News | Aug 03, 2023

What DELO Has to Do with Augmented Reality

Smartphones have radically transformed our daily lives, and in a few years, augmented reality (AR) and smart glasses could bring about a similar technological revolution—thanks in part to DELO adhesives.

Augmented reality has the potential to revolutionize our interaction with the digital world. A massive market is likely to emerge, which is very interesting and technically exciting for DELO

Dr. Stephan Prinz DELO Product Manager at DELO

How can AR contribute to our lives?

Just as smartphones have continuously evolved, new application areas for augmented reality are constantly emerging. To give you an idea of its potential uses, here are four promising AR applications:

Navigation
Walking in the wrong direction after exiting the subway or missing a hidden address could become things of the past with AR navigation. Augmented reality can integrate routes, destinations, and waypoints innovatively and directly into our field of view.
Shopping
Whether in a furniture store or online shopping, AR offers the chance to virtually experience products. You can try out how a new sofa fits in your home, for example. AR also holds great potential for online shopping, enabling virtual try-ons for glasses, makeup, or clothing.
Digital Engineering
While engineering has been possible by digital means for many years, augmented reality will take it to the next level. Virtual 3D models can be visualized directly in the real world, for example. These models can also be broken down into individual components—all without requiring a physical prototype. This opens new horizons in product development, allowing engineers and designers to view and interact with designs in a realistic context.
Remote Support
This type of application enables experts to provide instructions and support from remote locations. They can place AR overlays, annotations, or visual aids directly into the user's field of vision. This can be useful in rare medical procedures or physically challenging environments, such as underwater.

A conceptual image showing augmented reality smart glasses displaying a city street view. Through the black-framed glasses, a busy urban shopping street is visible with people walking. The AR interface shows information labels for nearby businesses. in deutsch

Augmented reality (AR) glasses project digital information in real-time over the physical environment. Context-sensitive content is seamlessly integrated into the user's field of view, enhancing navigation and decision-making in everyday life.

The journey of augmented reality so far

In 2016, the mobile game Pokémon GO sparked the first major hype around augmented reality.

The meaning of Augmented Reality and how it’s different from Virtual Reality

Augmented reality (AR) refers to the overlay of the real world with digital information like texts, graphics, images, and animations. AR creates a blend of virtual and real worlds. In contrast, virtual reality (VR) creates a fully immersive, artificially generated environment that users can enter and interact with in real-time using devices such as VR headsets, effectively shutting out the real world.

While Pokémon GO was experienced on mobile phones, glasses might be the augmented reality device of the future - specifically, "smart glasses." These glasses are designed to be sleek and lightweight, virtually indistinguishable from regular glasses. However, they require special lenses capable of displaying additional virtual content. This capability is realized through a technology known as waveguides.

Yole, a well-known market research firm, views waveguides as a breakthrough technology for AR glasses. Waveguides are responsible for directing light beams within a lens. For instance, a tiny projector built into an AR eyeglass frame could generate a navigation arrow. The waveguides direct the navigation arrow so that it appears in the user's field of view.

In the field of optics and photonics, we make a significant contribution to the improvement of waveguides by developing products with precisely tuned optical properties that significantly impact functionality. The adhesive often does far more than just bond two components together and is thus a core component in the technical implementation of a waveguide. Our commitment is to garner attention to the AR industry, and we delivered; this topic was prominently featured at our "Smart Glasses Conference" in November 2022.

Although current challenges like battery size—which causes the glasses to appear bulky—persist, the future is promising. Should the AR market gain momentum in the coming years, DELO is well-positioned to play a key role in this technological development.

Discover exciting roles and become part of a team that values innovation and teamwork. Visit our job portal today and find your perfect fit at DELO!

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About DELO

DELO is a leading provider of high-tech adhesives, offering solutions for semiconductor, automotive and electronics industries for over 25 years. Our innovative technologies set industry standards. Companies like Bosch, Huawei, and Siemens trust DELO for superior adhesive technologies.

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