Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1022231
36 SMT007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2018 Feature by Dan Feinberg I-CONNECT007 The rate of advance in the use of XR in many areas, along with advances in the hardware and network capability supporting the use of XR, is accelerating. And because things are moving so quickly, let's do a quick review and an update on recent developments in this field. The term XR is now being used to cover AR (augmented reality), VR (vir- tual reality), and MR (mixed reality). The first XR could be considered cave wall carv- ings. But in relatively mod- ern times, I consider the orig- inal to be B&W movies. The first was made in 1878 and consisted of a "moving pic- ture" of a racehorse made by assembling individual pictures from multiple cameras. Motion pictures were born on that day. It took 40 years to reach the next big mile- stone, color motion pictures. The obvious next step would be motion pictures with sound— that took nine more years (1927), a long time— but the rate of advance had accelerated. As I mentioned in a previous article, one of the first movies showing a train approaching at full speed caused a panic among those view- ing it—some left their seats and, in a panic, exited the viewing area to avoid being hit by the train. Over the next decades, we went to higher quality, higher resolution, sound that synced well with image, initial 3D, and so on. All this led to the initial holo- deck-like capabilities we are starting to see today. Do not think of XR as just an entertainment driv- en technology. Yes, there are 3D TVs, although that seg- ment has basically failed due to the need to wear spe- cial glasses (which will be eliminated in time); and yes, the XR gaming segment is growing. But the real drivers are industrial, medical, military and transportation under remote control. (If you want more detail on this growing and rapidly advancing group of technologies, you might want to read my XR Update: Emerging Realities Figure 1: VR headset.