Lenovo, one of the world’s largest providers of computers and virtual, augmented, and mixed reality (VR/AR/MR) devices and services, has partnered with Xerox-owned CareAR to develop a novel 3D extended reality (XR ) solution to include live remote assistance, real-time 3D instructions, and analytics and insights to address problems for teams, it announced Tuesday.
CareAR provides its SXM platform for Lenovo ThinkReality A3 smart glasses, which enables users to view multiple screens, stream video and audio, and object recognition using simultaneous, localization, and mapping techniques (SLAM ) to superimpose digital assets.
CareAR’s ServiceNow platform also supports field technicians using Lenovo’s flagship smart glass devices to collaborate with experts on remote guides for live instructions, visuals, and digital twins, among others.
Bulent Cinarkaya, General Manager of Field Service Management at ServiceNowsaid that AR and VR have become “essential” to safe, efficient field service management experiences and to quickly resolve issues and reduce “expensive site visits.”
Speaking about the partnership, he added,
“[It] will enable enterprise customers and service technicians to expand the use of AR in “hands-free” use cases and optimize the ways enterprises train technicians, share knowledge, troubleshoot issues, and offer support”
Vishal Shah, General Manager of XR and Metaverse for Lenovoexplained that today, the fast-paced nature of businesses and poses significant challenges to field technicians to “immediately gain access to customer sites,” as the latter expects and requires vendors to “resolve issues quickly.”
He added,
“Our A3 smart glasses and ThinkReality platform pair well with the CareAR platform to modernize the service experience by empowering field technicians and enterprise customers to access the insight needed to identify and fix issues quickly, reducing truck rolls and costly downtime”
Sam Waicberg, CareAR President and Co-Founderdecided that the partnership would transform service experiences, adding,
“Empowering for a technician to put on a pair of Lenovo smart glasses and be instantly empowered with relevant knowledge and guidance delivered from CareAR to perform tasks beyond their skills or level of experience is nothing short of game changing”
Lenovo, CareAR Build Bridges to the Metaverse
The news comes after Shah explained to XR Today in an interview how the ThinkReality A3 will serve as a custom device for building metaverse solutions and infrastructure for the enterprise.
The device, featuring a cloud-agnostic hardware and software ecosystem, provided enterprises with multi-screen views, remote guidance even at sites with poor connectivity, and a robust device management system in all levels of business operations, among many others.
Lenovo also partnered with the Philippines’ FELTA program to deploy EdVision immersive devices for students while leveraging the former’s ongoing partnership with Qualcomm Technologies and its Snapdragon Spaces XR ecosystem.
In contrast, CareAR launched a strategic alliance in June with ServiceNow and Infosys to leverage the latter’s Metaverse Foundry Service and CareAR’s clients, taking cutting-edge technologies for field services, healthcare, telecommunications, and other novel applications.