Enhancing Industrial Equipment Maintenance with Augmented Reality Solution

Customer
Our client is a renowned European leader in delivering software field service solutions. Serving industries including telecommunication, oil and gas, construction, facility management, and utility services, they specialize in real-time solutions for field service. These solutions are built upon an in-house developed wireless software platform.

Challenge
As a prominent provider of real-time field service solutions, our client's product range encompasses mobile, office, and online server solutions to cater to diverse client needs. Their standardized field service applications for Android and Windows Mobile PDAs empower technicians with remote access to critical work order information, facilitating on-site tasks.

With the evolution of new technologies and the increasing complexity of modern equipment, the challenge of effectively controlling and maintaining machinery prompted our client to elevate their mobile product line. A primary focus was on implementing new visualization techniques that could enhance their specialists' ability to manage and maintain equipment in the field.

Solution
After thorough analysis of current trends and customer requirements, the Applied Systems Mobile Development Department opted to employ the Metaio SDK. This versatile, platform-independent augmented reality toolkit boasts robust tracking and rendering capabilities for 2D images, 3D objects, and environments.

The developed solution enhances the existing product line by introducing new functionality. Notably, the augmented reality application enables customers to:

• Gain a 360° perspective of equipment through an augmented reality overlay.
• Identify all equipment components, whether visible or hidden, along with their states and warnings.
• Detect faulty components and inconsistencies within the equipment.
• Capture photos/videos with annotations, compile logs, generate reports, and seamlessly upload them to a cloud storage solution.
• Report faulty components to the maintenance department and share uploaded materials with maintenance specialists via cloud storage.
• Establish live connections with remote maintenance experts to receive step-by-step instructions.
• Access an online catalogue to facilitate the ordering of required spare parts.

Results
The newly implemented augmented reality overlay provides a holistic view of equipment components and their real-time statuses. By enabling the collection and sharing of essential data with online maintenance specialists, the app facilitates troubleshooting and on-site problem resolution. The online spare parts catalogue significantly reduces downtime, optimizing operational efficiency. Moreover, the user-friendly interface of the developed augmented reality solution ensures a smooth learning curve for new employees, maximizing its usability and effectiveness.