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Applications of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality in SMEs

ByDave Stopher

Feb 27, 2020 #technology

SMEs must live the digital transformation as a great opportunity to create and develop their projects. One of the keys is to put technology at the service of each business model, and take advantage of the latest trends to give added value to the product or service in the market. Virtual and Augmented Reality offer enormous opportunities to companies that want to integrate these technologies.

In wiss Tomato we have talked about the main virtual reality development and processes that SMEs already use to be competitive companies, and today we want to focus on one of the ones that is giving more talk and more potentials for the coming years: virtual reality and augmented reality

The applications of virtual reality development/ augmented reality in the industry are multiple, and the main technological firms such as Google, Samsung, Microsoft, Sony, HTC and Facebook have opted strongly for their technology, knowing their application to the field of individuals and, above all, to your possibilities in the professional and business field.

SMEs must analyze in depth if they can be part of their business, for what purpose, for what prominence and what they will contribute to their final product or service. Today we still have a very recent perspective of this type of technology, and that is why it is interesting to observe the full spectrum of utilities that can have in the SMEs of the 21st century.

If we have as reference the popular image of a person with Virtual Reality glasses that allow him to interact in a parallel digital world with elements that are not part of the real physical space, we will obtain a basic starting point to know the possibilities of this technology in the company.

Virtual Reality and Increased Reality

Virtual Reality technology is already well known in general and has become popular in recent years for new advances and the commercialization of more affordable models, but it is a technology with many years of travel.

The advances in the miniaturization of components have allowed developing more comfortable, less invasive systems, with a greater degree of realism and above all more economical, and the appearance of new competitors will make them increasingly affordable for the general public.

Basically, both Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are based on very similar technologies, the main difference is that while Augmented Reality tries to trick our brain into making us believe that we are in a different reality, Augmented Reality shows us additional information superimposed on the “real” world.

Virtual Reality Training

From a transversal perspective to all professional sectors, training will be one of the great spaces in which Virtual Reality will continue to add presence. From small SMEs to large corporations such as NASA itself, today there are many companies that have training plans for their employees through Virtual Reality devices.

In addition to offering a technology with many possibilities to transmit knowledge and interact with it, once the investment in each training plan has been made, the item of expenses for employee training is reduced. All this, as we mentioned, with a much more attractive and effective environment for the worker, who has more motivation, interactivity or connectivity.

In this way, the employee can be trained in the use of heavy or dangerous machinery, or know the occupational risks of certain facilities, without facing the risks associated with its handling during the training period.

Virtual Reality at the Service of Marketing

SMEs seek daily new strategies to reach new customers or retain current ones. In this line, finding innovative, creative or viral marketing actions is one of the main objectives to achieve, with a budget of a small or medium company, a wide spread. Fortunately, the information and communication era offer us tools with which we can reach many potential clients with a relatively low investment.

In this way, SMEs and large companies have already launched marketing actions that allow us to simulate the test of a mobile device, a car or a garment through Virtual Reality. Undoubtedly, it is a very important added value for brands that are committed to it, and with very high possibilities of return on investment.

Innovative and Dissocialized Communication

In previous articles we have talked about the application of ICT to improve many aspects of communication and mobility in the company. Thus, conferences using tools such as Skype and other video call tools are a great opportunity to have a closer connection with any part of the world, be it with clients or with colleagues from the company itself.

The use of Virtual Reality can be considered a step further with respect to the examples cited. With the help of VR devices, in addition to communicating with an office of our company in another city, for example, we can add elements that a video call cannot offer us.

We could do the same if we organized a meeting with our employees in which we want them to feel comfortable, calm, calm and in a positive environment. Through Virtual Reality we can immerse you in a paradisiacal environment, surrounded by sand and crystalline waters and sounds of nature. Undoubtedly, a much more relaxed environment than an office itself in the center of the noisy city and with the image we see every day.

Interactive Information in the Workplace Through Increased Reality

One application, closely related to the one discussed above in the field of training, is that of support in industrial services such as infrastructure or service maintenance, logistics, etc. providing relevant information to workers in the workplace, or even outside the premises.

In this case, the most widespread technology is that of Augmented Reality, very close to Virtual Reality, but mixing real image with 3D infographic elements.

Interactive Information at the Workplace

Finally, we do not want to mention the possibilities of Virtual Reality in product development, either through prototyping or simulating products that have not even been manufactured.

Virtual Reality allows us to simulate, visualize and test virtual products that require very high manufacturing costs. A very clear example and where it is already beginning to penetrate strongly is in the automotive and construction sector, where engineers can see the prototype of a real-size car without actually manufacturing and assembling the parts, or where you can visit a home without having a pilot floor or having started the works.

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