Augmented Reality applications in modern day library: A study

Abstract

The twenty-first-century library is akin to a laboratory of experimentation and prototyping. Augmented Reality (AR) breaks new ground in the library field. It has gained wide public appeal in recent years and carved a niche in mainstream society with the global Pokémon GO craze of 2016. Although AR has been around for more than sixty years the term was not officially coined until 1990. It has come a long way from a science-fiction concept catapulting to a science-based reality. It is a cutting-edge technology that allows smart device users for a digitally enhanced view of the real world. Augmented Reality works in sync with headsets and/or digital devices such as tablets, smartphones and even PCs. The devices themselves contain software, sensors and digital projectors that trigger digital displays onto physical objects.  AR’s ability to enhance what already exists is what makes it a perfect fit for libraries. Keeping in view of the modern-day expectations of users from a library, the library professionals should dedicate de novo in dealing with Augmented Reality applications more effectively and efficiently under the rubric of the library – AR binary.