Augmented Reality Services Research Articles

Model and Methods of Traffic Routing in a Communication Network Using UAVs

Relevance. The development of 5G networks and subsequent generations is accompanied by the development of new services, in particular, virtual, augmented reality services, as well as telepresence, as well as radio access networks. In particular, there is an increase in operating frequencies, which poses additional challenges for organizing a network that can meet the requirements for the quality of traffic service from new services and ensure the availability of communication to users. These problems can be solved by various methods of placing access points, including using UAVs. This approach ensures the efficiency of construction and flexibility of the access network structure, but also requires the use of methods for placing access points in relation to users and other elements of the communication network. Problem statement: development of methods for placing routers in a UAV swarm and selecting traffic routes when organizing an access network, in order to improve the efficiency of the communication network. Purpose of the work: improving the efficiency of building an access network using UAVs through the development of clustering methods and distributing routers in a UAV swarm. Methods. The studies were carried out using the provisions of information theory, mathematical optimization methods, graph theory methods and clustering methods. The numerical results were obtained using the numerical simulation method in Python. Result. The developed model and methods allow for the distribution of network routers (access points) located on UAVs taking into account the quality of service and ensuring the construction of a connected mesh network and its connection with the mobile network, which can be used in both modern and future communication networks. Novelty: a modeling and methodological apparatus has been developed that allows for increasing the efficiency of building wireless access networks using UAVs, in particular, allowing for selecting the placement positions of routers in a UAV swarm and the logical structure of the network. The developed modeling and methodological apparatus solves the problem of traffic routing taking into account the quality of its service. Practical significance: the proposed model and methods can be used to organize service in 5G networks and subsequent generations. In particular, they allow for ensuring the availability of communication and the efficiency of network organization in cases of insufficient coverage, as well as in cases of failure of individual network elements. The ability to unload traffic to a local network allows for improving the quality of traffic service in the operator's network.

The Role of Virtual Try-On Augmented Reality of Cosmetic Products on Purchase Intention Mediated by Brand Trust

This study investigates the impact of Augmented Reality (AR) features, particularly Virtual Try-On (VTO), on purchase intention through brand trust in the context of cosmetic products in Indonesia. The research uses a quantitative approach with a sample of 274 respondents from various cities and provinces in Indonesia. Data analysis was conducted using SmartPLS 3 software, which shows a positive influence of AR on purchase intention mediated by brand trust. The findings indicate that AR Content Quality and AR Service Quality positively affect purchase intention through brand trust. This study provides valuable insights for the cosmetic industry in Indonesia, emphasizing the importance of AR features in enhancing consumer purchase intentions and brand trust. The research highlights that the effective implementation of AR can be a successful strategy for cosmetic companies to increase consumer engagement and loyalty, and drive market growth through technological innovation that aligns with current consumer needs and preferences.

Exploring the structural relationships between augmented reality quality, perceived value, and psychological well-being in museum applications: a PLS-SEM analysis

PurposeThe purpose of the study is to examine the impact of augmented reality (AR) on users' tour experience and psychological well-being in museums. The study utilizes the Information System (IS) Success Model and the Perceived Value Theory to investigate the relationships between AR quality, content quality, system quality, vividness, utilitarian value, hedonic value, tour experience, and psychological well-being.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopts a quantitative research approach and surveys 286 visitors at the Wuhan Natural History Museum. The collected data is analyzed using PLS-SEM to test the proposed model.FindingsThe study finds that content quality, system quality, and vividness significantly influence utilitarian and hedonic value. Utilitarian and hedonic values mediate the relationship between AR quality and tour experience and psychological well-being, with hedonic value having a greater impact. Utilitarian value positively influences customers' hedonic value, while tour experience positively influences customers' psychological well-being.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the existing literature by applying the Information System Success Model and Perceived Value Theory to explore the impact of AR on users' tour experience and psychological well-being in museums. It provides empirical evidence supporting the importance of content quality and perceived value in promoting AR adoption and use. The findings add value to the field of augmented reality research and offer practical implications for AR service providers.

