Virtual reality and augmented reality technologies help engineers and manufacturing teams improve efficiency, collaborate more, and transfer knowledge.

New Technologies. New Possibilities.

People often talk about virtual reality and augmented in the same breath as if they are merely different shades of the same shiny technology wonder. In fact, virtual reality and augmented reality are very different ideas and very different technologies. But when it comes to serving the needs of engineers and manufacturing professionals, VR and AR are complimentary technologies, opposites sides of the same coin.

The design of a production line creates a complex design. There exist many dependencies within production stations and between production stations. How can the design engineers and the manufacturing engineers check the design and prepare for its implementation most effectively?

What if your engineering team and manufacturing team could meet in the factory and check the production line before it exists? What if they could walk down the line together following the manufacturing process, verifying each production station, and discussing the assembly of the production line itself?

Virtual reality provides digital technology assistance to the design and manufacturing teams. Rather than sitting in a conference room discussing the implementation on a monitor, the team gathers in the virtual factory and walks down the line. Standing in front of each production station, the teams have detailed engineering data available with the wave of a wand and a click.

Design verification is one point. Assembly of the production line is another. In the virtual factory, the manufacturing team can build the production line step-by-step. This ability in VR delivers the dual benefits of verification and training. The verification process ensures a smoother implementation. And by literally practicing the assembly of the production line, the more experienced team members can share their expertise with newer team members before the physical implementation is done.

Augmented reality is the compliment to virtual reality for the engineering and manufacturing teams. After verifying and practicing the production line construction in VR, the implementation teams benefit from AR in the actual implementation.

Now, the teams are in the actual factory. The implementation is in progress. Using AR, the entire design and assembly information is available visually and in context. Need to verify the cable routing between production stations? Augmented reality technology is your digital assistant. Need to contact an expert for a problem on the line? Bring the expert online, live on the production floor via AR.

The same complimentary cycle of VR and AR in manufacturing applies throughout the production lifetime as the production line is modified, updated, and maintained. With verification and training in virtual reality, documentation and design data on site using augmented reality, the process of maintaining a production system can be done more reliably, faster, and with fewer surprises.

These complimentary technologies save time, save money, and avoid cost and schedule overruns.

VR & AR as digital technology assistants in engineering

New Technologies. New Possibilities.

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