Part 1 of 2 Parts
     Augmented reality is a term that refers to the addition of computer-generated objects to the field of view of a person wearing special glasses that project images into their eyes. Along with virtual reality, AR has received a lot of attention in the technology press recently. While many uses have been suggested for AR systems, one use with great potential is industrial applications. Boeing has been using a system for years that allows a technician installing wiring in their passenger jets to see an image of the correct positioning of the wires in their field of view. 
     Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed a method of using AR to create accurate visual representation of ionizing radiation. The new technology has just been licensed by Teletrix, a Pittsburg, Pennsylvania based company that develops simulators to train radiological workers and radiological control technicians. ORNL announced the news of their work on May 4th.
     A staff team at ORNL originally created an application called Virtual Interaction with Physics-enhanced reality (VIPER). Utilizing simulated radiation data and a gaming platform, the new technology divides a physical space into cubes. Each cube has a volumetric value of ionizing radiation by dose. That data is used to create a 3D image of gradient contours that is overlaid on a real-world view through the use of an AR headset. A person wearing the AR headset can move through a physical space with visual awareness of the contours of radiation. As they move, the device can calculate simulated, real-time exposure based on their movements. Last year, ORNL posted a video that demonstrates the use of the new technology in a laboratory setting.
     Michael Smith is a nuclear space systems engineer at ORNL and a member of the development team for the new AR technology. He said, “We combined physics-based data with a gaming interface that provides a visual platform to make something invisible look and feel real—we took science and cinematography and brought them together.”
      The AR development team includes ORNL’s Noel Nelson and Douglas Peplow of the Nuclear Energy and Fuel Cycle Division and former ORNL researchers M. Scott Greenwood and Nicholas Thompson. Originally, the AR project began as a one-year seed project funded under ORNL’s Lab Directed Research and Development program. The Nuclear and Radiological Protection Division of ORNL provided significant support.
     Smith said “When it comes to training with ionizing radiation, [AR] is a superior and safer solution. Our team was at the right place at the right time to develop this technology. There was a synergy of hardware and software maturity coupled with an idea that’s been around a long time—the need to see ionizing radiation.”
     Smith added that “Just by having a general impression of the spatial relationship of your body in a given radiation environment, you can decrease your overall dose based on really fundamental behavioral change. We can’t see ionizing radiation, so you just walk right through it. But once you have seen what the radiation in your working environment looks like, you can’t unsee it. AR provides a means to train people to have a better visceral understanding of how ionizing radiation behaves.”
Please read Part 2 next