At least one telecom operator is using Augmented Reality as a tool to help its technicians be more productive. APX Director of Sales, Sean Wood, describes how the Dutch-based communications provider, KPN, is able to deliver information to smart glasses that allow a technician to see things like work-orders, product information and customers’ data with just a glance.

This is particularly useful for delivering information that is relevant to what the technician is doing, for instance working in a central office or on a tower, without the distraction of a hand-held screen. The information goes beyond static directions and can include live assistance from an expert or pre-recorded instructional videos to refresh a technician’s earlier training or reinforce a best practice. It is also possible to record a technician’s work, providing a virtually frictionless audit trail to show that a given work order was fulfilled.

APX is essentially an augmented reality middleware, connecting into an operators’ existing systems and connecting the smart glasses. Of course, the application for this sort of solution goes beyond telecom. In the above video, there are snippets of how some of APX’s customers are applying their software, along with smart glasses in factory settings.