Qualcomm opens research center

LONDON, UK: The Qualcomm Austria Research Center GmbH has been opened by San Diego-based wireless chip sellers Qualcomm Inc. with a view to designing and developing augmented reality and related technologies.

The term augmented reality refers to when the real world viewed directly or indirectly, is added with computer-generated elements such as descriptive text or graphic information that can be hyperlinked to the World Wide Web.

The research center in Vienna will utilize the intellectual property that was acquired from Vienna-based Imagination Computer Services GesmbH, which develops computer vision and augmented reality technology for mobile devices.

A team of researchers in the field of augmented reality, from Imagination will also join the Qualcomm Austria Research Center.

Imagination’s technology has already been seen in augmented reality applications that were showcased for many consumer brands with global outreach.

The company that was started in 1998 by a group of researchers from the Vienna University of Technology, employs researchers who have published various research papers on augmented reality and related fields.

CEO and chairman of Qualcomm said that with the help of augmented reality, the real world could be clicked and linked as cyberspace could be seen by people as an integral part of their surrounding physical world. 

Qualcomm has been increasing the capability of mobile devices with high speed connectivity, powerful applications, graphics processors, camera, GPS and sensors in an attempt to help bring augmented reality technology to the market.

The opening of its new research centre as well as the acquisition of Imagination’s technology will certainly speed up this process.