SLIS 761 Post #9 - Augmented Reality and Halo AR

A couple of months ago, I wrote about virtual reality (VR), specifically the Oculus Quest 2, and its ability to take you places and provide virtual experiences without needing to leave the classroom. Today I want to talk about augmented reality (AR), which gives you the ability to alter and enhance the space around you, offering new ways to interact with everyday objects, all with just the use of a phone.

While I was reading about AR and VR this week, I found myself getting really excited about the potential of the Aurasma app. I was disappointed to find out though, that it was now defunct. At some point it had been bought by HP, renamed HP Reveal, and then shutdown a few years later (What Happened to Aurasma.com?, 2020). I think that I found a replacement Aurasma though called Halo AR. It is similar to Aurasma, which allowed you to affix "Auras" (AR visuals) to an object, only with Halo AR they are appropriately referred to as "Halos." Created by the company LightUp, Halo AR is a free education app and that can be downloaded through the Google Play Store for Android, or the Apple App Store.

Once it is downloaded, you have to sign up by creating a username and password or you can use your Google account to sign-in, which is what I did. Because it is meant for education, you will be asked if you are a teacher or student when you register. You will also be prompted to give the app permission to access your camera, and if you tag a location, your GPS. Once in the app, you can search for nearby collections and watch videos of other users’ projects on the "Home" screen. The "Scan" button next to "Home" takes you to the screen where you scan for projects. If you have created a project, it will identify what you have tagged and open the attached object.

Skipping over "Create" for now, the next option "Feed," shows you videos of projects that other people have uploaded to the service. You can switch videos by swiping left or right on this screen. The button to the far right takes you to the profile screen, which shows you your collections, what users you are following, and the videos that you have taken. You can choose to make the videos that you take private or public. If you follow a user, then you can access their public projects.

When you are ready to create a project, you just select create and the app asks, "What will you create?" The options are image overlay, video overlay, text overlay, 3D model overlay, and audio overlay. While I was familiarizing myself with the app, I created a video overlay and a 3D model overlay. The video of these two projects is below:

That is a trailer for the Avengers movie playing on the surface of the DVD cover and a 3D model of Cthulhu overlaid on the cover of the Complete Fiction of H.P. Lovecraft.

Step by step, the process to create the 3D model “Halo” was (The selections that I made are circled in red):

• Step 1: Select "3D Model Overlay."
• Step 2: Line up image or object and press center button.
• Step 3: Crop image.

• Step 4: Select "Sketchfab."
• Step 5: Type in a search term.
• Step 6: Select a model.

• Step 7: Confirm selection.
• Step 8: Position where the overlay will appear and press the forward arrow.
• Step 9: Name and save the "Halo."

In order to get the 3D model, I had to have an account with Sketchfab, which is free to sign up for. It also allows you to use your Facebook, Google, Twitter, Epic Games, or Apple account to sign-in, instead of just creating an account. You can buy 3D models on Sketchfab, but Halo AR just searches through the free ones.

I think that this app has a lot of potential for creating interactive educational experiences. For instance, you could create an AR scavenger hunt for students, where they have clues that lead them to an object that has a video, audio clip, or text message attached with information about the object. If you were teaching something like anatomy, you could put AR text labels on the different parts of the body or have infographics or videos attached to them. You could create booktalks and attach them to a book display. You could also leave hidden audio or text AR messages throughout the library. I feel like it could really help to make exploring a space interesting and engaging. The social aspect of the app, where users can share their creations also appeals to me because it feels like you are part of a community that is figuring out new things to do with the technology together. The one barrier to entry is that it requires a phone or tablet to be used. If you already have access to either of those though, then I recommend downloading and trying it out for yourself.

References

What happened to Aurasma.com? (2020, November 12). FoneHow. Retrieved April 8, 2022, from https://www.fonehow.com/what-happened-to-aurasma-com/