USC and PWICE Joint Project on Smart Glasses for Aircraft Maintenance
In Summer 2014, USC MCL and Pratt & Whitney Institute for Collaborative Engineering (PWICE) started a joint research project to build a remote collaboration system based on smart glasses. Mobile wearable devices have become popular nowadays. Smart glasses, among one of them, play an essential role in information capturing and visual enhancement. Particularly, in the sophisticated working environment for aircraft maintenance, workers have to retrieve and share information in real time with visual aids but may not have an easy access to a laptop or a tablet. In this project, we aim to develop a remote collaboration system based on smart glasses. With this remote collaboration system, each technician can use his/her smart glasses to communicate with experts/colleagues at a remote distance without interrupting the ongoing work.
In 2014, USC MCL has developed a prototype of remote collaboration system, live streaming app based on Google Glass. Video streaming system on wearable devices has demonstrated the potential influence when smart glasses were used in the plant. In 2015 and 2016, USC MCL and PWICE will continue to build the remote collaboration system, focusing on developing the Quality of Service (QoS) and Quality of Experience (QoE) optimization for aircraft maintenance.