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We are developing a virtual reality graffiti drawing application for our client. To make the drawing process as realistic and convenient as possible, we have implemented several features, including: The ability to shake the can with realistic sound Visibility of spraying a cloud of paint Dependence of the line thickness on the position of the can Realistic texture filling with paint  

Nowadays, augmented reality has become more than science fiction. AR is vastly used in retail, entertainment, production, healthcare, military training, education, etc. The advantages AR gives to this field explain its growing popularity. The key advantages of them are simplifying the educational process, increasing user involvement, creating customers’ unique experiences, and increasing business efficiency. We would like to tell you about the 5 most interesting technologies, gadgets, and applications, which most clearly represent augmented reality trends in 2022. Virtual Try-On Virtual Try-on technologies bring real fitting rooms into the digital realm. Using the device’s camera, a customer can try the virtual product on. AR technology creates a realistic image of a product on customers’ bodies, which allows them to choose the right clothes without visiting physical shops. Such companies like ASOS and Adidas use AR try-on for a wide range of models in different sizes. 1822 Denim uses YourFit widget by 3DLOOK which significantly simplifies the process of choosing the right size for women. This program scans the customer’s body and then automatically calculates the right size. According to statistics, 90% of the company’s customers felt more confident about personalized recommendations. And 70% of customers went on a purchase after using 3DLOOK technology. Intravenous Assistance AR technologies can also improve healthcare and patients’ treatment. Some augment reality technologies scan a patient’s body parts and reveal an accurate picture of the circulatory system. AR intravenous assistance gadgets and programs are mostly implied during cosmetic procedures, intravenous medication delivery, treatment of varicose and other vein diseases, and so on. AccuVein is a handy gadget with augmented reality technology which helps to find the right vein in a patient’s body. This gadget reduces failed attempts at intravenous medication delivery. According to statistics, from 7% up to 21% of first attempts are failed, even by most experienced doctors. AR Military Training Augmented reality in the military sector is mostly used in different kinds of training. With AR technologies army successfully and safely trains jet pilots, infantry, fighting vehicles, tank crew, etc. One of the most recent technologies — is tactical augmented reality. The Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Centre (CERDEC) recently introduced a heads-up display. TAR uses a helmet-mounted eye display, wirelessly connected to the small computer on a waist. TAR also has integrated mapping, navigation, and 3D models to improve tactical maneuvers and fires. Current AR military technologies are using monochrome images, but CERDEC plans to display fully-colored videos and pictures to improve soldiers’ experience. AR in Education As it was proven multiple times, AR technologies in classes increase a student’s engagement, and interest in a subject and improve content understanding. AR can be used for virtual trips, which help students to learn about foreign cultures during History lessons. Using 3D geometric figures, a student can solve complex geometry tasks. For those who struggle with mathematics and geometry, Photomath is the right choice. After you scan an exercise from a physical worksheet with this mobile VR app, you’ll get the way how to solve a math problem, using interactive 3D graphics. Also, Photomath is suitable for solving problems in geometry, trigonometry, algebra, statistics, etc. This educational AR app has been downloaded from GooglePlay and App Store more than 300 million times. Art & Photography Augmented reality is also used as a new space to create art. AR mobile apps are both a perfect place for artists to make some experimental art and a helpful tool to create real paintings and photos. Like, for example, Sun Surveyor is — a mobile app, made for professional photographers. This app helps artists to find the right location for the photoshoot. It shows an AR picture of the chosen location, with the current location of the sun and the moon in the sky at any particular moment. This app allows calculating the length of shadows and distance between elevations. Sun Surveyor is available at GooglePlay and App Store for $7.99. More than a million users have downloaded this app (with the addition of the Lite version). It’s only a tiny part of the possibilities, which became available with augmented reality. The number of fields where AR is getting applied is growing every year.

