OFweek industrial control network news: Industry 4.0 is hailed as the fourth industrial revolution, advanced manufacturing model will completely subvert the tradition, and bring huge transformation to the human society. In this battlefield of industrial automation industry competition, as the world's leading company in the field of electrical and electronic engineering, Siemens AG, Germany, has also begun to use a trick-to use virtual reality technology to promote industrial development.

Recently, Siemens announced that it is looking for virtual reality and augmented reality startups that can realize digital manufacturing and product innovation. In late June, Siemens invited virtual reality and augmented reality entrepreneurs to apply for the Frontier Partner Program, an accelerator project located in Berkeley, California. The accelerator project has received startups related to 3D printing and robotics.

Entrepreneurs who successfully applied for the Frontie project will not receive financial support, but they can communicate with Siemens experts, and their products may even be recommended to Siemens customers. Siemens digital manufacturing expert Mohsen Rezayat said the Frontier plan will attract most startups in the United States.

In addition, Siemens installed Virtalis virtual reality software and systems in a factory in the UK, trying to create a digital factory. Siemens hopes to use the virtual reality system to realize the simulation and optimization of the assembly process, improve the efficiency of conceptual design, streamline the design unit and more effectively plan the factory. At present, VR can effectively solve the problems of this factory in the early stage of the manufacturing process.

Siemens believes that virtual reality and augmented reality have applications in every stage of the product life cycle (ie from design and manufacturing to training and maintenance). Rezayat said: "As the complexity of current technology systems increases, the demand for these technologies will increase, and these technologies will allow us to better understand and reduce errors."

In order to enter the consumer market, Siemens also conducted market research. Rezaya said: "Consumers are asking Siemens how they should use these new technologies in VR. Previously, we needed to sell these concepts to our consumers, but now they take the initiative to come to us on their own." The application of augmented reality in industry has matured because they can already see the needs of consumers. At present, the prices of VR headset devices are falling, and they are becoming cheaper, which also provides a solid foundation for the development of Siemens' virtual reality technology.