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A New Mask for a New Normal: Investigating an AR Supported Future under COVID-19

Wearing masks and social distancing have become the norm during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, these are increasingly seen as a source of frustration in face-to-face communications. While efforts have been made to overcome these impediments to communication, they typically focus on recovering lost communication quality. Herein, we envision a future where everyone augments their vision using face masks with Augmented Reality capabilities, such that people can conduct safe and expressive face-to-face communication in public. To speculate on this vision, we developed an AR mask prototype which can overlay dynamic virtual “masks” on other users. The virtual mask is dynamic in that it accelerates towards any observer who approaches the wearer. Using this system, we conducted an explorative study to further our speculations on the impact of ubiquitous AR technologies.