How HoloLens works
On HoloLens, holograms blend the digital world with your physical environment to look and sound like they're part of your world. Even when digital images are all around you, you can always see your surroundings, move freely, and interact with people and objects. Thanks to HoloLens 2 and Mixed Reality applications, workers can now collaborate without boundaries, act with precision, and increase productivity.
- The holographic frame positions digital images where your eyes are most sensitive to detail.
- The see-through lenses leave your peripheral vision unobstructed.
- Automatic eye tracking establishes your intent without requiring conscious decision-making.
- Iris-based biometric screening removes time-consuming authentication routines from your list of preparatory tasks.
- With spatial sound, you can pinpoint a hologram by listening, even if it's behind you.
Because HoloLens understands your physical environment, you can place holograms on and around real objects such as tables and walls.
HoloLens has sensors that can see a few feet to either side of you, and the frame moves with you as you move around. You can touch and interact with holograms with precision.
Working with HoloLens 2 is intuitive. Once you get connected, you'll find yourself wanting to use your hands to touch and manipulate the holographic imagery.
It's easy to learn a few gestures that give you control of the windows, menus, and buttons. The voice commands are similarly simple and direct. Once you've learned a few basic commands, you'll be ready to start taking advantage of all that HoloLens 2 has to offer.
How to use HoloLens in the workplace
HoloLens 2 is currently used in manufacturing, construction, retail, healthcare, education, and aerospace industries, but it's so flexible that you can use it almost anywhere. It builds a digital framework between your employees and their physical workspace by adding 3D models and simulations of real-life scenarios to the local environment.
Scenarios
Augmented Reality (AR) with HoloLens 2 is useful in practical scenarios that require an understanding of the physical context.
- Field service (manufacturing): Service personnel can be given guidance based on the specific issue with the field asset.
- Guided Assembly and Training (manufacturing): Assembly and training can occur with the physical parts, allowing the user to learn by doing.
- Remote Expert consult (healthcare): Potentially allows the remote expert to help the in-person medic to get hands-on with the patient to be treated.
- Accelerate purchase journey (retail): Customers can visualize how a new product would look in an existing environment; for example, at a home furniture store.
- Experiential learning (higher education): More practical training with real-world overlays; for example, veterinary training.
Software applications
HoloLens can run software that helps to improve your support services. For example:
- Dynamics 365 Guides help your employees create step-by-step visual interactive holographic work instructions that increase the speed at which your employees can learn new skills.
- Dynamics 365 Remote Assist empowers your service technicians to collaborate and solve problems quickly by placing video calls to remote experts. Remote experts can then get a first-person view of the HoloLens wearer and provide guidance using markers and annotations. These HoloLens features help to further increase productivity and reduce user error.
Note
You can find many software applications in the Microsoft app store. There's a link to the Microsoft app store available in this module's Summary section.
When you pair HoloLens devices with Microsoft Dynamics 365 applications, you'll be able to improve modern business processes such as assembly, training, service, or design. If your team envisions a use for mixed reality outside of available applications, developers can build their own apps. Microsoft can help get you there, no matter the device, language, or environment.