While working on a virtual reality application for painting graffiti on walls our team had difficulties with the implementation of smooth painting with spray paint. The drawing process itself is calculated mathematically using linear interpolation. We launch a beam from a can of paint and aim at the texture of the wall on which we will paint, after which we calculate the pixels, and the paint is transferred to the wall. The main difficulty occurred when moving quickly with a can. The paint did not fill all the intermediate points, but only separate ones, as a result, voids appeared in the filling with color. Naturally, at the same time, the drawing process lost its realism and smoothness and became uncomfortable. The reason for this was the use of Unity’s built-in math, which could not cope with a large number of miscalculations. In order to solve this problem, we decided to use third-party libraries: Hybrid renderer — provides systems and components for rendering ECS ​​entities. Hybrid Renderer is not a render pipeline: it is a system that collects the data necessary for rendering ECS ​​entities and sends this data to Unity’s existing rendering architecture. BurstCompiler — it translates from IL/.NET byte code to highly optimized native code using LLVM. It is released as a unity package and integrated into Unity using the Unity Package Manager. Unity C# Job System — lets you write simple and safe multithreaded code that interacts with the Unity Engine for enhanced game performance. In the video below, you can see the difference in performance before and after using third party libraries. After the implementation of the above libraries, the efficiency of the application was improved by 90-100%.

We are working on an interesting NFT project related to 3D avatars, video and sound recording. We decided to briefly tell you about the solutions that we use for work, as well as share information about the inner workings of the project. About the essence of the NFT project The essence of the NFT project is that you buy unique 3D avatars in the application. For them, you can record video with sound using the front camera of your smartphone. The main feature is that the avatar pronounces the recorded sound, repeating the facial expressions and emotions of the speaker. There are currently more than 2000 avatars in the application. The application is currently only available for iPhone. In the future, the purchased NFT avatar can be upgraded in terms of popularity and recognition. After that, it can be monetized: used for advertising, taking part in the shooting of cartoons, animated videos, etc. About the complexities While working on the project, it became necessary to impose various effects on the recorded sound. This can enhance the authenticity of the avatar, make the video more impactful with interesting sound effects, and diversify the experience that users can implement in the application. The main requirement was to use the effects used by professional audio editors. We started looking for a suitable solution, offered various options, some of which did not fit for objective reasons, and the other part was not compatible with the mobile platform. In the end, we settled on one well-known tool that met all our requirements. Tools for working with sound and video Since our project needs to record videos with sound and work with them at the same time, we chose FFMpeg – a complete, cross-platform solution to record, convert and stream audio and video. Before that, we used this library for video processing: trimming, inserting background music. They also knew about the possibilities of working with sound, but did not use all the advanced features. And the possibilities are wide. We can say that this is the most complete library for audio and video processing: compression, timbre, frequency, playback speed, echo. Over 100 different filter combinations. For future clients If you have ideas that you would like to implement, please contact us. We will conduct research, choose the best options and make an effective and simple solution.

May the miracle of Easter bring peace, hope and happiness to all of us. Wishing you a happy Easter full of blessings. P.S. This cute greeting card was handcrafted by our talented Olesia Kornilova.

Within one of our big VR projects, we migrated from the old version of item interaction to the new Oculus Interaction SDK. Multiplayer virtual reality project in the field of education Qualium Systems has been developing our own multiplayer virtual reality project in the field of Chemistry education for a long time — virtual classrooms. The features of the project VR Chemistry Lessons App offer a large number of interactions with objects, namely: take and hold them, move, resize, etc. For this type of application, the interaction and manipulation of objects, their convenience and simplicity, play a key role, since this is what affects the student’s feelings while using the application. Check out a small video on the work of our VR Chemistry Lessons App. Before the Oculus Interaction SDK was released, the older version of the SDK didn’t allow the effective object manipulation. For example, in the old version, it was impossible to take an object with both hands and change its size — increase or decrease. It was a problem. Development of a custom solution for object manipulation As a result, in order to get around these limitations, we developed our own custom solution for manipulating objects in the application. Besides the advantages, it also had negative aspects: led to code complexity, implied additional work when updating the Oculus SDK on the project, etc. Benefits and adoption of the Oculus Interaction SDK The new Oculus Interaction SDK allowed us to implement almost all the interaction features with objects that we needed. It is now possible to abandon the custom solution, although requiring considerable time for integration. What is the Oculus Interaction SDK Interaction SDK Experimental is a library component that allows developers to use standardized interactions for controllers and hands. Interaction SDK also includes tooling to help developers build their own hand poses. We filmed a short video while testing the Oculus Interaction SDK. The experience we have gained Our development team has the flexibility to change their approaches: develop custom solutions when needed; implement ready-made libraries and frameworks when it speeds up development time without reducing quality.

