Web-based augmented reality in marketing: Master's Thesis

Conventional augmented reality applications consist of desktop and mobile applications requiring separate installation procedures prior to use. With web-based applications this requirement could be ignored since they can be executed directly on web browsers. Two web-based augmented reality applications, Flash AR and WebGL AR, were developed for marketing purposes in this study. Flash AR is a video streaming application based on Flash. The application enables video content to be played back on top of a marker visible in a webcam feed. WebGL AR is a WebGL-based application utilizing rich and complex 3D content. It enables superimposing of self-created 3D objects onto the webcam view. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed an augmented reality software library called ALVAR. The library can be used for developing AR applications for desktop and mobile environments and is also used by Flash AR and WebGL AR. However, in order to use ALVAR in the web environment it must be first converted to a web-based technology. ALVAR's mobile phone version was converted in this study to a Flash-based version called ALVAR Flash Library using Adobe Alchemy. The goal of this study was to determine the suitability of the web environment for AR applications and of the Flash AR and WebGL AR applications for marketing purposes. In addition, the two technologies used in the developed applications were compared in terms of rendering performance. Furthermore, the study focused on examining the performance, ease of use and flexibility of ALVAR Flash Library and its effect on the development of web-based AR applications. The results indicate that the AR applications developed in this study are well suited to the web environment in performance terms and also with respect to distribution, which is more efficient compared to desktop or mobile applications. The results also show that both of the developed applications are well suited for marketing purposes. Furthermore, the comparison of the two technologies used in the developed applications shows that WebGL has superior 3D performance in most cases compared to Flash.