RealWear Inc., a startup working to bring augmented reality to the industrial sector, today announced that it has raised a $80 million round of funding to support its quest.

The investment saw the participation of Qualcomm Inc., Bose Corp., electronics supplier Kopin Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Publicly traded industrial equipment maker Teradyne Corp. led the round.

Three-year-old RealWear provides wireless AR headsets for use in industrial environments such as factories. The startup’s two products, the HMT-1 and HMT-1Z1, both take the same form: a pair of glasses with an external display mounted on an adjustable arm. The display is positioned so that the user sees content at the bottom of their field of view in a nonobstructive rectangle.

Industrial companies can use RealWear’s headsets to give employees access to information about the hardware they’re working with. A maintenance team sent out to repair a wind turbine, for instance, could be given access to the data feeds of the turbine’s internal sensors. Workers can also pull up other items such as technical documents with voice commands.

The headsets’ speech recognition feature is powered by microphones located in the adjustable arm that holds the display. One of them is a so-called reference microphone that filters ambient noise, which ensures that the user is clearly heard even when things get loud.

The noise cancellation technology is one of several features that cater to the the specialized demands of industrial environments. RealWear’s headsets are also resistant to water and dust, can survive falls from more than six feet and are capable of withstanding temperatures of up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit. Plus, each headset has a sturdy clip that makes it possible to attach it to a hardhat.

RealWear operates in what is a fairly crowded field of companies offering AR headsets for rugged environments. One of the startup’s competitors is Microsoft Corp., whose rival HoloLens was selected by the U.S. military last year for a new training program. Microsoft also offers a growing catalog of pre-packaged AR applications for industrial applications.

Despite the competition, RealWear has shipped more than 15,000 headsets in the last 18 months. The startup’s customers include BMW AG, Airbus SE, Walmart Inc. and about 1,300 others.

RealWear Chief Executive Andy Lowery told GeekWire that the startup closed 2018 with $17 million in sales, up from just $2 million the year prior. Lowery indicated that the startup could potentially pass $100 million in revenue next year. 

Photo: RealWear