Augmented Reality to Improve Maintenance Workforce Performance
NCMS Project #: 140947
Problem: Proper maintenance activities are critical to any organization that depends on equipment. That includes all manufacturing, transportation, food production, motorsports, and the military. Maintenance and sustainment technicians are often held up by the old-fashioned, cumbersome process of repair that includes referencing a manual, tracking down a supervisor for questions, and delaying maintenance work due to unanswered questions.
Benefit: Augmented reality integrated into maintenance activities has proven to increase maintenance velocity in carrying out technical tasks, improve quality, and are able to collect data to support managerial decision making. Leading businesses are already employing AR systems and reaping these benefits.
Solution/Approach: The objective of using AR is to demonstrate that employees involved in maintenance, repair, or storage operations can optimize their time and skills to intake, inspect, and repair military equipment by using augmented reality technology to access real-time process information and technical assistance, voice capture remarks to auto-complete standard forms, and collect reliable process data to analyze and make decisions.
Impact on Warfighter:
- Reduced costs
- Faster training
- Increased productivity
- Enhanced warfighter readiness
- Efficient equipment maintenance and optimized safety
DOD Participation:
- U.S. Marine Corps Logistics Command
Industry Participation:
- UpSkill
- SolidWorks
- NCMS
Benefit Area(s):
- Repair turn-around time
- Maintenance avoidance and reliability
- Maintenance management improvement
- Improved readiness
Focus Area:
- Training