Robotvision – Augmented Reality Application

Available In: App Store

Price: Coming Soon

Robotvision is an augmented reality application. A quick wiki definition of Augmented Reality – “a term for a live direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are merged with-, or augmented by virtual computer-generated imagery – creating a mixed reality”

I got an email about this application and was instantly intrigued. I think these type of applications are just crazy! Think… you are walking down the sidewalk on your lunch break and you decide to hit-up a coffee shop but you are feeling adventurous and want to branch out from the one you usually go to so, you whip out your iPhone, open Robotvision and select the Coffee Shop option… you hold up your iPhone and as you walk down the sidewalk it begins to display all the surrounding coffee shops (in your actual “physical environment”)… you turn to the right and it displays the coffee shops that are down that street, you turn to the left and it displays the coffee shops that are down that street.

This is not the first time we have seen an application like this, Nearest Tube also used the iPhone 3GS video camera, GPS and Compass to give Londoners a real-time map and directions on where the nearest metro stations are.

Robotvision does have a few unique features such as a the ability to get a birds-eye view of Google Maps by tilting the iPhone down, some social media integration (twitter, Flickr… etc) and the ability to get info from Bing. Looks like it will be a pretty cool application. Check out the video demo below.

This application is currently in review by Apple. It will require an iPhone 3GS on 3.1 firmware.

Features:
* Type in anything with Open-ended Search
* Get a birds-eye view from Google Maps by looking down
* Quickly select from popular location categories like Coffee Shops and Tourist Attractions
* Discover rich, social content like Flickr and Twitter, with more on the way!
* Easily jump to more info on Bing like restaurant reviews, call a location or get driving directions
* Touch to select and navigate through items around you
* Set your range with an Adjustable Radius

Demo Video:

Description:

robotvision augmented reality is an exciting new way to explore the world around you. Using the accelerometer and compass technology of the iPhone 3GS, along with new camera capabilities of the 3.1 OS update, you can discover content and locations around you like never before.

Search for nearby locations, restaurants, points of interest — you name it! All using the power of Bing local search. Discover photographs taken and geotagged by Flickr users in the area. Find and engage with people on Twitter in your area – all just by looking around like you normally would!