UL Seeks Standard for Safety of Augmented Reality Devices

Potential physical risks will be the target of an in-the-works UL standard on augmented reality, the organization said November 4. UL 8400 would cover augmented, virtual, and mixed reality, terms that refer to human interaction with simulated environments, including use of head-mounted displays that can limit awareness of real surroundings.

The UL announcement (bit.ly/2JWZP6l) explained that physical safety topics will include "weight and neck strain, optical radiation, eye heat exposure and headset motion-to-photon latency." It noted the trends towards smaller and more affordable devices plus predictions that more than 100 million headsets or smart glasses will be in use by 2023. The manager is Deborah Prince (Deborah.Prince@ul.org.).

CPSC more than two-and-a-half years ago (PSL, 3/6/17) identified augmented reality as one of the emerging technologies it should keep tabs on along with issues like 3D printing, IoT/connected devices, wearables, robotics, and more.

Agency staff earlier this year (PSL, 5/27/19) learned of the formation of a trade group called XR Association. XR stands for "extended reality" and also include trends like human-machine interaction.

Augmented reality also has arisen in the EU during discussions by an EC expert group on new technology (PSL, 9/10/18). A recent EC statement on emerging technology risks (PSL, 1/21/19) identified anxiety, nausea, eye strain, radiation exposure as potential concern as well as general discomfort colloquially called "virtual reality sickness."