I have some technical HoloLens questions if anyone can help

Peter

My name is Peter and I am working on a proposal for holographic dinosaur exhibits at a festival theme park. If all goes well the contract will be signed next week but I need to confirm that the HoloLens can do what I'm promising. The proposal is due in a couple days so I don't have much time.

This is what I need to know:
1) Since we are limited to one HoloLens per exhibit- we need to connect each HoloLens to a monitor and stream what the glasses see, is this possible?
2) An internet connection may not be available, will we be able to run the software without a constant connection?
3) People will be wearing and removing the glasses repeatedly, will this affect the device?
4) Will I be able to easily disable or enable a lock to prevent people from accidently accessing the menu?

The exhibits will run 12 hours a day non stop for 18 days as part of a festival, if there are any issues I might encounter I'd be interesting in hearing. I appreciate the responses.

As a side note, if everything goes well the exhibition (and HoloLens) will go on tour across the country.

slammer

Hey Peter,

I've only been playing with the HoloLens for a week or so, but I'll try to tell you what I know.

1) Since we are limited to one HoloLens per exhibit- we need to connect each HoloLens to a monitor and stream what the glasses see, is this possible?

Yes, you can stream the video from the HoloLens either by 1) downloading the HoloLens app from the Microsoft Store or connecting to the HoloLens using a web browser.

2) An internet connection may not be available, will we be able to run the software without a constant connection?

The HoloLens app should work fine as long as there are no assets that need to be downloaded/ streamed. The HoloLens video streaming might be an issue- but maybe if you created a virtual private network using a laptop, it might work (just a guess).

3) People will be wearing and removing the glasses repeatedly, will this affect the device?

No, but everyone's IPD will be different so holograms may look off for some people (you can adjust the IPD via the web interface easily).

The biggest problem may be adjusting the fit and making sure it's comfortable.

4) Will I be able to easily disable or enable a lock to prevent people from accidently accessing the menu?

The new update introduces the commercial suite that can lock the HoloLens to a particular app.
https://blogs.windows.com/devices/2016/08/02/hololens-development-edition-updates-2/

The exhibits will run 12 hours a day non stop for 18 days as part of a festival, if there are any issues I might encounter I'd be interesting in hearing. I appreciate the responses.

Most likely battery life. However you can still use the HoloLens when it's being charged. Depending on the ambient temperature, and how intensive your app is, you could potentially run into overheating issues (again, just a guess).

slammer

Hey Peter,

I've only been playing with the HoloLens for a week or so, but I'll try to tell you what I know.

1) Since we are limited to one HoloLens per exhibit- we need to connect each HoloLens to a monitor and stream what the glasses see, is this possible?

Yes, you can stream the video from the HoloLens either by 1) downloading the HoloLens app from the Microsoft Store or connecting to the HoloLens using a web browser.

2) An internet connection may not be available, will we be able to run the software without a constant connection?

The HoloLens app should work fine as long as there are no assets that need to be downloaded/ streamed. The HoloLens video streaming might be an issue- but maybe if you created a virtual private network using a laptop, it might work (just a guess).

3) People will be wearing and removing the glasses repeatedly, will this affect the device?

No, but everyone's IPD will be different so holograms may look off for some people (you can adjust the IPD via the web interface easily).

The biggest problem may be adjusting the fit and making sure it's comfortable.

4) Will I be able to easily disable or enable a lock to prevent people from accidently accessing the menu?

The new update introduces the commercial suite that can lock the HoloLens to a particular app.
https://blogs.windows.com/devices/2016/08/02/hololens-development-edition-updates-2/

The exhibits will run 12 hours a day non stop for 18 days as part of a festival, if there are any issues I might encounter I'd be interesting in hearing. I appreciate the responses.

Most likely battery life. However you can still use the HoloLens when it's being charged. Depending on the ambient temperature, and how intensive your app is, you could potentially run into overheating issues (again, just a guess).

Dwight_Goins_EE_MVP

I'll add to this. Using a simple router without internet access will work fine as your VPN, and will probably a better video streaming service than with the internet. IMHO, things seem to work better if the HL is connected to some network, you just don't need internet access.

Also keep in mind the HL environment understanding cameras require some dim light, so if your exhibit is too dark spatial mapping won't work. Make sure there is adequate light in your exhibit by testing the HL in your environment.

If you are using the voice, make sure the environment is quiet enough so that the speech recognition can work adequately. Keyword recognition works w/o internet, however dictation requires internet, dictation uses the Bing speech engine.

Peter

Thank you for the prompt responses, much appreciated.