Conventionally, huge clay models have been used by car designers in order to better visualize new projects as they’re developed. Computer technology helped shaped the process a bit, but you're still looking at an image on a screen, not an object in space. But with the help of increased possibility and advanced tech, that’s starting to improve.
Ford announced earlier that its designers have spent the last year using Microsoft’s HoloLens to quickly and easily change the shape, size and even texture of different design features without having to spend weeks or months making up a new, large clay model. With the use of wireless headsets, the team sees a hologram placed over either an actual car or a clay model. Designers can then change through various designs to see how they appear from different angles.
It’s amazing we can combine the old and the new – clay models and holograms – in a way that both saves time and allows designers to experiment and iterate quickly to dream up even more stylish, clever vehicles,” says Jim Holland, Ford’s head of component and systems engineering, in a release. “Microsoft HoloLens is a powerful tool for designers as we continue to re-imagine vehicles and mobility experiences in fast-changing times.
Most of the public announcement might be to make Microsoft and Ford look good, but the technology and method being used is also really cool and much more time saving. Similar things have been done with virtual reality in the past, but those required heavier goggles with bulky wires cables. Virtually laying hologram over a physical object was also not possible at the time.
Folks, the future is now here. And it’s incredible.
Source: Ford
Here's a video on how it works;