MIT researchers have built an augmented reality headset that gives the wearer X-ray vision. This device help workers locate objects for fulfilling e commerce orders or identify parts for assembling products. The head set combines vision and wireless perception to locate a hidden item. The system utilizes radio frequencies signals which can pass through common materials like boxes, plastic containers or wooden dividers.
The headset directs wearer as they walk through room toward the location of the item. Once the item is in user’s hand the headset called X-AR verifies that they have picked up the correct object. The headset can localize hidden items to within 9.8 centimeters. “Our while goal with this project was to build an augmented reality system that allows you to see things that allows you to see things that are invisible,” says Fadel Abid, an associate professor in the Department of Engineering at MIT.
One of the big challenge was designing an antenna that would fit on the headset without covering any of the cameras or obstructing its operations. Once the team built an effective antenna they focused on using it to localize RFID- tagged items. They levered a technique know as synthetic aperture radar (SAR) which is similar to how airplanes image objects on the ground. To test X-AR the researchers created a simulated warehouse by filling themselves with card board boxes and plastic bins. They found that X-AR can guide the user toward a targeted items with less than 10 centimeters from where X-AR directed the user. After testing it was found that the user picked the right items 98.9 percent. With this headset a new potential for finding objects or locating objects can come to reality.
