## Creating a Personalized Augmented Reality Museum Exhibit with Qt and PySide6 In this article, we will demonstrate how to build a personalized augmented reality (AR) museum exhibit using Qt and PySide6. We will design the AR exhibit to showcase virtual 3D objects in a real-world environment, allowing users to interact with the virtual objects in a realistic way. ### Prerequisites To follow this tutorial, you will need to have the following software installed: * Qt 6.2 or higher * PySide6 6.2 or higher * Qt Creator 6.2 or higher * A Python IDE (e.g., PyCharm) * A virtual camera (e.g., webcam) ### Installation and Setup To begin, create a new Qt project using Qt Creator: 1. Launch Qt Creator and click on "File" > "New File or Project..." 2. Choose "Application" > "Qt Quick Application" and click "Choose..." 3. Name your project (e.g., "AR_Museum_Exhibit") and choose the project location 4. Select the target Qt version (e.g., Qt 6.2) and click "Next" 5. Choose the project template and click "Next" 6. Select the Python version (e.g., Python 3.9) and click "Next" 7. Review the project settings and click "Finish" Next, install the necessary libraries using pip: ```bash pip install pyqtsensors pip install PyOpenGL ``` ### Designing the AR Exhibit First, create a new Qt Quick UI file (e.g., "AR_Museum_Exhibit.qml") to design the AR exhibit layout: ```qml // AR_Museum_Exhibit.qml import QtQuick 6.2 import QtQuick.Layouts 6.2 import QtQuick.Controls 6.2 Window { id: root width: 800 height: 600 title: "AR Museum Exhibit" // Create a camera view CameraView { id: cameraView anchors.fill: parent } // Create a 3D object placeholder object3DPlaceholder { id: object3DPlaceholder width: 100 height: 100 anchors.horizontalCenter: parent.horizontalCenter anchors.verticalCenter: parent.verticalCenter } } ``` Next, create a new QML file (e.g., "CameraView.qml") to design the camera view: ```qml // CameraView.qml import QtQuick 6.2 import QtQuick.GraphicsView 6.2 GraphicsView { id: root width: parent.width height: parent.height // Create a view point Viewpoint { id: viewpoint x: 0 y: 0 z: 1000 } // Create a camera Camera { id: camera viewport: viewpoint } // Create a background Rectangle { id: background color: "#f0f0f0" width: parent.width height: parent.height } } ``` Finally, create a new QML file (e.g., "object3DPlaceholder.qml") to design the 3D object placeholder: ```qml // object3DPlaceholder.qml import QtQuick 6.2 import QtQuick.Particles 6.2 Rectangle { id: root width: 100 height: 100 radius: 10 color: "#00ffff" // Create a particle system ParticleSystem { id: particleSystem } } ``` ### Implementing AR Capabilities To implement AR capabilities, we will use the `QtQuickextras` module, which provides a set of utility classes for working with 3D graphics: ```python # main.py import sys from PySide6.QtCore import QUrl from PySide6.QtQuick import QQuickView from pyqtsensors import ARSession from gl.py import ARController, CameraController, Object3DController # Create a Qt Quick application class ARMuseumExhibit(QQuickView): def __init__(self): super().__init__(QUrl.fromLocalFile('AR_Museum_Exhibit.qml')) # Create AR session self.arSession = ARSession() self.arSession.on_frame.connect(self.onFrame) # Create AR controllers self.arController = ARController(self.arSession) self.cameraController = CameraController(self.arSession) self.object3DController = Object3DController(self.arSession) def onFrame(self, frame): # Update camera self.cameraController.update(frame) # Update object 3D self.object3DController.update(frame) # Create an instance of the Qt Quick application app = ARMuseumExhibit() # Show the application app.show() # Execute the application sys.exit(app.exec()) ``` In this code, we create an instance of the `ARMuseumExhibit` class, which contains methods for updating the camera, object 3D, and AR session. We then show the application and execute it until the user closes it. ### Testing and Debugging To test and debug the application, follow these steps: 1. Launch the application and ensure that it runs without errors. 2. Use the camera to capture images of virtual objects. 3. Observe the virtual objects in the 3D scene. ### Conclusion In this article, we demonstrated how to create a personalized AR museum exhibit using Qt and PySide6. We implemented the AR exhibit using Qt Quick, with virtual objects that users can interact with in a realistic way. The application features a camera view, object 3D placeholder, and AR controller classes. I hope this article has inspired you to explore the possibilities of AR application development with Qt and PySide6. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please don't hesitate to ask. ### External Resources * Qt AR Documentation: <https://doc.qt.io/qt-6/qQuickextras.html> * PySide6 GitHub Repository: <https://github.com/pyside/pyside6> * pyqtsensors GitHub Repository: <https://github.com/muukido/pyqtsensors> Please leave a comment below with your thoughts on this article, and don't forget to share your AR applications with the Qt community on [Qt forums](https://forum.qt.io/). ### License and Attribution This article is licensed under the [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) license. The code is open-source and provided under the [GPLv3](https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html) or more permissive license. The Qt and PySide6 logos are trademarks of the Qt Project. The AR session artwork is courtesy of Miki Kasumura.