Mann is one of the pioneers of a form of computing known as "augmented reality," in which information technology acts as a thin membrane between the user and his or her environment.

In Boeing's augmented-reality system, a factory worker would be equipped with a wearable computer, a see-through, head-mounted display and a position sensor. By entering the appropriate commands in the computer, the worker could call up information, diagrams, text or both about the part to be assembled. The head-mounted display would project the information onto the work surface as if it were painted there. This eliminates pawing through thick manuals to find the right page, and it does away with the need to continually look back and forth between the diagram and the actual job.

The authors describe the design and prototyping steps they have taken toward the implementation of a heads-up, see-through, head-mounted display (HUDset). Combined with head position sensing and a real world registration system, this technology allows a computer-produced diagram to be superimposed and stabilized on a specific position on a real-world object.