TeamViewer Pilot app now integrated with Google’s ARCore Depth API for more realistic AR remote assist

In Augmented Reality News 

June 26, 2020 – TeamViewer, a provider of secure remote connectivity solutions, has announced that its augmented reality (AR) app, TeamViewer Pilot, now integrates with Google’s ARCore Depth API. The company stated that by leveraging depth, it will help to create more realistic AR experiences for TeamViewer Pilot users across a range of commercial and consumer settings.

TeamViewer Pilot is a remote assistance solution powered by augmented reality that enables subject matter experts to see what users see through their smartphone camera, while allowing the expert to instruct and guide the user via drawing, adding text, or tagging objects with 3D markers that stick to the physical object.

The ARCore Depth API provides a detailed depth map of the real-world environment. 3D animations can now be placed much more precisely, and it is even possible to reposition them around or behind the physical objects thanks to the Depth API’s occlusion capabilities. As a result, 3D elements can now be occluded to provide a more realistic understanding of a scene.

“When you’re providing remote support, you need to be able to make annotations with pinpoint accuracy in the 3D world,” said Rajat Paharia, Product Manager at Google. “TeamViewer is using the ARCore Depth API to make its AR support solution – TeamViewer Pilot – much more helpful and accurate for its users worldwide.”

Andreas Haizmann, Director of Product Management at TeamViewer, commented: “Integrating the ARCore Depth API into TeamViewer Pilot enables us to offer our users a better understanding of the real world with even more accurate and realistic 3D annotations”. Haizmann added, “When our customers use TeamViewer Pilot in industrial, commercial and even home settings, it is very important that the 3D annotations precisely stick to the physical object to minimize mistakes and avoid human error.”

Google announced the availability of its Depth API yesterday, enabling users of compatible Android devices to now enjoy new enhanced AR experiences, and allowing for higher levels of realism thanks to the API’s ability to generate a depth map without specialized hardware and instead using just a single RGB camera.

The TeamViewer Pilot app is available to download from the Google Play Store now. All TeamViewer Pilot remote sessions are secured by end-to-end 256-bit encryption.

Image credit: TeamViewer / Twitter

About the author

Sam Sprigg

Sam is the Founder and Managing Editor of Auganix. With a background in research and report writing, he has been covering XR industry news for the past seven years.