GE using augmented reality to fix machines
General Electric Co. has started using augmented reality devices as the company takes a major plunge into the use of artificial intelligence and virtual reality.
At the 2016 GE Minds + Machines conference held this week in San Francisco, Colin Parris, the vice president of GE Software Research, demonstrated how employees are talking to machines and interacting with them using Microsoft's Hololens augmented reality device.
GE has created so-called "digital twins" of the machines that it sells - a steam turbine for instance - that are digital replicas of actual machines at customer sites. The company has created a software system that allows customers to speak to the digital twin and ask it questions about potential parts breakdowns, financial forecasts and the best way to fix problems.
The digital twins are loaded with data they can crunch to provide the best advice - which is given in real language not unlike Siri on the iPhone.
The digital twin can run thousands of simulations at a time using environmental and operational data to predict breakdowns or other events.
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