Augmented Reality Overlay for Datacenter Equipment Identification

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current datacenter management systems face challenges in efficiently identifying and servicing datacenter equipment, particularly in large and complex environments where visual distinctions between equipment are minimal, leading to potential errors in maintenance and repair tasks.

Innovation Solution

An information handling system incorporating a display, wireless communication interface, and imaging system that captures image data and provides an augmented reality overlay to locate and identify datacenter equipment, establish communication links, and receive service instructions remotely, enabling precise identification and management of equipment.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If technicians manually identify and locate datacenter equipment in large complexes, then they can perform maintenance tasks, but errors increase due to minimal visual distinctions between equipment

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveequipment identification accuracyVSAvoiddatacenter equipment complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an augmented reality overlay system as an intermediary between the technician and the physical equipment. The system captures images of equipment, identifies them through image recognition, and displays augmented reality overlays with identification information, equipment status, and maintenance instructions. This mediator eliminates the need for technicians to manually distinguish between visually similar equipment, thereby improving identification accuracy while managing the complexity of large datacenters.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a digital copy or representation of the physical equipment through augmented reality overlays. Instead of directly interacting with and identifying physical equipment, the system projects virtual information layers onto the physical equipment images, providing identification and status information without requiring direct manual inspection of the complex physical equipment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

2Productivity

If technicians physically navigate to locate specific equipment, then they can perform maintenance, but time is lost in navigation and identification

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemaintenance task efficiencyVSAvoidequipment location time

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary identification and information retrieval actions before the technician needs to perform maintenance. By using image recognition to automatically identify equipment and retrieve relevant information in advance, the system eliminates the time technicians would otherwise spend manually locating and identifying equipment, allowing them to proceed directly to maintenance tasks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical process of manual equipment location and identification with an automated optical and computational system. Instead of technicians physically navigating and visually searching for equipment, the system uses image capture devices, image recognition algorithms, and augmented reality displays to automatically identify and locate equipment, significantly reducing the time required for these tasks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Ease of operation

If remote technicians provide guidance without visual context, then they can offer support, but accuracy of guidance decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveremote support capabilityVSAvoidguidance accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system adds a visual dimension to remote support by projecting augmented reality overlays that provide spatial and contextual information about the equipment. Instead of relying solely on verbal or text-based remote guidance, the system enhances the visual field of the on-site technician with additional information layers, allowing remote technicians to provide more accurate guidance based on the enhanced visual context.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentUS10972361B2System and method for remote hardware support using augmented reality and available sensor data

Publication Date: 2021.04.06 DELL PROD LP

AI summary

An information handling system for managing equipment in a datacenter includes a display, a wireless communication interface, and an imaging system configured to capture image data from within a field of view of the imaging system. The information handling system shows the image data on the display, and provides an augmented reality overlay on the display over the image data. The augmented reality overlay locates an element of datacenter equipment that needs to be serviced. The information handling system further determines that the element is within the field of view, establishes a wireless communication link with the element via the wireless communication interface in response to determining that the element is within the field of view, and receives an instruction to service the element from a remote service system in response to establishing the wireless communication link.