Users can search for each animal on Search and find a knowledge graph for the animal. You can then hit the “View in 3D” button to bring them to life on your screen (via). Tapping “View in your space” places these animals in your environment by leveraging the camera and AR functionality. These animals can also appear on a white background if you’re not willing to open your camera for the purpose. This feature works on compatible Android and iOS devices. Much like Google’s previous implementations of 3D animals, users can take pictures/videos with them or scale them as they like. The company wants this to serve as an educational tool to inform users and kids about the need to protect endangered species.
Google first showcased AR-based 3D animals at I/O 2019
The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation or Naturskyddsföreningen focuses on ecological sustainability and the preservation of endangered species. The new set of 3D animals published by Google are currently endangered in Sweden. It’s worth pointing out that the arctic fox isn’t a globally endangered species. However, its population has shrunk significantly in the Scandinavian region over the last few decades. Last year, Google introduced 3D models related to chemistry as a means of education. This introduced 3D models related to organic chemistry, functional group, propanol, methyl acetate, ionic bonding, alkane, and so on. 3D animals originally made their way to Search in 2019 with animals like alligators, pandas, great white sharks, octopuses, and tigers. This is no doubt a great resource to learn more about things you don’t know. Moreover, bringing the AR aspect to learning makes the process more enjoyable. Google has worked a great deal on AR over the past few years. But its implementation has been somewhat limited, especially considering the initial expectations. The company announced a couple of key additions to the ARCore SDK earlier this year, so it’s clear that Google is far from finished with AR.
