Microsoft’s Build 2016 conference began earlier this week with the company kicking off the event with a keynote featuring the HoloLens mixed reality (MR) head -mounted display (HMD) on Wednesday 30th. That was also the day the HoloLens officially launched for developers to purchase if they’re based in the US or Canada. Now Studio 216, in collaboration with Skanska USA and Microsoft has announced a project creating a holographic real estate sales centre.
Produced for Skanska’s Seattle development 2+U, the centre uses the HoloLens to enable a multi-user guided tour of the project. Visitors experiencing the 2+U Holographic Real Estate Sales Centre will be treated to both an interior and exterior journey around the development’s neighbourhood, viewing a scale model of downtown Seattle and the building. There’s also a first-person view to make you feel as if you’re walking through the project, with a floating scale model so you where your location is in relation to everything else.
“Partnering with Skanska was a unique opportunity for Studio 216. The Skanska team felt that it was critical to bring the “human element” to their design for Downtown Seattle and this fit perfectly into HoloLens mixed reality technological capabilities,” said Boaz Ashkenazy, founding partner and CMO of Studio 216. “By connecting the sales person with the client experience Studio 216 is able to let the story of the 2+U highrise project take center stage.”
“Developing for HoloLens is similar to developing for VR headsets, but you have to ask yourself different questions,” said Kyle Riesenbeck, Technical Lead for the 2+U Holographic project. “With VR, you have to create both the environment and the content, but with HoloLens, the challenge is determining the best way to have your content interact with your existing world, and enhance your real life experience in a unique and necessary way.”
Studio 216 was one of a very select few to be chosen to participate in the Microsoft HoloLens Agency Readiness program, which granted early access to the device. VRFocus will continue its coverage of HoloLens, reporting back any further updates.
