Dear Colleagues,

The MDPI Information Journal invites submissions to a Topical Collection on “Augmented Reality Technologies, Systems and Applications”.

Augmented Reality (AR), which adds virtual content to our real-world environment, is expected to become a mainstream technology. An AR system allows for combining or “supplementing” real-world objects with virtual objects or superimposed information and is considered to be an immersive technology. As a result, virtual objects seem to coexist in the same space as the real world. AR brings the possibility of interacting with the physical and virtual world using cutting-edge technologies. This field has been actively growing over the past two decades, and there is an increasing interest in research on AR to uncover the real benefits of using this technology in a wide variety of fields.

The purpose of this Topical Collection is to discuss key issues, approaches, ideas, open problems, affordances, innovative applications and trends in augmented reality, in the areas of medicine, tourism, cultural heritage, arts, education, entertainment, and industrial applications.

We encourage authors to submit original research articles, case studies, reviews, prototypes, proofs of concept, theoretical and critical perspectives, and viewpoint articles on but not limited to the following topics:

•   AR development frameworks;
•   AR technologies;
•   AR collaborative applications;
•   Personalized AR systems;
•   AR accessibility, usability and ergonomics;
•   AR authoring tools;
•   Co-creation and co-design of AR applications and content for AR applications;
•   AR Applications in the fields of healthcare, virtual travel, cultural heritage, arts, education, industrial, e-sports, games, etc.;
•   Social aspects of AR applications.

Dr. Ramon Fabregat
Dr. Jorge Bacca-Acosta
Dr. N.D. Duque-Mendez
Collection Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the collection website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Information is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Augmented Reality
• Immersive technologies
• Personalization
• Accessibility
• Usability
• Co-creation and co-design
• Human-computer interaction

Title: Learning English Idioms through Augmented Reality (AR) Flashcards: Perceptions of International Students

Authors: Babak Khoshnevisan
Affiliation: University of South Florida
Abstract: Augmented reality (AR) has now become a part of educational orthodoxy. AR has brought a renaissance to language education. AR accentuates the primacy of interaction over memorization. The role of AR in learning idioms is touched upon briefly in the literature. To enrich the pertinent literature, I intend to be a forerunner to augment learning idiom by the use of augmented reality (AR). AR literature review indicates it contains little mention of language education. There is a paucity of references when it comes to idiom learning via AR. Currently, the use of AR in language education is on the rise. The rise has been fueled by different research methodologies. To better help language learners, researchers together with material designers need to gain insight into the perceptions of language learners about the use of AR in idiom learning. To this end, the present article explored the underlying perceptions of international students about the use of AR flashcards in learning English VP idioms. In this study, 4 international students were recruited on a voluntary basis to use AR flashcards to learn English idioms. The findings of this study centered on major themes arising from the participants’ statements about AR flashcards and idiom.

Title: Augmented Reality in Science Education: a Game Changer?
Authors: Lucka Bibic; Maria T. Gallardo-Williams; Cesar A. Urbina-Blanco; Tom Smejka
Affiliation: 1School of Pharmacy, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, UK 2Dephion, Health Science, Mijnweg 3, 6167 AC Geleen, Netherlands 3Department of Chemistry, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695-8404, USA 4Laboratory for Chemical Technology, Ghent University, Technologiepark 125, B-9052 Gent, Belgium
Abstract: Augmented reality (AR) technology has the potential to broaden the reach of the traditional scientific environments by addressing limitations of lecture halls and lab settings. With decreasing cost and increasing technology access, educators have a great interest in incorporating engaging and novel experiences, brought on by AR, into the student’s curriculum. However, as much as this progress is valuable, it is also about investigating how AR may impact student academic performance. Here, long-term curriculum development must be in place so chemistry educators can best leverage the unique affordances of AR and be well informed by its theory and research. This way, AR could be integrated in meaningful ways that continue to motivate students even after experiences are no longer novel. This perspective article would reflect on current research findings to outline effective application of AR in science education, provide guidelines in developing educational materials using those tools, and discuss some of the theoretical frameworks of immersive learning. Our views on the benefits and challenges of creating augmented scientific lab experiences as well as incorporating gamification elements into immersive technologies would also be shared.

Title: BARI: an affordable Brain-Augmented Reality Interface to Support Human-Robot Collaboration in Pick and Place Tasks
Authors: Andrea Sanna(1), Federico Manuri(1), Jacopo Fiorenza(1) and Francesco De Pace(2)
Affiliation: (1) Dipartimento di Automatica e Informatica, Politecnico di Torino, Torino, Italy (2) Faculty of Informatics, Institute of Visual Computing & Human-Centered Technology, TU Wien University, Wien, Austria
Abstract: Human-Robot Collaboration (HRC) is a new and challenging discipline that plays a key role in Industry 4.0. Digital transformation of industrial plants aims to introduce flexible production lines able to quickly adapt to different products. In this scenario, HRC can be a booster to support flexible manufacturing, thus introducing new interaction paradigms between human and machines. Augmented Reality (AR) can be used to convey the user a lot of important information related to the status as well as the intention of the robot/machine the user is collaborating with. On the other hand, traditional input interfaces based on physical devices, gestures and voice might be precluded in industrial environments. Brain Interfaces (BIs) can be profitable used with AR devices to provides technicians solutions to effectively collaborate with robots. A scenario where a technician and a robotic arm collaborate to assembly an artifact is considered in this paper. The user uses the AR interface, implemented by a Hololens 2, to display both the different parts composing the artifact and the robot status; moreover, the brain interface, implemented by a NextMind device, is used to give the robotic arm the command to pick a part and move it in a well defined place. In this way, user's hand are always free and the user's focus is always on the objects to be mounted. Users' tests have been also performed to assess the system usability; preliminary results are very encouraging and the proposed solution can be considered as a starting point to design and develop affordable hybrid-augmented interfaces able to foster real time human-robot collaboration.