Augmented Reality: Getting Beyond the Hype

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This was a very cool effect. Yet when I pointed the camera in the direction of the Capitol building, the only thing in the viewfinder, other than the two people who could be seen studying nearby, was a floating graphic indicating that the Capitol was 1.6 miles in that direction. In many cases the "value" of the augment is minimal unless I'm in line of sight of what I seek. Otherwise, what premium does this technology provide over Google Maps, or any of the dozens of "non-augmented" applications that provide the same function? For augmented reality to become a part of our everyday lives, it's going to have to become practical.

One of the biggest pieces missing from the augmented reality puzzle is the realization of a cheap and fashionable head-mounted display. Sure, holding your iPhone up in front of you like a divining rod works, but it's tiresome at best. And let's face it, people stare.

In 1966, American computer scientist and Internet pioneer Ivan Sutherland invented the first head-mounted display. Now, 43 years later, we're just starting to solve some of the associated complex problems.

Time to Invest

Here's where investors can play a key role in helping make the augmented reality hardware of science fiction a reality. I know Terminator vision seems like fantasy, and your partners at the VC firm don't see a market, but the time to invest in augmented reality hardware is now.

Then there's the power-consumption conundrum. Augmented reality applications tend to soak up all of the power that a device has to offer. The use of the display, Wi-Fi (or 3G network), and processing power all add up to major battery drain. Fortunately, the semiconductor industry is already working hard to address this issue across the spectrum of cell phones, netbooks, and other wireless devices.

However, there's a flip side to augmented reality's need for power: Not only do devices need better power supplies, they also need more computational power.

The devices currently available on the market are hundreds of thousands of times more powerful than the computers of yesteryear—and they fit in your pocket. That's great, but augmented reality needs more than the limited computational power of these devices to truly fulfill its potential. Future processors and integrated chipsets will hopefully provide the necessary advances in both computing power and power optimization. But until they arrive, "power" will likely be one of the most limiting factors facing the augmented reality industry.

The great news is, there's a very good reason why so many are jumping on the "augmented" bandwagon: opportunity. The challenges outlined above will be met—not just by the amazingly talented people who've been toiling away for years to bring the industry to this point but also by those just venturing into the field.

Hurley (known in technology circles as "whurley") is the founder of whurleyvision, an augmented reality consultancy focusing on the conception, design, engineering, implementation, and promotion of various augmented reality projects. A frequent public speaker, he was named a Master Inventor by IBM and in 2008 was named one of the "Top Leaders in Open-Source Business" by LinuxWorld magazine.

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