with Gorilla Glass for mobile consumer electronics. We’re a few years into glass for AR applications, and constantly improving.”
Yet, the world of AR requires lots of cross-industry collaboration, says Corning’s Karan Mehrotra, program manager, Augmented Reality Solutions. And collaboration is exactly the spirit of AR.
“In manufacturing, an engineer who is well-versed in a certain machine can troubleshoot with someone on the plant floor without having to travel to the facility,” Karan said. “AR can build teamwork while helping boost efficiency in manufacturing.”
Just like Xavier, Karan craves technology that connects people. He envisions a near future where notifications from friends pop into his line of sight, where he can interact with family near and far without having to look down at his phone.
Xavier looks forward to how AR glass can make the world more beautiful – how designers can play with their art before implementing it, how creatives can make art in public without a trace, and how art lovers can view previously inaccessible works in their own home.
All of this awaits as our new reality is revealed.
