By Industry

By Industry

4 Airlines Revolutionizing Crew Training and Passenger Entertainment

With the airline industry facing a multitude of obstacles as of late, employee training and customer peace of mind are more important than ever. How are major airlines utilizing XR to meet today’s challenges? Envoy Training Pilots to Fly High Using Virtual Reality Envoy Air, a subsidiary of American Airlines, is leading the way in U.S. aviation by becoming the first carrier to gain Federal Aviation administration (FAA) approval for incorporating Virtual Reality (VR) into its pilot training programs.  The airline is employing VR headsets and joysticks at its Dallas headquarters to simulate critical tasks such as preflight walkarounds and flight deck checklists without the need to appropriate an actual aircraft.  This innovative approach, developed in partnership with Florida-based Cole Engineering Services, compliments traditional training tools like flight simulators. According to Captain Allen Hill, Envoy’s Director of Flight Training, “Both junior and senior aviators take to it very well. It helps them gain proficiency in a shorter period of time,” enhancing pilot readiness for real-world operations.  The VR system offers a highly immersive environment in which pilots can practice inspecting aircraft for potential issues or run through cockpit procedures as if preparing for an IRL flight. In addition to pilots, […]

4 min read

By Industry

Walmart’s XR Journey: Retail Giant and AR/VR Trailblazer

Walmart is a lot of things. For better or worse, it’s the world’s largest company by revenue as well as the world’s largest private employer. The retail giant has also been an early mover when it comes to XR, actively exploring the technology to train its over two million employees, improve its 10,600+ stores and clubs, and compete with Amazon since 2017. Here are some of the ways Walmart has and is leveraging extended reality technologies.  2017 Following a pilot project at 30 of its training centers, Walmart put an Oculus Rift headset in each of its 200 Walmart Academy locations to help train an estimated 150,000 employees in management, customer service, and other areas.  Each training center received an Oculus Rift tethered to a PC and loaded with VR training content developed by Strivr. The VR instruction was entirely 360-degree video-based and included interactive on-screen cues prompting users to make decisions in a variety of situations related to management, customer service, and even seasonal events like Black Friday.  Experiences ranged in length from 30 seconds to five minutes and were intended to supplement traditional instruction for everyone from the “lowest-level bagger” up to store management.  2018 The following year, […]

8 min read

By Industry

XR in AEC: VR for Design, AR to Build

INTRO It’s the age of the megaproject: AEC professionals must design and build increasingly complex structures and they must do so on time, within budget, and with minimal waste. All this amid growing infrastructure and housing needs, rising material costs, a labor shortage, and a climate crisis—no big. I sound like a broken record, but AR/VR/MR (XR) can help. In this post, we’ll cover how extended reality can be used in all phases of a construction or engineering project by pretty much every stakeholder.  WHY XR? AEC CHALLENGES Fragmentation The fragmented nature of AEC projects is the source of many of the industry’s problems. Every project involves multiple parties and a remote worksite that’s constantly changing as building progresses.  In the design phase, a typical building project might involve an architect, different engineers and specialty designers, with contributions from various consultants, suppliers, etc. and of course the client or owner. At the building site, you have teams of skilled workers (carpenters, electricians, etc.) and their managers, though never all present at the same time. As you can imagine, coordination and communication are challenging.  3D to 2D to 3D 2D conversion further complicates matters, leading to issues that often only become […]

5 min read

By Industry

XR in the Fast Food Industry

Most people judge a new restaurant based on two factors: The quality of the food and the experience. By experience, I mean the ambiance as well as the service.  Quality, experience, and service are probably not top of mind when you think of a fast food restaurant, but the restaurant industry as a whole – from fine dining to quick service – is turning to emerging technologies to improve all three.  Restaurants have been exploring XR in particular to simplify ordering, build brand awareness, improve staff training, reduce turnover, stand out from the competition, and more. Here are five examples of fast food and other restaurant chains implementing extended reality.  McDonald’s The fast food giant just launched its own metaverse “My Happy Place” in Singapore. The in-app virtual world allows Singaporeans to build virtual burgers, play multiplayer games, and earn rewards. Though the project will only be live for a month, it’s serving as a litmus test for future deployments and yet this isn’t McDonald’s first foray into “the metaverse.” In 2022, McDonald’s filed a patent to operate “a virtual restaurant online featuring home delivery.” The following year, the company’s Hong Kong “arm” spearheaded a “Web3 activation” in metaverse platform […]

4 min read

By Industry

Growing AR Innovations Within Southwest Airlines

Written by guest author Jeffrey Berthiaume, Senior Innovator, Southwest Airlines. Innovation in an enterprise setting is a challenging endeavor. While the allure of groundbreaking projects is undeniable, the reality of execution often turns these dreams into routine tasks. In large corporations, teams are typically agile and efficient, yet they grapple with gaining traction or attention for their initiatives. At Southwest Airlines, our aim is to infuse an innovative spirit into every facet of our operations, ensuring that every employee feels a part of this transformative journey.  Our strategy to foster this innovative culture revolves around two primary initiatives: 1. Hackathon:  About four years ago, we launched our first internal 24-hour hackathon. This event provided our Technology department with a unique opportunity to delve into fresh, exciting projects. The time-bound nature ensured that the event didn’t detract from regular duties, while also offering participants a platform to showcase their talents before our executive team, who graciously stepped in as judges.  The success of this initiative is evident in its growth. Today, our internal hackathons boast 20 teams, each comprising roughly six developers, dedicating two days to conceptualize and construct a functional proof of concept. These projects are inspired by a range of […]

