Category: Extended Reality
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City Development with Interactive 3D Models
The Finnish city of Hyvinkää has developed a unique internet service for collaborative 3D city planning. It gives real estate owners, investors, developers, designers, authorities, and citizens easy-to-use tools to publish their 3D plans and ideas for the built city environment. Participants can comment on the 3D plans directly in the city model. The 3D…
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BIM Meets Reality on the Construction Site
BIM models are mostly used by foremen on construction sites. But what if they could be made available for workers at the press of a button? This question was what the Finnish government-funded KIRA pilot project set out to answer. As a by-product, the project also produced augmented reality (AR) solutions for construction sites. Otto…
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Human Eye Resolution Virtual Reality for AEC
Virtual reality opens new perspectives for communication and customer involvement in construction. Sweco, Varjo, and Teatime Research are together exploring the possibilities of VR using state-of-the-art technology. “I think that the use of VR in construction is still at a visionary stage and useful practical applications are rare,” says Niina Jaatinen, Service Manager at Sweco.…
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Better Design of HVAC Systems with VR
Retrofitting new technical systems into an existing building can be tricky. CTRL Reality, a Finnish AR/VR application development company, is completing an experimentation project demonstrating how HVAC design and installation are easier and cost-efficient with the help of virtual reality. “We did research on the business use of virtual and augmented reality for five years…
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Varjo – The Bionic Design Tool
Varjo’s exceptional story demonstrates how a group of experienced professionals can make a great idea fly. Niko Eiden, a co-founder of Varjo, shares a little-known fact: “At Nokia, I lead a product program team in 2006-2007. Together with researchers from Nokia Research Center we developed the basis for the optical technology that later became Microsoft’s…
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Construction Safety Technologies – Videos
Smart hard hats, drone imaging, indoor positioning, and augmented reality are some of the technologies that can make construction sites safer. Construction remains one of the most dangerous industries. In the USA, one in ten construction workers are injured every year. According to ILO, there are at least 60,000 fatal accidents on construction sites around the…
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A New Way to Design in 3D – Interview with Pouria Kay of Grib
In this podcast interview with Pouria Kay, CEO and Co-founder at Grib, we talk about the startup’s new, intuitive 3D design tool. Grib® is a cloud–based software that turns a mobile device into a universal controller. With Grib, both young and professional designers can sketch complex objects without first having to learn cumbersome 3D software. You…
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The Future of VR and AR in AEC – Danielle Dy Buncio of VIATechnik
In this presentation, Danielle Dy Buncio, Co-Founder and CEO of VIATechnik, talks about the future of VR and AR in AEC. The recording is from our webinar, How Virtual and Augmented Reality Can Change Your AEC Business. https://youtu.be/HnkTfIBHBdw About Danielle Danielle Dy Buncio is the Co-Founder and CEO of VIATechnik, a construction and engineering services firm…
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You’re Invited to Revitalize a Suburb with an Online Game
There’s now an online game for complementary development of a Finnish suburb. It educates and inspires inhabitants on how to boost the vitality of their neighborhoods. It also provides valuable information to the city, builders, and designers. Siltamäki is a suburb of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Built in the 1960s and ’70s, it was…
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A Showcase of Virtual and Augmented Reality for Housing
The annual Housing Market Conference took place in Helsinki on January 31, 2017. During the event, the attendees had a chance to try out virtual and augmented reality solutions for housing. Nine service providers were showcasing their solutions. My company, AE Partners, organized the Virtual Housing Showroom. Tekes, another partner of the event, kindly supported the arrangements. The service providers…