The war continues in Ukraine. A war in which civilians suffer: old people and children, women and men. Fleeing from the dangers of war, many move to safer places and also need help: hygiene products, clothing, food, a roof over their heads. At this time, the Ukrainians rallied as never before. Everyone is trying to do everything possible to help the person who is nearby, to do their job for the good of the country, so that life goes on despite the bombs and shells. After all, this is the most important thing – human life. We at Qualium Systems do what we can: for the company’s employees we have organized the opportunity to work, provide for their families and donate to the needs of the army and Ukrainians; we contribute to helping the army; We are looking for options to help, with the help of our knowledge and skills, military and civilians who have been physically and psychologically affected by the war. You can also contribute to the victory of life over death, freedom over slavery, democracy over totalitarianism. Support our military and civilians. Any contribution matters. Assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and humanitarian assistance to Ukrainians Come Back Alive Foundation One of the largest aid funds for the Ukrainian military. Fundraising link. Accounts of the National Bank of Ukraine The National Bank opened accounts to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine and collect humanitarian aid to the affected Ukrainians. Fundraising link. HelpUkraine.Center Humanitarian and medical aid to Ukraine. Fundraising link. International Charity Foundation “EverybodyCan” Growing up as a volunteer in 2014. The mission of the foundation is to develop charity and volunteering, to establish a responsible and tolerant society in Ukraine and to help those who need it the most. Fundraising link. A selection of additional opportunities to help Ukrainians https://how-you-can-support-ukraine.super.site/   #StandWithUkraine

President Zelensky and his advisers often say how important it is in this difficult time to organize the life of the home front, not to give up, to continue economic activity, to live as normal a life as possible. Show the enemy that we cannot be broken morally, because this begins the demoralization of society. Our soldiers, feeling a strong rear, continue to push the invaders. Qualium Systems continues to operate. In difficult conditions, we organized the work of our developers, distributed the equipment, organized the common work of the guys in different cities of Ukraine. It was difficult, but necessary. After all, this is how we make part of our contribution to the victory of Ukraine. When everyone is busy with their own business, when everyone has the opportunity to work and provide for their families, when everyone has the opportunity to help our army financially. Even more, we can help with our knowledge and skills. Do what we can and love. Now we are actively exploring the question of how VR applications help everyone who suffered during active hostilities, how we can help the physiological and psychological recovery of our military and civilians. We establish cooperation with experts, look at foreign experience, plan and think about how best to implement it. You can help too. We invite all customers who need cool modern VR/AR/MR applications to cooperate. Contact us. We are from Ukraine.

In this difficult time, the support of Ukraine by all foreign partners and friends is important. Support that unites Ukraine with the whole world. Yesterday, the PayPal payment service announced the expansion of the list of services available in Ukraine. Now Ukrainians will be able to send and receive funds from their Ukrainian PayPal wallet in US dollars, Canadian dollars, pounds sterling and euros.     Those who have already been registered with PayPal in Ukraine will automatically be able to use all the features, and new ones need to register an account on the company’s website https://www.paypal.com/ua/home and tie up a Visa or Mastercard card. This important step will help Ukrainians get help from all over the world, and it will make it easier for Ukrainian companies to cooperate and pay for their services.