What is Extended Reality?

One term that is increasingly popping up in this context is "extended reality". You often come across it as XR. In this blog, we delve deeper into the meaning of extended reality and explain how this groundbreaking technology works to transport us to new virtual worlds and change our perception of reality.

Extended Reality is an umbrella term that refers to a combination of Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR). It's a concept that blurs the boundaries between the physical and digital world through the integration of virtual elements into the real world and the ability to interact with this virtual content. Essentially, extended reality enables us to create new and immersive experiences where the real world is augmented with virtual objects, environments, and interactions.

XR encompasses AR, MR, VR, and any other technology in the field of creating virtual worlds. This even includes technologies yet to be developed. To better understand how Extended Reality works, we need to dissect the underlying technologies.

• Virtual Reality: Virtual reality is a crucial part of extended reality, enabling users to be fully immersed in virtual environments. This is achieved with advanced headsets equipped with high-quality displays and motion tracking technology. The displays show realistic 3D-graphics that respond to the user's movements, creating a sense of presence and interaction in the virtual world.

• Augmented Reality: Augmented reality adds virtual elements to the real world, giving users the ability to experience information, objects, and interactive content in their physical environment. AR is often achieved through smartphones, tablets, or specialised AR-brillen. Using cameras and sensors, the device detects the real world and then adds virtual elements to the user's field of view. This can range from simple overlays of text and images to complex 3D-objecten that seem to seamlessly exist in the real world.

• Mixed Reality: Mixed reality combines the elements of both virtual reality and augmented reality to offer a more advanced and interactive experience. In mixed reality, virtual objects are placed and integrated into the real world in a way that is more convincing and realistic than AR. Users can interact with these virtual objects, and they can respond to physical environments. MR-headsets, like the Microsoft HoloLens 2 use advanced sensors and cameras to scan the environment in real-time and seamlessly integrate virtual content with the real world. This allows users to grasp, alter, and perform other interactions. It's as if these objects are physically present.

Extended reality is therefore a group of technologies that push the boundaries of our perception of reality. By merging virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality, XR opens the door to endless possibilities in the fields of entertainment, education, training, and professional use. With advanced hardware, software, and development tools, the XR-industrie continues to evolve, and we can look forward to even more immersive and impressive experiences in virtual worlds in the future.