Page 21 - Industrial Plants

Fig. 1 System architecture: the team members can communicate thanks to a server/client system. On-
site engineers send pictures of the real environment to the office engineers, who use them to locate
instructions that will be sent back through symbols, sketches or text.

equipped with the Android operating system or iOS) information missing from the available documentation.
through which they see a series of statements projected
directly on the scene. Alternatively, they can wear Discussion
helmets or any kind of AR goggles, which allow them In this work, we discussed how Augmented Reality can
to view the information simultaneously with the be effectively exploited for the revamp of a refinery. Our
execution of the operation.
The application allows the user to decide whether to be
server or client. On the server application (Fig. 2) the
server user can choose what information symbol to
display (e.g. unscrew, screw, location indication,
warning, disassemble, assemble, etc.). Through the
arrows, he can move the symbol to the correct
location. Through the chat system he can also send
text messages and, through the annotation system, he
can sketch on the picture.
In the client part of the application (Fig. 3), the team
member through the AR window sees the symbol the
other team member chose and moved, superimposed
onto the real environment in the correct location. In the
top-right part of the screen are located the buttons to
take a picture of the real environment. These pictures
are used as markers. The button allowing to take a
picture only appears if the program recognises the
picture as a potentially good marker.
During the various phases, the client can update the
image and send to the server, allowing the server to
see the new scenario on which the client is operating.
In this way, the server and the client can exchange Fig. 2 The server application. The user, once they have received a picture
information, and during a revamp, they can get the from the client, can add text, symbols and sketch on it.

IndustrIal Plants - May 2017
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