ECBC demonstrates new innovative augmented reality display for U.S. senators

The Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) recently conducted a demonstration for U.S. senators on the latest defense technology: a state-of-the art head-mounted, augmented reality (AR) display.

ECBC initially developed the AR headset to be used for military training, however, the center said the device could be used in a variety of training capacities for other industries.

Augmented reality is different from virtual reality and allows interaction with the physical environment. It does not cause a loss of orientation experienced by some virtual reality users, ECBC has said.

During the demonstration, U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-SD), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS), a member of the committee, saw a virtual image and detailed assembly instructions integrated onto a physical model of a biodetector and its components.

ECBC demonstrated the technology prior to a Nov. 16 committee hearing on augmented reality.

“These more advanced AR devices and techniques show that the potential of this technology goes far beyond smartphone games, and could one day have a major impact on manufacturing, transportation, medicine, and eventually the daily lives of average Americans,” Thune said. “AR technology promises to take all of the information that has been confined to the internet over the past few decades and integrate it into the physical world, where such content can be most useful and do the most good.”

ECBC is a U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command laboratory and serves as the U.S. Army’s principal research and development center for chemical and biological defense technology, engineering and field operations.

ECBC Director Joseph Corriveau said, the demonstration was an opportunity to show the nation’s policymakers that ECBC is developing transformative technologies in order to keep warfighters, first responders and the nation safe from chemical biological threats.