AR Service Quality and Adoption Intention in Museums: The Mediating Role of Perceived Value and the Moderating Effect of Intracultural Differences

ABSTRACT The study aims to combine the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Service Quality Assessment Model (SQAM) to explore factors influencing visitors’ perceived value (PV) and their intention to use augmented reality (AR) in museums. Additionally, this study examined the mediating role of PV and the moderating effect of intracultural differences in the new framework. Data was collected from 524 participants in Taiwan and Mainland China. Structural equation modeling revealed that factors like perceived usefulness, reliability, assurance, tangibles, information sharing, and personal engagement positively contribute to PV. This study contributed a comprehensive model for examining the technological service quality in museums, especially the mediating effect of PV and the insignificant impact of Perceived ease of use. The study confirms PV’s role as a mediator and predictor of AR adoption intention. A multiple-group analysis explores the moderating effect of intracultural differences (between Taipei and Hangzhou museums). The study further reveals that the difference between Taipei and Hangzhou museums moderates the TAM, SQAM, and PV effects; for this matter, Chinese intracultural differences are analyzed and reviewed. The findings also provide managerial implications for stakeholders to enhance the provision of AR-related services in museums.

Shopping in the digital world: How augmented reality mobile applications trigger customer engagement

The maturation and growing popularity of augmented reality (AR) technology in recent years have promoted its implementation, leading to the emergence of various AR-related applications. Integrating AR into commerce can enhance marketing initiatives by increasing popularity and brand appeal, which in turn affects customer brand engagement behavior. Consequently, brand owners and retailers are increasingly investing in the AR commercial services sector. To explore the factors that influence customer engagement with AR commercial systems, this study draws on innovation diffusion theory and flow theory and incorporates the satisfaction factor. An integrated research model is proposed to investigate the attributes of AR technology that create a flow experience for users and satisfaction with AR services, ultimately fostering customer engagement intentions. Data from 212 valid online questionnaires were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The findings suggest that both flow experience and user satisfaction are important drivers of customers' engagement with AR commercial services. Interactivity, vividness, and novelty are identified as the critical factors affecting users’ flow experience and satisfaction. The implications of the findings are discussed.

Virtual Veda – Visualize Plants through Augmented Reality

A unique initiative, Virtual Veda has been conceptualized and designed to add to knowledge besides kindling enthusiasm for the world of flora with Augmented Reality (AR) technology. For instance, an AR service provides a learning environment in which users could discover relationships between medicinal plants that are within a certain ecosystem, realize the significance of those medicinal plants, and become able to judge how to discriminate and maintain those medicinal plants through practical AR experience. Another diversity emphasis in the initiative is the use of audio explanations for inclusivity in the visually impaired. Virtual Veda is all about users being connected to nature in such a way that they are bound to nature more than they were ever and can be environmentally responsible

Adaptive exchange protocol for multi-agent communication in augmented reality system

Augmented Reality (AR) is one of the modern ways of providing users with different types of information. In applications based on this technology, the main influence on the subjective assessment of product quality is the speed of interaction between the system and the user and between users of the system. The main purpose of the work series are creation and modification for algorithms to assessing and improving the quality of AR services. This paper describes and justifies an adaptive communication protocol for multi-agent interaction. We consider a general nonlinear dynamic system with introducing feedback control which is based on measurements under almost arbitrary noise. In practice, this control is realized as a superposition of neural networks with the estimation of the result of mutual additional learning based on the system identification method (M.K.Campi and E.Weyer’s LSCR is used). The prototype is built for a system with a distributed server architecture and multiagent behavior of both clients and servers in the system.

Envisaging AR travel revolution for visiting heritage sites: A mixed-method approach

Augmented Reality (AR) offers transformative potential for augmenting and replacing realities within a wide range of business and social applications. Within this, this study explores antecedents of behavioral adoption of AR mobile travel apps to visit a heritage site by substituting in-person and corporeal tourism experiences through a visualization technique that overlays 3D simulated architecture in front of a user. This research specifically investigates the collective impact of perceived app attributes of the AR service model, and critical characteristics of users in terms of their underlying psychological predispositions impacting their behavioral intention to use AR travel apps for heritage tourism in an emerging nation. In pursuance of this, we adopt a unique mixed-method research methodology where industry experts and travel enthusiasts are invited to delve into the phenomenon and identify facilitators of AR mobile app adoption for heritage tourism in India. Empirical findings find that experiential authenticity, service quality, and user innovativeness are the significant underlying factors expediting the use of AR mobile apps. Additionally, with a focus on the sustainability aspect of AR tourism, this study considers sustainability within travel. This construct is critical since it discerns how it affects the boundary conditions in the light of consumers' personality characteristics for determining intention to use AR apps, thereby providing insightful inferences for the tourism industry and research.

