Airbus is developing a mixed reality tool for aircraft interior customisation – a technology that it says will be an industry-first. The idea behind this new collaboration tool is that it will enable live and remote interactions between Airbus and its customers, with an immersive virtual world transforming the aircraft cabin definition process.
Holograms in a 3D environment will enable users to visualise various cabin equipment choices and try out different aircraft interior configurations, materials and colours. A key factor is that all users collaborating on an Airbus cabin project, wherever they are in the world, can communicate easily and in real time.
The system, currently named ‘Airbus immersive remote collaboration’, is planned for industrialisation on the A320 family by 2025. Airbus says that mixed-reality industrial applications will then be extended to other commercial aircraft and helicopter programmes.
This concept supports Airbus’s ambition to deploy a fully digital end-to-end approach for its industrial operations to improve aircraft design quality, support production ramp-up and increase customer satisfaction.
Catherine Jestin, executive vice president of digital and information management at Airbus, said of the project: “With this new solution, Airbus is opening a new era where mixed reality will help shape the future of aircraft cabin definition. We are leveraging the power of data and most advanced technologies to create engaging, interactive and realistic virtual experiences for our customers, accessible at any time, from anywhere in the world. This shows how we foster digital innovation at Airbus for all our products and services.”
