The mixed reality toolkit as the next step in the mass customization co-design experience

Abstract

The mass customization (MC) toolkit is the major enabler of relational value for consumers. Not a new concept, but nascent in the context of the MC co-design experience, mixed reality (MR) merges the real and virtual world. While the literature extols the significance of MR components - augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) - in manufacturing, IT, education and, to a limited extent, retail, few if any studies address its relevance to MC and the consumer's perceived value of the co-design experience. Is a mixed reality configurator viable as the enabler of relational benefit in the consumer co-design experience? With visual and feedback features critical to the structure of successful web-based configurators, what characteristics must a MR toolkit possess to deliver optimal experiential value to the MC consumer? What is the nature of the MR toolkit and its bearing upon perceived complexity, control and enjoyment of the co-design process? Are these perceptions the most relevant to consider in designing a MC toolkit utilizing MR technology? This conceptual paper attempts to define a mixed reality toolkit and explore its potential influence on the consumer's perception of value of the MC co-design experience in the mixed reality context.