Autodesk and Microsoft Team Up for Hololens

Augmented Reality is picking up pace at Microsoft. Autodesk, known for 3D imaging and computer aided design (CAD) and Microsoft have teamed up to use the Hololens augmented reality headset for 3D engineering and industrial design.

Hololens is Microsoft’s smart augmented reality headset that is pretty much a computer with sensors, a HD 3D display, and speaker-quality sound which the user controls through head movements, voice, and gestures. It uses Windows 10 to function as an OS and Windows Holographic as the development technology. Originally intended to launch as part of the Windows 10 timeline, Hololens, being such a complex concept, is just beginning to roll out. Autodesk Fusion 360 is a cloud platform for collaboration in CAD, CAM and CAE.

The project, known as FreeForm, is built on Autodesk Fusion 360 for CAD, manufacturing and engineering. Microsoft and Autodesk hope to aid product design and prototyping in the industrial sector. It allows 3D models to be turned into holograms to allow designers to see the prototype in its actual form rather than a 3D image on a screen. Designers can tweak objects using the headset in real time without needing a screen and controls.

Autodesk and Microsoft have worked on the project for more than a year, and have just released a proof-of-concept application that allows designers to design in real-time using augmented reality.

"We are happy to announce that Microsoft HoloLens is partnering with Autodesk Fusion 360 on a solution that we believe could change the way industrial designers, mechanical engineers and other product development fields work together. When you're designing in 3D, viewing content in 3D is an incredible advantage. For designers and engineers using Fusion 360, this also means more effective validation of 3D models—which could mean fewer physical prototypes. Fusion 360 is the ultimate cloud-based 3D design collaboration tool for product designers and engineers,” said Ben Sugden, Studio Manager for Microsoft HoloLens.

"When we first saw HoloLens, we immediately sensed the possibilities for 3D engineering and industrial design. And after spending a bit of time with HoloLens, I realized how limiting it is to view 3D objects on a relatively small, flat screen rather than being able to use my entire real-world workspace for 3D design projects,” said Garin Gardiner, Product Manager, Autodesk Fusion 360.

Microsoft intends to launch the Hololens Development Edition during the first half of 2016 in the US and Canada to product designers. Priced at $3000, it is quite expensive for an average developer looking to fiddle around with the technology. For consumers, Hololens will probably launch in 2020.