- The announcement follows a $ 480 million deal between Microsoft and the Department of Defense in 2018 to develop the Integrated Enhanced Visual System (IVAS) based on the standard $ 3,500 HoloLens glasses enhanced using Azure Cloud Services.
Alex Kipman, the inventor of HoloLens, said: Microsoft has worked closely with the US military over the past two years, and together we have taken a pioneering role in soldier-centered design to enable rapid prototyping of a product to provide soldiers with the tools and capabilities needed to fulfill their mission.
A US Army statement reads: The system makes use of augmented reality and machine learning to enable a life-like mixed reality training environment where close combat power can train.
In February, the US Army revealed how a newer, more solid version of the head-up display could allow armored vehicle operators to see the walls of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle.
A previous version was criticized for poor sensor and GPS performance, but the design has now changed slightly.
HoloLens hasn't seen any significant hardware changes since the second release of Microsoft's mixed reality glasses, which launched in 2019.
Microsoft is gradually improving the software aspect of HoloLens, along with gesture improvements.
Early wave business models from augmented reality glasses such as HoloLens, Google Glass, and Spectacles are shifting from end-users to commercial, industrial, and military applications.
- The information indicates that nearly a fifth of Facebook employees works on VR and AR, and Apple has assigned its former hardware official to oversee AR and VR, while Samsung, Qualcomm, and Snap are recently offering more prototypes.