First European university to host lectures by Proto hologram

By AV Magazine in Displays, Education, UK&I January 24, 2024 0

Loughborough University will beam in lecturers from other institutions and from a satellite campus, will show 3D objects, and provide information via an avatar.

Loughborough University professors Vikki Locke and Gary Burnett demonstrate the hologram system on campus

Loughborough University is set to become the first higher education institution in Europe to host guest lecturers in a Proto holographic display booth.

The technology will be formally introduced into the curriculum in 2025 after a year of experimentation, according to the Guardian website.

The university plans to bring in sports scientists from MIT, teach fashion students how to create immersive shows and test management students on how to navigate tricky situations, using the technology. It will also be able to beam in colleagues from the university’s London campus.

Proto’s holographic display will be used to present 3D objects for closer inspection where they can be rotated and studied in detail. Students will also be able to showcase their own outputs to broader audiences with the display.

Pre-recorded messages and talks from industry partners and alumni are on the agenda, too, together with interactive guidance and information for prospective students, parents and guardians, provided by an AI avatar.

Speaking to the Guardian, Prof Vikki Locke, director of undergraduate studies at Loughborough business school, said students “absolutely love” the technology and have been begging for selfies with the gadget. They would prefer “a guest speaker from industry beaming into a classroom to a 2D person on the wall”, she added.

Zoom calls led students to “feel like they were watching TV … there’s a distance. A holographic image is a lot more engaging and real to them.”

“Education has always been a key use case as we developed the Proto platform,” said David Nussbaum, inventor and CEO of Proto Inc. “In Loughborough we have a perfect partner to show all the ways the technology can boost education, in an environmentally sound way, for the first time in England.”

Proto holographic display booths were adopted by the University of Central Florida in 2021 to support medical education, supported by a $75,0000 grant from a US health services provider.

The company has also recently unveiled a platform aimed at the retail industry, combining its holographic display with conversational AI capabilities.