Imagine wearing Google glass and focussing it on a brand new electronic gadget, only to see the screen of the head mounted device get filled up with the technical directions needed to operate the new gadget. The concept may look futuristic and stir up images from scenes of sci-fi movies.
However, such an innovation is very much possible, thanks to the present day technology of Augmented Reality (AR), based on which two youngsters from Hyderabad have developed a unique product. Their tech innovation on AR platform has recently fetched the duo of Hasan Ali Khan and Vaishali Neotia, ‘Aegis Graham Bell Award’, constituted by Aegis Graham Bell Business School and Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI). Their work has also been nominated in best innovation in IT category of The Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) Innovation Awards, London, scheduled to be held on November 19.
“Generally, companies give manuals or booklets on new gadgets. But we have developed a system where users can see the manual instructions on the screen of a tab, a phone or Google glass when they point it at the gadget. This will make the whole learning experience easy and interesting,” they explained.
Out of 400 innovations received worldwide, their product based on AR was nominated for IET Innovation awards, London. “The nomination reflects the growing interest on Indian start-ups. The IT department of Telangana has assured support so that one of us can travel to London to take part in the awards ceremony,” Ms. Vaishali said.
After passing out of Vasavi Engineering College in 2012, Vaishali and Hasan decided to set up Merxius Software solely based on Augmented Reality (AR). After two years of struggle, the company is reaching growth phase. “We have employed six developers now and are working in a range of products on AR. The technology can be applied in automobile engineering, defence simulations and even consumer products,” Mr. Hasan says.
The techies said that developing simulation based AR applications for defence establishments, especially for training, would be the next big thing. They can be reached at www.merxius.in
