This is a collaborative post: Until recently, we used push-button cell phones, and we saw VR helmets only in science fiction films. And today this technology is already in full swing in the fields of entertainment, medicine, education, and, of course, marketing.
ARtillery Intelligence analysts predict that the market for augmented and virtual reality technologies used in business will grow to $ 4.26 billion by 2023.
The pandemic and forced self-isolation further accelerated the process of digitizing the surrounding world. Consumers today prefer to choose and buy online even those goods and services that they were previously accustomed to receiving physically.
According to the forecast of the Data Insight agency during the current economic crisis, the online trading market will grow by 33.2% by 2024
Even the most conservative business follows its consumer on the Internet. And the most advanced companies are already actively introducing technologies that will become widespread in the near future.
Consider the cases of companies using promising AR/VR technologies in the furniture market today.
Faradise – a furniture marketplace in augmented reality
The aggregator for furniture manufacturers and sellers Faradise has created a mobile augmented reality application that allows the buyer to place a virtual model of furniture in his own interior and then order it online with delivery. The virtual marketplace features solutions from professional interior designers, as well as products from more than 200 partner companies such as Mr.Doors, Hoff, and ANDERSSEN.
It is curious that earlier the developers of the application tried to bring to the market a hybrid of the social network and the Mir X browser, which allows users to create AR content anywhere in the world, visible through a smartphone. For example, advertisements, balloons with logos and emoticons with reviews, and other messages from users.
Mir X has not become popular, probably because its time has not come yet. When smartphones replace the more comfortable smart glasses that augment reality by default, this technology will revolutionize outdoor advertising. Perhaps a 3D model of a sofa offered by www.parasoldubai.com floating majestically over the city with an advertisement and a logo of a furniture company will soon become commonplace.
AR and VR services at IKEA
IKEA has been experimenting with virtual reality since 2015, starting with the IKEA home planner program for PC users wishing to design future living spaces. Today the company is developing several solutions at the same time, shifting the focus towards the smartphone and HTC Vive headsets.
AR-application for smartphones IKEA Place makes it possible to select and place furniture in the user’s premises. The program evaluates the current interior and suggests the most suitable items from the brand’s catalog, which includes more than 2,000 product names. When modeling space, the scale of real objects is taken into account so that the added virtual object looks organic.
According to Co.Design, the IKEA Place app is regularly used by more than 1 million of the company’s regular customers.
IKEA VR Experience is a program for a virtual reality helmet and controller gloves that allows not only to simulate the space and interior of the kitchen but also to interact with virtual objects – household appliances, cutlery, etc. Users claim that the program can simulate the cooking process.
IKEA Magazine is an application that interacts with the printed catalog. When you point your smartphone camera at a page with a piece of furniture, its three-dimensional image floats in.
AR application Hoff Design and VR showrooms in stores
The Hoff Design app comes in response to a similar product from IKEA. The user places a 3D model of the selected furniture in his home using a smartphone and evaluates how it looks in the existing interior. Not the most original solution, which, nevertheless, shows the brand’s attention to advanced technologies and market trends.
In addition, many Hoff stores have virtual showrooms, which, among other things, make it possible to significantly save on the rental of exhibition space in shopping centers. In fact, the showroom consists of a sofa, a video screen, and one or more sets of VR headsets with controllers. Wearing glasses, you can walk through virtual houses and apartments of various layouts, changing the scenery and furniture to your taste. And with the help of the controller, you can change the model, color, and even texture of the furniture upholstery. The user can pre-set the preferred style, for example, loft or classic, and then virtually try on a selection of items in this style. However, you can always choose a ready-made solution from the company’s designers.
VR-instruction
One Russian company that manufactures custom-made furniture was faced with the fact that visiting employees experienced difficulties in assembling original designs. The problem was solved using VR technology. The sequence of assembling digital twins of interior items is loaded into VR glasses with built-in video cameras. The record of what the employee does with his hands is superimposed on the record of the assembly of the digital model. The result is video instructions that the factory supplies its assemblers.
American DIY retailer of goods for the home Lowe’s placed VR helmets and controllers in stores with written instructions, such as how to use a drill or lay tiles correctly. Clients receive basic knowledge and skills in the field of construction and renovation right on the sales floor.
Summary
It is obvious that virtual and augmented reality are increasingly entering our lives and will soon be completely mixed for perception with physical reality. Not only do furniture makers understand this – AR/VR are already being actively implemented in the fields of fashion, medicine, cosmetics, entertainment, architecture, and many other industries.
The cost of VR devices and AR app development is still too high for a truly mainstream user. However, progress does not stand still, and virtual and augmented reality technologies are becoming more accessible every day.