The US Congress recently approved a $40 million spend on new Microsoft Hololens augmented reality headsets for the US Army after complaints from users.
The so-called Integrated Vision Augmentation System (IVAS) is designed to pull data from various sensors and databases to provide soldiers with real-time updates and results. augmented reality display with night vision aids.
A leaked report was initially seen by Bloomberg (opens in a new tab) note that the headsets, which are built on Microsoft’s HoloLens technology – are causing “mission-affected physical impairments” and, as a result, their acceptability is very low. Some users also complained about the light emitted from the goggles, which would affect the soldiers’ ability to cover up.
US Army IVAS 1.2
Congress reportedly rejected the Army’s request to buy nearly 7,000 headsets worth $400 million, instead budgeting about 10% of these, which would be used to develop a new version. more, named 1.2.
A statement of Army (opens in a new tab) note that in addition to IVAS 1.1 improvements (which offer better low-light performance) and some software tweaks:
“IVAS 1.2 will include a new form factor to address Human Systems Integration, including physiological effects identified during testing and a structured head-up display. lower profile with distributed counterweight for improved user interface and comfort.”
So far, the testing process has cost nearly 100,000 hours of work by more than 1,000 soldiers involved.
Despite the obvious forgery, Bloomberg reported that the Army spent $125 million (plus $40 million newly approved) on version 1.2. The Army said it will continue to work with Microsoft as its IVAS partner, and that orders for the newer model will be placed “after quality and performance testing”.
Microsoft recently revealed a bunch of new features for its HoloLens 2 augmented reality headsets, one of which is its popular addition TV affair service teams.
The update will give full support for Microsoft Team tools and functionality for HoloLens 2, including screen sharing, calendar coordination and, of course, face-to-face meetings and video calls.
