--- title: "Augmented reality (AR) for training and guidance at work" description: "AR keeps the real world in view and adds a 3D model, instructions or a label to it. PTR's published AR capability and a live AR demo to try in the browser." canonical: https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/augmented-reality --- [XR](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr) # Augmented Reality (AR) AR keeps the real world in view and adds to it. A 3D model, a set of instructions or a label is held in place over what a person is already looking at. Virtual reality replaces the real world; AR annotates it. For a fuller explanation of how AR works and where it is used, see [What is augmented reality?](https://peopletechrevolution.com/learn/xr/what-is-augmented-reality) Shapes resting above a real tabletop. What AR adds ## The table stays. Something new sits on it. Augmented reality leaves the room as it is and adds one thing to it: a model on the bench, a step marked on the machine, a story attached to the artwork on the wall. The person keeps their hands, their colleagues and the rest of the room in view the whole time. That is what makes it easy to use in a working space. Nobody has to be led anywhere or handed a controller before the thing they came to look at appears in front of them. Calling a twin from a card. AR compared with VR and MR ## AR keeps the real world in view. AR Applications are one of PTR's custom-build capabilities on Labs: interactive overlays that bring print materials, physical environments and artwork to life. AR adds to the physical environment through a phone, tablet or headset camera, instead of replacing it with a simulation. The choice between VR, AR and MR depends on how much of the physical world a person needs to see while working. Extended Reality (XR) is the umbrella term for the three technologies. VR AR MR Physical world visible? No, fully replaced Yes, overlaid on top Yes, digital objects interact with it Typical hardware Standalone headset Phone, tablet or AR glasses Passthrough or see-through headset Common use in PTR's practice Role-play, perspective-taking, procedural rehearsal Overlaying print, environments or artwork Covered on PTR's mixed reality page A learner and instructor display AR markers. Practical considerations ## Usefulness depends on the device. Phone or tablet AR needs no special hardware. Holding a device up for a long session is tiring and limits the view to the screen. AR glasses free the hands and widen the view, but remain less common outside specialist workplaces. Weight, battery life and cost limit how long and how often they can be worn. Low light, reflective or featureless surfaces and fast movement can make digital content drift or lose its anchor. Before requesting camera access, an AR build should explain what it captures and why. To see PTR's wider XR work, visit the [XR overview page](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr). A PTR guest tries immersive technology in Townsville. Try it ## PTR's AR Business Card, live now. It runs on Labs Demos and opens in a browser with no app to install. [Try the AR Business Card](https://labs.peopletechrevolution.com/play/ar-business-card). Talk to us about an AR idea. > "It's kind of like being in a big prototyping sandpit. We're also really lucky that the extended reality (XR) community in Australia is so advanced and supportive." Leonie Sanderson Co-founder, People Tech Revolution, on building from Australia. [Startup Spotlight, Aerospace Xelerated, 2023](https://medium.com/aeroxelerated/spotlight-people-tech-revolution-62d11e4ae535) Runs on - [Phones & tablets](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/devices/phones-and-tablets) - [Smart glasses](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/devices/smart-glasses) - [Android XR](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/devices/android-xr) - [Apple Vision Pro](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/devices/apple-vision-pro) - [Every headset & device](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/devices) Have a case for AR on a phone or tablet? [Open the contact form](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/augmented-reality#contact) Ask our CEO Simon Lowe’s Digital Twin a question ## Related PTR work and further reading The headset side of PTR's XR practice, and how AR compares with VR and MR. [PTR's virtual reality work. The headset side of PTR's XR practice.](https://peopletechrevolution.com/xr/virtual-reality) [What is augmented reality? How an AR anchor holds its place in the room.](https://peopletechrevolution.com/learn/xr/what-is-augmented-reality) [VR vs AR vs MR. The three technologies, compared side by side.](https://peopletechrevolution.com/learn/xr/vr-vs-ar-vs-mr) ## Practice in a community setting One community scenario, shown on three headsets. Arms wide on a beachside cafe deck. Reaching out together at the cafe. A cafe scenario for practising conversation. ## Data overlays out in the field Blue bands across a wheat field. Cyan ribbons through vineyard rows. Violet fields beside rice seedlings. Colour layers beside mangrove roots. Colour halos surround gallery ceramics. Terrain data above a rainforest stream. ## Colour layered onto public places Colour rings hover above the fountains. Colour fields glow across wet cobbles. Colour ribbons trace a library rotunda. Colour gradients cross the granite blocks. ## Sources and further reading AR definitions, WebXR specifications and ARCore guidance. ### A Survey of Augmented Reality Ronald Azuma · Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments (MIT Press) · 1997 The foundational definition behind PTR's AR-vs-VR-vs-MR comparison above. [Read it at doi.org](https://doi.org/10.1162/pres.1997.6.4.355) ### WebXR Augmented Reality Module, Level 1 W3C Immersive Web Working Group · Candidate Recommendation Draft The web standard behind how an AR anchor is tracked and rechecked. [Read it at w3.org](https://www.w3.org/TR/webxr-ar-module-1/) ### ARCore fundamental concepts Google for Developers The tracking and lighting concepts behind PTR's colour-overlay work above. [Read it at developers.google.com](https://developers.google.com/ar/develop/fundamentals)