Thanks to 5G and edge computing, technologies such as Augmented Reality are becoming a part of our everyday lives. Part 5 of our practice series about forward-looking solutions from tech start-ups.

In the power plant the turbine blade has cracks, in the paper mill the glue press has stopped working, in the chemicals plant the fire alarm system has to be checked: Experts regularly have to inspect defective parts, material conditions or machine failures during so-called diagnostic appointments. However, each deployment costs time and money; in addition, the lack of skilled workers means there are fewer trained specialists. How can new technologies solve these kinds of problems?

5G ENABLES A NEW 3D EXPERIENCE

The Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, Augmented Reality (AR) and edge computing are changing the way people work together – whether in the office, the factory or during training. In a power plant, for example, experts no longer have to look at the problem on site. They can already judge from their desk whether the turbine blade can still be repaired or whether it needs to be replaced – with a 3D scan of the machine part. The fact that the condition of the objects can be assessed on the computer means that the experts can process several such jobs a day. This makes maintenance trips superfluous.

The Dutch start-up Dimenco is currently revolutionizing the tech market with its development of the world's first functional, immersive 3D screen. The highlight: The company offers a VR experience that requires no additional hardware such as VR glasses. This is made possible by 5G. With a latency of less than a millisecond and transmission speeds of 10 Mbit/s, the new mobile communications standard provides the required high-performance connectivity. This kind of fast and stable network is necessary for the interference-free operation of IoT or immersive applications such as Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR) or Simulated Reality (SR).

LOWER LATENCY THANKS TO EDGE COMPUTING

To immerse themselves in virtual worlds, users need wearables from data glasses to gloves. The problem: wearing VR glasses for a long time can cause so-called VR sickness. If the eyes and inner ear send contradictory signals (movement vs. stationary), the body often reacts with nausea, cold sweats and blurred vision. Dimenco's Augmented Reality experience is different: the technology is based on iris scans and high-speed cameras and allows users to interact with the content on the screen without the need for wearables. "Latency is essential for a 3D experience without jitters and delays," says Dimenco CEO Maarten Tobias. "With 5G and edge computing, we ensure that all the motion information is fed directly into the 3D environment." This is why Dimenco processes the large amounts of data in the nearby Edge Cloud, rather than in remote data centers – thanks to the latency of the 5G network.