From Prototype to Production: How to Simplify Sustainable Enterprise XR

Extended reality (XR) can unlock powerful gains as part of a company’s digital transformation strategy. In 2020, the shift has begun towards sustainable enterprise XR solutions for business – particularly, augmented reality and mixed reality –  rather than just the consumer sector (such as the gaming and entertainment industries). XR proves to measurably improve productivity, quality, safety, and profit across an amazingly broad range of applications. 

At Avatar Partners, we are often asked, “AR seems very complex and expensive – how do we even start?” It’s the perfect question, because any digital tool used across the enterprise must be cost effective not only to develop, but to scale and maintain on an ongoing basis. 

Once AVATAR solved the technical barriers to successful enterprise AR/MR adoption in 2014 (increasing accuracy to 1/8th of an inch on any sized object without markers, eliminating jitter and drift), our next step was to stay competitive by reducing our internal costs of development. For that we developed SimplifyXR – a codeless, visual authoring environment and distribution platform for heavy-duty, enterprise XR that includes configuration management and real-time hardware asset updates. As important as the product, is the process. Here’s how you can simplify enterprise XR to be more sustainable and beneficial for your business.

Agile XR Development Process

Simplification requires up-front planning and standardization – from storyboarding through development and testing. Standardization in this sense does not mean compromising uniqueness: standardization must be flexible. 

In our experience, what makes a successful XR project is what you develop, and how you develop it.  At Avatar Partners, we run an agile development process, beginning with a gap analysis to identify the right technology based on the company’s key performance metrics (KPMs) and business objectives – and not always is XR the right digital solution. There is no point in using XR if a two-dimensional solution is just as effective. Assuming our gap analysis establishes that XR is the correct technology that will achieve the intended KPMs, then development proceeds, starting with a human-factors design. Agile provides continuous visibility to all stakeholders. 

As of 2020, we also utilize our latest product Avatar CONNECT, which allows field-based team members to collaborate with remote experts by providing 4-dimensional AR-based human views and communication for visualization, troubleshooting, and repair. Combining this cyclical methodology with tools like SimplifyXR and Avatar CONNECT, we quickly identify and test the requirements at every iteration.

SimplifyXR: Roadmap to Cost-Effective, Scalable Unity Enterprise XR

Any successful software implementation requires the business owners who use the application to have control. The key to cost-effective XR is standardized development that enables rapid in-house updates, the ability to pass projects between multiple engineers, reuse of assets and content, and the ability for subject matter experts to contribute content and make codeless workflow-based application updates that are 10 times faster. Combined with the power of SimplifyXR to enable real-time device distribution, and templatized standards, business units can customize training and job performance aids and track user performance, all from a single, secure, scalable, user-friendly control center. 

SimplifyXR also enables the conversion of Unity applications into its content and configuration management system, so you don’t need to start from scratch.

With SimplifyXR, Unity developers and customers of Avatar Partners remain at the forefront of high-quality enterprise, rapid XR development, sustainment and distribution. Combined with Avatar CONNECT, any company can ensure that from the start, XR will enable powerful team communication, continuous return on investment, quality improvement, and increased profit. 

If you’d like to jumpstart your next XR project, or inject cost-effective sustainment into your Unity XR projects, get in touch with us here.

 

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