Webtag: A World Wide Internet Based AR System

Webtag is a marker based system where every marker contains an internationally unique identifier which links to 2D or 3D content from a user´s Website. A two stage design combines the basic 10-bit ID (tier-1 ID) of the current ARTag system which is used for pose tracking when the marker is far away, and a smaller and dense array of extra bits allow an additional 32 bits (tier-2 ID) to be recognized when the camera is close. A user brings his/her AR device close to the marker such that the tier-2 ID is read, and then the IDs are mapped to a web address from which the augmenting model, image, or animation is loaded. Thereafter the content is rendered relative to the tier-1 ID which can be seen at greater distances. This allows a user anywhere on internet to access augmented content printed in magazines, seen on posters, etc. Webtag is a prototype system that may allow large scale acceptance of AR by the public.