Rakuten Mobile and Rakuten Vissel Kobe on Wednesday announced the success of a trial of a new spectator experience utilizing Rakuten Mobile’s 5G mmWave network and VPS (Visual Positioning System) technology.
The experience enabled spectators to view player and match statistics through an AR (augmented reality) overlay, while also integrating AR advertising and e-commerce functionality.
The trial demonstrated the viability of using VPS technology in a large area, such as a stadium, to pinpoint the precise location of a given device and enable AR content to be displayed anywhere within the area. VPS technology utilizes information from the camera of a user’s smartphone or smart glasses to identify the device’s orientation and precise location.
The high precision of VPS is achieved by sending images captured by the device’s camera at frequent intervals to the server, presenting a perfect use case for the high speed, high capacity and low latency nature of 5G, which was used for parts of the transmissions between the smartphone and the server during the trial.
The VPS technology utilized in this PoC was provided by Rakuten Mobile Partner Program member Immersal, a technology company delivering spatial mapping and visual positioning tools based in Helsinki, Finland.