3 min read

By Industry

Infographic: XR Applications in the Financial Sector

1 min read

By Industry

From Virtual Banks to the Meta-economy: XR Makes Strides in the Financial Sector

Consumers have more options than ever when it comes to banking. With the advancement of fintech, blockchain, and artificial intelligence (AI) as well as the popularity of digital-only banks and digital payments, traditional financial institutions are feeling the pressure to stay relevant.  Mobile banking capabilities aren’t enough. Some commercial banks are now entering the metaverse to engage younger consumers, while others in the world of finance are experimenting with new immersive banking, investment, and wealth management services. Read how seven well-known financial institutions are all leveraging XR: H&R Block Applications: Soft skills training Way back in 2015, the tax preparation firm used the Oculus Rift to test potential design changes to its retail offices with an eye to reinventing the client tax experience, or how clients interact with H&R Block employees. Essentially, the company was trialing VR for market research and found it got better feedback compared to traditional research methods.  More recently in 2021, H&R Block worked with Mursion to implement VR training for new call center employees to improve interpersonal skills like active listening and conflict resolution.  The tax preparation process is an anxiety-ridden one for which H&R Block hires 5,000 new agents every year. These new employees […]

7 min read

By Industry

Driving the Metaverse: All The Ways Automotive Companies Are Using XR

Automotive companies have been on the cutting edge of XR adoption for nearly a decade now. As an industry, automotive is a perfect example of how AR/VR/MR (XR) can transform an entire sector. Here are the many ways car brands are using immersive technologies throughout the vehicle lifecycle:  *This is not an exhaustive list but rather highlights of the XR journeys of the following car brands.  Fiat  Back in 2014, Fiat created a VR experience for the 500x using both CGI and real footage (seems almost primitive now). Fiat took the experience on the road, offering consumers an Oculus Rift or Google Cardboard to virtually sit inside the car controlled by a magician named Dynamo.   Two years later, Fiat unveiled a prototype AR car sales app built by Accenture. The mobile app provided a glimpse into the future of car dealerships, allowing users to walk around, look inside, and configure a full-scale virtual car.  By 2020, Fiat was using VR for collaborative factory design, enabling engineers to manipulate the layout of a virtual plant in real time before it’s built. Teams could, for instance, move equipment around the plant and simulate new manufacturing processes. Fiat cited improved communication, reduced costs, and […]

7 min read

By Industry

Virtual Reality: Good for a Multigenerational, Cross-disciplined AEC Workforce?

How do you engage a multigenerational, cross-disciplined workforce that’s also your client base in a way that’s both memorable and impactful? In 2015, MBCC Group, a leading supplier of construction chemicals and solutions that emerged from what was formerly BASF, sought a new way of looking at job sites and products with AEC customers. In this video from EWTS 2020, Ricardo Rodriguez, Global VDC Integration Specialist, shares several blended immersive experiences designed to simplify product selection for customers (architects, designers and builders) and help them use products successfully. The experiences bring users into building projects that can’t be visited; some even blend the senses, with physical panels of materials that users can touch while inside a BIM digital twin. Watch the presentation to see the case studies – and lessons learned – for yourself.

1 min read

By Industry

Protecting and Training Logistics and Transportation Workers in the Age of COVID

The pandemic put a strain on many industries, including Logistics and Transportation. With the explosion of e-commerce due to various quarantine and lockdown measures around the world, digital transformation throughout the supply chain became critical. In addition, COVID added a new dimension to physical warehouse operations and the health and safety of the industry’s workers, from warehouse pickers to delivery drivers. Revisit this panel discussion from EWTS 2020 to learn how companies like Knight Transportation, Neovia Logistics and UPS relied upon technologies such as AR/VR and wearable devices to optimize warehouse operations, simplify processes, get goods to customers faster, reduce training time and protect workers in 2020 and beyond.

1 min read

By Industry

‘Recycling’ AR/VR Applications for Design, Manufacturing, Training, and Sales

Only six years ago, Gulfstream used paper to design aircraft. Today, the company has significantly sped up the design cycle of new aircrafts with immersive technologies. From conception to manufacturing, marketing and customer support, Gulfstream’s engineers, designers and customers are taking full advantage of XR. In this EWTS 2020 case study, Drew Holbrook highlights the work of his extended reality team, the multiple benefits of AR/VR at Gulfstream, and how the technology enables Gulfstream to design one-of-a-kind government aircrafts, bring an actual airplane to the customer, and more. Catch Drew at EWTS 2021 this October online! 

1 min read

By Industry

A Virtual Reality Video Game for the Utilities Industry?

You better believe it! And that’s not all: VR simulations for an active shooter emergency situation, learning how to purge and walk down a gas pipeline, and more–all coming out of the XRLab at Duke Energy. Hear from the very people who ‘solicited’ VR projects from the XRLab along with the developers behind them and the ones using VR in the field. See demos of a wide range of VR experiences made even more valuable by the pandemic in this EWTS 2020 case study by IT Architect and Cybersecurity specialist John McGuire of Duke Energy. Catch up on all the AR/VR developments at Duke Energy from the past year at EWTS 2021, where John will once again grace the virtual stage. Learn more here.

1 min read