Remote assistance is one of the key use cases for Mixed Reality.
With HoloMeeting's Life Feed function, Remote assistance is a reality with a wide-ranging potential impact and a number of different use case scenarios. In HoloMeeting, remote assistance can be seen through the Live Feed feature.
Imagine being an engineer on an oil platform needing to conduct repairs. You encounter a challenge during the repair process and require assistance. Currently, you would call a remote expert for support.
However, given the fact that the expert can't see what you are working on, it is hard to provide efficient and detailed support. The most common solution to issues that cannot be solved via remote support would be for an expert engineer to be transported to the location. This clearly presents its own problems, not least of all the loss of output and earnings during the downtime period.
From oil rigs to factories, manufacturing facilities to research laboratories these periods of downtime and lost output hours cost businesses millions of pounds every year.
Thankfully, the HoloLens and Mixed Reality technology has allowed for an elegant and effective solution to be developed. We call our remote maintenance solution "HoloLens Remote Assistance" which is packaged within our HoloMeeting application in the form of the Live Feed Feature.
Introducing HoloLens Remote Assistance in HoloMeeting
Our determination when we developed HoloMeeting was for the application the be a facilitator of remote collaboration and communication with Mixed Reality. to be an application for communication and collaboration, we realise that we could think in broader terms than this. This is because the video Live Feed aspect of HoloMeeting which can be used for training, design, collaoration and communication can be used as a tool to bring a remote expert into the space of an in-field engineer.
The HoloLens allows the engineer to share his or her point of view through the camera being mounted directly above the line of sight. This enables the expert to provide valuable and efficient support.
At the moment, the closest solution available to this is for HoloLens. Having discussed this extensively with clients, we found that this is not a suitable solution for actual business use due to several factors:
These are only but a few limitations of the currently available Skype solution.
A real remote maintenance solution for commercial purposes
Kazendi's HoloLens Remote Assistance solution via HoloMeeting provides the following features:
This is a screenshot taken through HoloLens, showcasing the settings options. When not in a call, these can be accessed handsfree using voice commands. We are considering implementing gaze based control to allow for handsfree control during a call.
Clients want to be able to use HoloLens during maintenance operations. Therefore, an expert could remotely assist the repair of a machinery within a factory setting. Considering that often when an assembly line of a car manufacturer has to be stopped due to a single fault machine, this can often run into the £100,000+ per day or even per hour cost.
A HoloLens remote assistance solution that reduces time-to-repair, can potentially have a significant impact on machine reliability and manufacturing floor profitability.
Another use case is in remote locations - an oil rig or a mine for example - where the necessary expertise can't easily be provided (e.g. due to travel) - our HoloLens remote repair solutions allows your experts to dial in and support the user like they are there.
Additionally, through the ability to record support calls, we can use the footage for more efficient training of future remote experts. This allows for better documentation as part of complex Service Level Agreements as well as overall process improvements.
For the future, we are planning to release a feature that allows the HoloLens to 3D scan the machine/environment in question and for the expert to view it on their HoloLens in life size.
Using the built-in scanners of HoloLens, we will create a 3D model of the object in question and using the RGB camera and create the colour information (texture). The remote expert using a HoloLens can then see the object in question in front of them in real time and in a life-size format. This would allow the expert to be "teleported" to the support scene and virtually stand next to the engineer.
Furthermore, we are planning to expand the HoloLens Remote Assistance availability to other platforms such as iOS, Android & Web as part of our larger HoloMeeting rollout.
If you are interested in exploring HoloMeeting and remote assistance for your organisation do not hesitate to get in touch.
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