ST-Ericsson and ST working to make augmented reality part of daily life

INDIA: To accelerate the creation and adoption of technologies that enrich people's daily experience, ST-Ericsson and STMicroelectronics announced their collaboration in the VENTURI (immersiVe ENhancemenT of User-woRld Interactions) European scientific project dedicated to mobile augmented reality.

Augmented reality (AR) weaves real-world images with computer-generated digital images, text and graphics, enhancing what people see, hear, feel and smell. Imagine sitting in front of your tablet or next-generation smartphone and virtually trying on different shirts from your favorite store, or walking by a storefront on a street and being able to see what’s inside without actually having to enter. The innovative technology behind AR enhances a user’s perception of the real world, allowing their senses to perceive new opportunities that were unimaginable in the past, and that will improve their everyday experience.

Backed by Framework 7 European Commission research funding, the three-year VENTURI project will develop and deliver a variety of solutions, such as algorithms, software architectures, and pilot use-cases to enable developers to produce highly-engaging mobile AR apps for next-generation platforms.

“VENTURI is a yet another example of how ST-Ericsson is working hand-in-hand with world-leading companies and research institutions to ensure that our smartphone and tablet platforms support the cutting-edge in mobile services and applications,” said Björn Ekelund, head of ecosystems and research at ST-Ericsson.

“Augmented reality applications require several advanced technologies to converge in order to deliver their full potential in fields such as leisure, gaming, education, and in medical applications aimed at improving the quality of life for all people, especially those with sensory impairments,” said Viviana D’Alto, director of computer vision research platform, advanced system technology group at STMicroelectronics.

“Collaborating with the project’s partners to facilitate device convergence, STMicroelectronics will leverage its image- and video-processing expertise, along with its unique SW and HW integration skills, to provide new and exciting ways to interact with portable devices, while addressing energy-management constraints.”

Working together, the eight companies who make up the VENTURI project will optimize hardware and software that will ultimately offer consumers an immersive, high-definition mobile AR experience.

VENTURI apps will be developed using ST-Ericsson’s latest smartphone platforms and will be optimized to take advantage of the power of next-generation hardware and software. The research groups will port mobile AR technologies, such as visual recognition and tracking algorithms, onto ST-Ericsson platforms and test them with users in several real-life scenarios.