Open and Interoperable Augmented Reality

Today an experience developer must choose tools for authoring AR experiences based on many factors including ease of use, performance across a variety of platforms, reach and discoverability and cost. The commercially viable options are organized in closed technology silos (beginning with SDKs). A publisher of experiences must choose one or develop for multiple viewing applications, then promote one or more application to the largest possible audience. Developers of applications must then maintain the customized viewing application over time across multiple platforms or have the experience (and the application) expire at the end of a campaign. A user equipped with an AR-ready device, including sensors and appropriate output/display support, must download one or more proprietary applications to detect a target and experience content published using an AR experience authoring platform. There are alternatives that will foster innovation by providing common interfaces and modular architectures. When available, open and interoperable Augmented Reality systems will provide publishers more flexibility in how they go about reaching the largest audiences. End users will be able to choose the AR-enabled player they prefer without sacrificing a great breadth of potential experiences. This tutorial provides comprehensive and in depth information that content publishers and developers need to know when planning to develop and deploy content for AR and designing the AR experiences in a manner that supports maximum reach and data portability. The tutorial presenters are experts in the area of individual standards and open source projects. They will describe open protocols and APIs that can be integrated with existing proprietary technology silos or used as alternatives to reduce delays and cost over the lifetime of AR-assisted system development and ownership.