System Analysis of Integration Paths for Augmented Reality Technology in Greenhouses as Part of Future Extraterrestrial Habitats.

Kurzfassung

The EDEN ISS project funded by the EU comprises the development and installation of a green- house in Antarctica close to the Neumayer III station to test key technology for a future space green- house. The implementation of AR into the EDEN ISS project aims to facilitate work procedures up to the extent that the overall human performance is enhanced. Aspects such as the safety for both plant and human, error reduction and a faster task completion are aimed to be enhanced in the course of an AR implementation. Within the scope of this thesis, the fundamentals of AR and greenhouse technology were pre- sented as well as the state of the art evaluated and briefly assessed. First requirements for AR devices were consequently formulated. By utilizing Multiple-Criteria Decision-Analysis (MCDA) in terms of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a comprehensive AR device selection was carried out. Cor- responding to the derived criteria to assess the hardware selection, the Microsoft HoloLens 2 was selected and further used as a foundation to develop an exemplary AR User Interface (UI). Addi- tionally, the NASA Task Load Index (TLX) as a valuation method to assess potential improvement capabilities in terms of an AR integration helped to determine whether the investigated workload dimensions indicate an excessive workload for the current operating staR at the EDEN ISS. Results of this valuation method as well as the capabilities of the Microsoft HoloLens 2 were further pro- cessed to derive AR related improvement measures for the development of an AR UI. A conceptual framework was derived which allows to cluster the tools that AR oRers to facilitate work and improve work processes as a foundation for the AR UI. Thus, a potential design for the implementation of AR into the EDEN ISS greenhouse in Antarctica was proposed and presented in detail. Not only an exemplary and intuitive UI was designed using existing crop data but also the corresponding directory structure based on the EDEN ISS procedures was derived. Consequently, in the course of the representation of the UI as a guided tour, it becomes feasible to use this research as a basis for a future hands-on realization for the EDEN ISS project. By incorporating AR into work processes of the gardener, the workload can potentially be lowered and work processes can be facilitated.