HADES: An NFV solution for energy-efficient placement and resource allocation in heterogeneous infrastructures

Network Function Virtualization (NFV) aims to replace traditional network functions running in proprietary hardware with software instances (i.e., Virtual Network Functions, VNFs) embedded in general-purpose virtualization solutions. Aware that the transition to a fully virtualized network infrastructure will pay a high energy cost, especially in IoT systems composed of a myriad of devices, energy efficiency is one of the key innovative targets of future networks. Edge computing should be considered in IoT environments to save time and energy by processing data near the producer devices. However, applying NFV in the context of IoT/Edge/Cloud environments complicates the placement of VNFs, due to the inherent heterogeneous nature of such environments and the variety of resource demands. This paper proposes an energy-aware placement of service function chains of VNFs and a resource-allocation solution for heterogeneous edge infrastructures that considers the computation and communication delays according to the VNFs’ location in the infrastructure. The solution has been integrated with the ETSI-sponsored project Open Source Management and Orchestration (OSM) as an extension called HADES, which allows the configuration of VNFs and their subsequent resource allocation and deployment at the edge, minimizing energy consumption and ensuring a quality of service. We have applied the deployment of augmented reality services in real and simulated scenarios. The results show up to a 59% reduction in power consumption and QoS compliance in all scenarios considered compared to default OSM placement and four other allocation policies. We prove that our solution has negligible power overhead, and validate the scalability and applicability of HADES.

THE USE OF THE BLIPPBUIDER AUGMENTED REALITY SERVICE BY TEACHERS OF NATURAL AND MATHEMATICAL SUBJECTS IN THE EDUCATIONAL PRACTICE

The article is devoted to the actual problem of ensuring the implementation of practical work by students in the subjects of the natural and mathematical cycles under the conditions of prolonged quarantines and martial law in the country. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the effectiveness of using the Blippbuider augmented reality service by teachers of natural and mathematical subjects for organizing and conducting practical work with students. In the process of analysis, generalization, and systematization of scientific and scientific and methodological sources on the research problem, the author substantiates and proposes a procedure and stages for using AR on the example of the subject of physics. The author's approach to the development of the procedure includes such main stages of its implementation as mastering the technology for creating marker AR in the Blippbuilder environment; developing practical work for students with AR elements; developing instructions for using AR; organizing feedback with students; and assessing the practical work of students. This approach will ensure that students perform practical work anywhere, anytime; it will allow repeated implementation of practical work, which, logically, will lead to the consolidation of the necessary skills. The features of the proposed approach include the presence of a mobile device. The results obtained will contribute to the improvement of the theoretical and practical foundations of the professional development of teachers through the use of augmented reality in the implementation of practical activities with students. In our opinion, the use of a number of immersive technologies is promising, in particular for the implementation of the immersion approach to learning; using technologies to overcome shortcomings in the organization of education, lagging and gaps in the education of students.

Engaging the customer with augmented reality and employee services to enhance equity and loyalty

PurposeThis study aims to understand customer equity and loyalty using augmented reality (AR) and employee services in a physical retail environment. The current study investigated how customers’ experiences with AR-based and employee service affect their satisfaction, equity and loyalty.Design/methodology/approachA conceptual framework was developed by reviewing AR and employee services literature. The Smart PLS-SEM technique was used to test the responses of 620 Chinese respondents empirically.FindingsThe findings provided valuable insights into AR and employee services in a physical retail environment. Customers are more inclined to use AR services in the current business climate.Research limitations/implicationsThis study’s sample was drawn from a single city, with a total of 620 respondents, which may not be a complete representation of China as a whole. As a result, the results may not be generalizable to a single city.Practical implicationsRetail brand managers should emphasize implementing innovative technologies in the physical retail environment to retain and attract customers. Pandemic consumers are opting for innovative technologies as part of their shopping experience due to changes in business models.Originality/valueThe researchers recognized AR and employee services as innovative domains in physical retail stores because they can increase sales, customer equity and loyalty. As a result, the framework results are precious to practitioners interested in implementing such innovative technologies for retail stores.

