A pair of Microsoft’s augmented-reality devices are set to be on this weekend’s SpaceX-operated resupply flight bound for the International Space Station. While the enterprise makes for a handy publicity gimmick for Microsoft, the applications the headsets come with are the stuff of science fiction.
NASA and Microsoft on Thursday announced their partnership on Sidekick, a program to use commercial technology to empower astronauts on the ISS.
One tool is designed to allow mission control specialists on the ground to see, through a Skype call, what the astronauts on the space station are seeing and give the astronauts guidance. The caller on the ground can also annotate the HoloLens wearer’s field of view to coach the astronaut through a task.
A second mode displays holographic demonstrations of tasks on top of the object the astronaut is using, a sort of training module for complex repair tasks or scientific experiments.
Those applications won’t be ready immediately. The devices being shipped this weekend will undergo tests of their software and hardware. A second set of devices, to be sent to the space station at a later date, will verify the functionality and network connection necessary to run the applications, NASA says. The devices are expected to have their first full use complete by the end of the year.
NASA and Microsoft flagged their collaboration in a demonstration at the January unveiling of HoloLens. One demo showed how the device could be used to create an immersive environment based on images taken by rovers exploring Mars to help give scientists a better perspective of the rover’s position and surroundings.
Many of the details about HoloLens, including a commercial release date and price, are under wraps. But Microsoft has touted the device’s potential applications in the workplace, education and gaming, and said it will run a modified version of the upcoming Windows 10 operating system.
Demonstrations at the E3 gaming trade show last week teased uses of the device to play “Minecraft” or “Halo” games. The previews also sparked another round of comments from analysts and journalists that a field of view in the device appears to be much narrower than it seemed from scripted displays.
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