For my thesis, I have begun developing a cross-platform augmented reality app with the Metaio SDK and Unity3D.
Metaio SDK
Metaio stands out from the other SDKs as it offers a variety of AR solutions. The free watermarked version of Metaio SDK is currently supported on Android, iOS and Windows with an additional plugin for development in Unity3D for Android, iOS, Windows and OS X platforms. There is also support for Google Glass and Epson Moverio BT-200 glasses. To remove the watermark on applications, you must purchase a Metaio license.
An alternative to the SDK is Metaio Creator, an augmented reality software that allows users to create a complete AR scenario without specialized programming knowledge through a drag and drop interface. Additionally, Metaio is the creator of Junaio, a free mobile AR browser available for Android and iOS devices. Junaio allows users to experience mobile augmented reality through multiple channels on their mobile devices. Another solution for creating interactive Augmented Reality is AREL (Augmented Reality Experience Language). The scripting is based on HTML5, XML and JavaScript. Arel can also be used for creating Junaio channel content.
Unity
Unity is a development platform for creating 2D/3D games and interactive experiences across multiple devices, such as iOS, Android, Desktop, or Game consoles. Below are some steps for setting up the Metaio Example project in Unity.
Getting Started
Sign up for a Metaio account to download the SDK. Download the latest version of Unity. You can also sign up as a unity developer here.
Application Identifier and Signature
Each application needs a unique signature. The Application Signature refers to a string that matches to the Application Identifier. If the Application Identifier is changed, the corresponding Application Signature has to be changed as well.
If registered as a Metaio developer, login to create an app signature under my apps tab.
Example App in Unity
1. Start Unity and go to File->Open Project…, select the following directory:
2. Open Unity Example Project, go to File->Build Settings and select desired platform. Unity will automatically re-import required assets according to the platform.
3. Set Application Identifier and Signature
Select Player settings to edit the Bundle Identifier.
Select MetaioSDK from the hierarchy and edit the SDK signature appropriately.
4. Click Build and Run
For IOS, open the XCode project exported from Unity. The SDK and some of its dependencies have to be added manually to the Xcode build settings. Go to Build Phases and add the following frameworks and libraries:
…/Example/Libraries/metaioSDK
libxml2.2.dylib
libc++.dylib
Security.framework
CoreImage.framwork
For Android, there are two options: Export a development build of the Unity app for Android Studio or plugin your Android device via usb and Build and Run to install the android package file directly to the device.
Note that you don’t necessarily have to test on a mobile platform – you can also just hit the Play button to run the examples directly in Unity Editor. Choose the platform in the Build Settings menu.
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