Sağlık İletişiminde Youtube Kullanımı: Artırılmış ve Sanal Gerçekliğin Kullanım Alanları Üzerine Bir İnceleme

In this study, the use of social media within the scope of health communication will be discussed. The study aimed to analyze the social media use of companies in the health sector using augmented and virtual reality within the scope of health communication. The study is essential since there is no research on health communication of health companies using augmented and virtual reality technology. While the health companies using the augmented and virtual reality technology of the universe of the study constitute the sample, the Youtube channel of the XRHealth company is selected by random sampling method among these companies. The Youtube channel contents of XRHealth company were analyzed with the content analysis method in the Maxqda program, and the following results were obtained: Shares were made about primary health care services, health promotion/development, and preventive health services. Among these topics, preventive health services were mainly included. Within the scope of preventive health services, videos about doctors, patients and pieces of training for both doctors and patients are published. In addition to rehabilitation services within primary health care services, virtual and augmented reality services and diagnosis-treatment services were included in the video contents. Content aimed at least promoting and improving health has been produced on the Youtube channel. As a result, a high concentration of protective and primary health care services in video content reveals the importance of AR and VR technology in terms of health education in society.

Location-Dependent Augmented Reality Services in Wireless Edge-Enabled Metaverse Systems

Metaverse is envisioned as the next-generation paradigm that links a virtual world to the physical world, providing immersive experience for human activities in the hypothetical environment with augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technology. Recent development of wireless multiaccess edge computing (MEC) has accelerated the realization of this vision. In this paper, we consider location-dependent AR services in MEC-enabled Metaverse systems. In such a system, each user performs simultaneous localization and communication first to estimate its position and request AR contents from the MEC server. Due to limited computation and communication resources, the MEC server adaptively adjusts the resolution of AR contents. However, two challenges arise in such a system. First, the localization error will degrade the user’s quality-of-experience (QoE); and second, the coupling of communication and computation complicates the resource management. To address these issues, we first model the QoE taking the localization errors into consideration, and then propose a minimum QoE maximization scheme to achieve fairness among users by jointly optimizing the waveform at users, the transmit power at the base station (BS), and the resolution of transmitted videos. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed scheme in comparison with benchmark schemes.

Prefetching Method for Low-Latency Web AR in the WMN Edge Server

Recently, low-latency services for large-capacity data have been studied given the development of edge servers and wireless mesh networks. The 3D data provided for augmented reality (AR) services have a larger capacity than general 2D data. In the conventional WebAR method, a variety of data such as HTML, JavaScript, and service data are downloaded when they are first connected. The method employed to fetch all AR data when the client connects for the first time causes initial latency. In this study, we proposed a prefetching method for low-latency AR services. Markov model-based prediction via the partial matching (PPM) algorithm was applied for the proposed method. Prefetched AR data were predicted during AR services. An experiment was conducted at the Nowon Career Center for Youth and Future in Seoul, Republic of Korea from 1 June 2022 to 31 August 2022, and a total of 350 access data points were collected over three months; the prefetching method reduced the average total latency of the client by 81.5% compared to the conventional method.

CARica: Enhancing Travelling Experiences in Wonosobo Through Location-Based Mobile Augmented Reality

Wonosobo, as a Regency in Central Java Province, Indonesia, has attractions including the Dieng Plateau Theater Kalianget, and Menjer Lake. The research is intended to provide more experience for tourists who visit the tour through Location-Based Mobile Augmented Reality (MAR), an application we developed, cARica. This application includes experience travelling in Wonosobo and is aware of other information displayed through AR content. It was an alternative medium for tourism promotion to be easy, attractive, and inexpensive. It is a practical guide to attract tourists to visit tourist sites. In its development, we use the prototyping method so that each stage is carried out under the procedures that have been prepared. To get the point of Interest (PoI) points of tourist sites, use Global Positioning System (GPS) data taken through Google Maps to get the Latitude and Longitude of each object. The results of this study present that cARica is a Location-Based Mobile Augmented Reality service platform that can be accessed using an Android smartphone and has three-dimensional animated character content with the Wonosobo regency icon. cARica is a form of innovation in providing exceptional services and experiences for tourists and has the potential to be continuously developed.

Low-cost mobile augmented reality service for building information modeling

Informed decision-making is crucial for construction site operators. Cyber-physical systems, including various technologies such as augmented reality and building automation tools, are gathering popularity within the infrastructure management sector. However, they are expensive and inaccessible to adopt for most small organizations. This paper describes a prototype of low-cost mobile augmented reality service for BIM and demonstrated its usability for pipe maintenance by supporting inspection, workflow management, data reduction, and augmented reality. User views about the decision support, integration and ease of use of the prototype were also collected from the organisations in the UK and South Korea. The results showed that integrating the augmented reality service with the building automation tool connected to the BIM server enhances decision-making for on-site operations by generating a closed loop. This paper also highlights the need for developing low-cost digital solutions to foster the digitalization of construction organisations with limited budgets.

