Title: Merging real and virtual worlds: An analysis of the state of the art and practical evaluation of Microsoft Hololens,
Abstract: Achieving a symbiotic blending between reality and virtuality is a dream that
has been lying in the minds of many people for a long time. Advances in various
domains constantly bring us closer to making that dream come true. Augmented
reality as well as virtual reality are in fact trending terms and are expected
to further progress in the years to come.
This master's thesis aims to explore these areas and starts by defining
necessary terms such as augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR). Usual
taxonomies to classify and compare the corresponding experiences are then
discussed.
In order to enable those applications, many technical challenges need to be
tackled, such as accurate motion tracking with 6 degrees of freedom (positional
and rotational), that is necessary for compelling experiences and to prevent
user sickness. Additionally, augmented reality experiences typically rely on
image processing to position the superimposed content. To do so, "paper"
markers or features extracted from the environment are often employed. Both
sets of techniques are explored and common solutions and algorithms are
presented.
After investigating those technical aspects, I carry out an objective
comparison of the existing state-of-the-art and state-of-the-practice in those
domains, and I discuss present and potential applications in these areas. As a
practical validation, I present the results of an application that I have
developed using Microsoft HoloLens, one of the more advanced affordable
technologies for augmented reality that is available today. Based on the
experience and lessons learned during this development, I discuss the
limitations of current technologies and present some avenues of future
research.