Researchers fromFacebook真人实验室和Massachusetts Institute of Technology（麻省理工学院）已经开发了一种3D打印对象的方法，该对象具有“无形”的增强现实（AR）标记。
By designing parts with built-in gaps, patterned into QR codes, then 3D printing them from infrared (IR)-emitting filament, the team found they were able to create objects capable of AR device interfacing. In doing so, the engineers say that it’s possible to track the movement of these items, and even use them as controllers, potentially allowing makers to 3D print their own gaming inputs at home.
使AR标签集成可访问
现在，AR技术被用来促进从元视频到手术训练模拟器的所有内容，AR技术开始良好并真正进入主流。鉴于3D打印也是一种先进的技术，通常被认为是对传统方法的破坏性，因此研究人员已经开始尝试结合两者以探索其潜力并不令人惊讶。
However, while a number of approaches have been developed with a view to achieving this, the MIT-Facebook team say that limitations continue to prevent their wider adoption. With regards to the气柜and基础设施例如，这样做的过程是在2017年引入的，例如，研究人员将其标记为合格的成功，因为它们的运作，但以复杂，无法访问的硬件设置为代价。
To address these issues, the engineers suggest that objects be 3D printed with air gaps from IR filament that can be scanned using a low-cost camera. While they acknowledge that this was trialed as part of theLayerCode该项目在2019年，这使树脂在生产前浸泡在IR染料中，并通过昂贵的修改打印机存放，因此该团队已经围绕现成的材料建立了研究。
“ [在我们的方法中]对象的主要几何形状是使用红外细丝打印的3D，而标签本身是通过离开气隙创建的，”他们的论文中解释说。“由于主几何形状在IR区域是半透明的，因此近红外摄像头可以透过它并捕获气隙，即标记，该标记以不同的强度显示。”
Gaming with printed controllers
In order to bring their vision of accessible AR-integrated printing to life, the researchers initially embedded a tag into an object with an everyday FDM system using IR-emitting PLA. While this resulted in a readable code, the team later found that by mixing their material with a regular PLA, they were able to improve the contrast between gapped and filled areas, resulting in much clearer markers.
Having optimized their 3D printing approach, the engineers then turned their attention to the interfacing of any resulting QR codes with digital devices. Although insisting that their tags can be read via the IR cameras of many smartphones, the team acknowledge that this can be a premium feature, so to ensure their method is accessible, they’ve also developed a custom imaging module and app.
Composed of an IR camera and visible light cut-off filter, as well as two IR LEDs to illuminate objects when dark, fitted to a TPU 3D printed case, the researchers’ adapter is said to work with any modern mobile. What’s more, durage usage this add-on shows users what they can see rather than providing them with an IR feed, allowing more information to be overlaid on top when used within AR applications.
As a field test for their well-named ‘InfraredTag’ approach, the team deployed it to 3D print a wheel with embedded fiducial markers, which allowed its movements to be tracked and used as a game steering input. In future, the team suggest that objects like this could therefore be ideal for use with IR-equipped AR headsets such asMicrosoft’s HoloLens 2, while being well-suited to data-sharing as well.
“Spatially embedding metadata or documentation information within the object itself can provide richer contextualization and allow information sharing,” conclude the team. “For example, we can embed the object’s fabrication/origin link (e.g. a shortened Thingiverse URL) as an InfraredTag for users to look up, in case they would like to get more information from its creator or 3D print it themselves.”
AR’s growing influence in 3D printing
Even though experiments combining 3D printing and AR remain at an early stage, the latter is increasingly capturing the imagination of the additive manufacturing industry, with the issue polling highly in our recentfuture of 3D printing survey。
In the past, integrating watermarks into 3D printed parts has raised concern among researchers at theUniversity of Exeterand达勒姆大学, who describe it as a对人们隐私的“日益威胁”。However, Sharon Flank, CEO ofInfraTrac, has since poured cold water on these claims, saying that she doesn’t see tracking 3D printable design files as “one of the big dangers” facing manufacturers.
元itself has also poured a considerable amount of effort into investigating the potential of additive manufactured game controllers, having previously created3D打印的AR手套。该公司的现实实验室团队也与研究人员一起开发康奈尔大学, it was thought when they were revealed, that these haptic feedback-enabled wearables could be built for theOculus Rift。
Elsewhere in the industry,Luxexcel与波导制造商合作WaveOpticsas well, to 3D printsmart glasses with AR functionality。这些公司的镜头模块旨在用于视觉校正和AR接口，同时保留常规外形，从而有效地将其集成到常规的眼镜框架中。
研究人员的发现在其论文中详细介绍了“InfraredTags: Embedding Invisible AR Markers and Barcodes Using Low-Cost, Infrared-Based 3D Printing and Imaging Tools,” which was co-authored by Mustafa Doga Dogan, Ahmad Taka, Michael Lu, Yunyi Zhu, Akshat Kumar, Aakar Gupta and Stefanie Mueller.
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Featured image shows a researcher playing a game with a 3D printed steering wheel controller. Photo via MIT/Facebook Reality Labs.