Immersive services in libraries: perspectives and views of library professionals

The paper aims to determine whether AR and VR library services are useful and, if so, what are the associated opportunities and challenges. Based on the literature review, 40 libraries that have implemented augmented virtual reality services were identified. An online survey of library professionals belonging to the 40 identified libraries was conducted. Sixty-nine percent of libraries use HTC Vive as their preferred VR headset device. Further, 54 percent of the respondents stated the circulation of VR devices as a new service. Findings show that libraries are offering new services such as 3D Model Gallery, 3D Scanning, 3D Printing, and Data Visualization. SWOT analysis of immersive services in libraries identified VR content archiving, copyrighting of 3D content, and constructing metadata schemas for virtual content as the challenging areas that need further research. The study will be useful to library professionals who plan to introduce or experiment with augmented virtual reality services.

Designing augmented reality services for enhanced customer experiences in retail

PurposeTo deliver superior customer experiences, retailers are increasingly turning to augmented reality (AR) technologies for new digital services that can enhance their customer interactions. The potential of AR has been validated in lab experiments, but when implemented in real-world contexts, its commercial impact has been limited. Therefore, this paper investigates how to design AR-based services (AR services) that enhance customer experiences in retail.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses a conceptual research approach to integrate research on AR in the context of retail, combining customer, retailer, and technical perspectives with the design thinking method to demonstrate how the challenge of AR service design can be addressed through design thinking.FindingsThe paper develops propositions that explain how a design thinking method is useful in the design of effective AR services. The paper also articulates principles for how to implement the design thinking method in the specific context of AR for enhanced customer experiences.Practical implicationsThe study documents critical practices for retailers seeking to be competitive with superior customer experiences under the increasing digitalization of retailer-customer interactions.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the service design literature by answering the call to develop moderately abstracted explanations of how different digital technologies can be used to provision new services in different application domains, with the focus here being the design of AR services in the context of retail.

DRAM: A DRL-based resource allocation scheme for MAR in MEC

Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) and 5G technology allow clients to access computing resources at the network frontier, which paves the way for applying Mobile Augmented Reality (MAR) applications. Under the MEC paradigm, MAR clients can offload complex tasks to the MEC server and enhance the human perception of the world by merging the received virtual information with the real environment. However, the resource allocation problem arises as a critical challenge in circumstances where several MAR clients compete for limited resources at the network frontier. In this paper, we aim to design an online resource allocation scheme on the MEC server that takes both high quality of experience and good fairness performance for MAR clients into consideration. We first formulate this problem as a Markov decision process and tackle the challenge of applying the deep reinforcement learning paradigm. Then, we propose DRAM, a Deep reinforcement learning-based Resource allocation scheme for mobile Augmented reality service in MEC. We also propose a self-adaptive algorithm on the MAR client that is derived based on the analysis of the MAR service to tackle client adaptation problems. The simulation results demonstrated that DRAM can provide high quality of experience and simultaneously achieve good fairness performance by coordinating with clients’ adaptation algorithms.

Augmented Reality Applications in Education: Arloopa Application Example

Arloopa is an augmented reality application that enables the integration of digital content such as images, sounds, texts into real world environments. By another definition the Arloopa app is an AR visualization tool that brings the physical and digital worlds together as one. Arloopa is an augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) app and game development company which provides advanced AR and VR services, such as: cloud-based augmented reality services, custom branded augmented reality app and game development, virtual reality app and game development, 2D and 3D content creation. In this study, the integration of Arloopa application into educational environments and application examples are presented within the scope of augmented reality applications course at a government university in Turkey. In addition, in this research, the presentation of the Arloopa application within a course unit and tips will be given to be used in future research on the integration of the application into education. At the end of the process, an interview form was prepared to determine opinions from the students about the Arloopa application and the use of augmented reality applications in education in general. The interview form prepared by the researcher was applied to 27 students within the scope of the course. According to the results obtained; the students found the use of augmented reality applications in education useful in terms of making the lesson fun, providing permanence in learning, and improving creativity skills. Despite all these positive aspects, the fact that some apps are salaried is accepted as the biggest limitation.