R&W coupling catalogue offers extra info through augmented reality

One of Germany's leading couplings manufacturers, R+W Antriebselemente GmbH, has reached new heights in the provision of information on its vast portfolio of products, by blurring the lines between the real and virtual worlds.

Represented in the UK by Drive Lines Technologies, R+W has used Augmented Reality technology, so that engineers can experience the R+W product portfolio like never before. An icon shown beside every product image in its catalogue provides a gateway to additional information.

Using a smartphone or tablet, readers can unlock all of this in virtual reality by following just a few simple steps. The first is to download the free R+W App from the App Store or Google Play. It is available for all devices with iOS version 7.0 or higher, as well as Android devices with version 4.1 or higher and can then be used to learn more about product.

The app will recognise the image and display the Augmented Reality content. To enter the virtual world, users simply hold a mobile device 20-30 cm above the brochure and move it slightly. 3D models, animations, videos, and other information are waiting to be discovered.

To make the experience easier for end-users R+W has split its wide product range into two distinct categories: Black and White. The Black range covers industrial couplings while the White range contains precision couplings for industries such as medical, factory automation and aerospace. Both the Black and White range have a unique catalogue.

Drive Lines Ian Carr says: "Innovation is the very lifeblood of R+W, which the company embraces as a guiding principle to manufacture top-notch, high-performance metal bellows couplings, elastomeric couplings, disc pack couplings, and torque limiters for the global market, all of which are precise to the micrometre.

"R+W always strives to be the technology leader in couplings, so is structured in such a way that it is always working to improve its existing product designs, while also developing new ideas and enhancing operational efficiency. "Many companies talk about innovation: R+W live and breathe it. Its couplings help advance technology on many fronts by being the first choice for the state-of-the-art vehicles, wind turbines, oil rigs, aerospace technology, high-tech medical

instruments etc."