The Role of 3D Models in Virtual Heritage Infrastructures
Champion, Erik
The success of virtual heritage projects, through the careful inspection, contextualization and
modification of 3D digital heritage models with virtual reality technology, is still problematic.
Models are hard to find, impossible to download and edit, in unusual, unwieldy or obsolete formats.
Many of the freely available models are standalone 3D meshes with no accompanying metadata or
information on how the acquisition of the data. Few have information on if or how the models can
be shared (and if they are editable). Fewer still quantify the accuracy of the scanning or modelling
process, or make available the scholarly documents, field reports, photographs and site plans that
allowed the designers to extract enough information for their models.
Augmented Reality Experience: From High-Resolution Acquisition to Real Time Augmented Contents
Clini, Paolo
This paper presents results of a research project “dUcale” that experiments ICT solutions for the museum of Palazzo Ducale
(Urbino). In this project, the famed painting the “Citt`a Ideale” becomes a case to exemplify a specific approach to the digital
mediation of cultural heritage. An augmented reality (AR) mobile application, able to enhance the museum visit experience, is
presented. The computing technologies involved in the project (websites, desktop and social applications, mobile software, and
AR) constitute a persuasive environment for the artwork knowledge. The overall goal of our research is to provide to cultural
institutions best practices efficiently on low budgets. Therefore, we present a low cost method for high-resolution acquisition of
paintings; the image is used as a base in AR approach. The proposed methodology consists of an improved SIFT extractor for real
time image. The other novelty of this work is the multipoint probabilistic layer. Experimental results demonstrated the robustness
of the proposed approach with extensive use of the AR application in front of the “Citt`a Ideale” painting. To prove the usability of
the application and to ensure a good user experience, we also carried out several users tests in the real scenario.
e-Papers from the 40th Conference on Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology
Earl, Graeme
This volume is an extension of the printed volume “Archaeology in the Digital Era. Papers from the 40th Annual Conference of Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA), Southampton, 26-29 March 2012. It consists of a selection of the peer-reviewed papers presented at the Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology 2012 conference hosted by the Archaeological Computing Research Group at the University of Southampton, UK between 26th and 30th March 2012. The conference included 53 sessions divided between the themes of simulating the past, spatial analysis, data modelling and sharing, data analysis, management, integration and visualisation, geospatial technologies, field and lab recording, theoretical approaches and the context of archaeological computing, and a general theme. In addition there were 12 workshops. A total of 380 papers and posters were presented, and two key note addresses. Alongside the lively conference atmosphere at the venue there was a thriving social media back channel. In addition to these proceedings there is therefore a broad ranging multimedia record of the event, accessible via the conference website.
Augmented Reality (AR) in Urban Heritage Tourism
Han, Dai-In, and Timothy Jung.
New technology has been seen as a way for many businesses in the tourism industry
to stay competitive and enhance their marketing campaign in various ways. AR has
evolved as the buzzword of modern information technology and is gaining increasing
attention in the media as well as through a variety of use cases. This trend is highly
fostered across mobile applications as well as the hype of wearable computing
triggered by Google’s Glass project to be launched in 2014. However, although
research on AR has been conducted in various fields including the Urban Tourism
industry, the majority of studies focus on technical aspects of AR, while others are
tailored to specific applications. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the current
implementation of AR in the Urban Tourism context and identifies areas of research
and development that is required to guide the early stages of AR implementation in a
purposeful way to enhance the tourist experience. The paper provides an overview of
AR and examines the impacts AR has made on the economy. Hence, AR applications
in Urban Tourism are identified and benefits of AR are discussed.
An Augmented Reality Interface for Visualizing and Interacting with Virtual Content
Fotis Liarokapis
In this paper, a novel AR interface is proposed
that provides generic solutions to the tasks involved
in augmenting simultaneously different types of
virtual information and processing of tracking data
for natural interaction. Participants within the
system can experience a real-time mixture of 3D
objects, static video, images, textual information and
3D sound with the real environment. The userfriendly
AR interface can achieve maximum
interaction using simple but effective forms of
collaboration based on the combinations of humancomputer
interaction techniques. To prove the
feasibility of the interface, the use of indoor AR
techniques are employed to construct innovative
applications and demonstrate examples from
heritage to learning systems. Finally, an initial
evaluation of the AR interface including some initial
results is presented.
Use of Augmented Reality in Learning
Molnár, György
Augmented reality offers great solutions in learning because most of high school students are familiar with them. Augmented reality-based applications such as the Pokémon Go 3D, or Quiver and HP Reveal can be used effectively in education. Using AR technology, teachers or even students can create content. For example, triggers using the provided website. The triggers can be image or videos, so the AR experience can be customized. In this study, authors first introduce the augmented reality and a specific application, Pokémon Go, then demonstrate the use of AR in education and finally present a survey conducted among students of a higher education in Hungary.
Virtual Reality (VR) & Augmented Reality (AR) technologies for tourism and hospitality industry
Nayyar, Anand, et al.
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality, these days, is offering many useful applications that is attracting greater attention from tourism researchers and professionals. As, AR and VR technologies are evolving, the number of scientific applications is also at increase. VR and AR are proving their worth especially when planning, marketing, education, tourist sport preservation coming to light. The aim of this research paper is to highlight top technologies for Tourism and Hospitality with regard to AR and VR.
Augmented reality applications in tourism
ÖZKUL, Emrah, and Sarp Tahsin Kumlu
This study aims to examine the use of the application in tourism field on the question of what augmented reality applications mean, which is one of the endpoints of technology for tourism. With the study of in-depth literature, firstly augmented reality has been determined, and the changes and developments it has undergone throughout the history have been examined. Then, its areas of use and the types have been examined.
A survey of mobile and wireless technologies for augmented reality systems
Papagiannakis, George
Recent advances in hardware and software for mobile computing have enabled a new breed of mobile
AR systems and applications. A new breed of computing called “augmented ubiquitous computing” has
resulted from the convergence of wearable computing, wireless networking and mobile AR interfaces.
In this paper we provide a survey of different mobile and wireless technologies and how they have
impact AR. Our goal is to place them into different categories so that it becomes easier to understand the
state of art and to help identify new directions of research.
Augmented Reality Applications: The Impact of Usability and Emotional Perceptions on Tourists’ App Experiences
Stangl, Brigitte, et al.
There is a rising amount of research contributing to the knowledgebase
of Augmented Reality (AR) application usage. However, up until now
there is no sound understanding about how the emotional perception of AR
application users impact on different types of experience. This paper aspires to
contribute to this gap by analysing the link between usability, emotional perception
(i.e. entertainment, playfulness and enjoyment), two types of experience
viz. action- and emotional experience and users’ intention to use the app in a
travel context. 796 questionnaires show that emotional experience is driven by
entertainment while action experience is mainly triggered by playfulness.
However, only emotional experience impacts on users’ intention to use the AR
app. Action experience has no significant effect. Findings will be discussed in
the light of previous literature and managerial implications will be provided.
A Theoretical Model of Mobile Augmented Reality Acceptance in Urban Heritage Tourismv
Tom Dieck, M. Claudia, and Timothy Jung
Latest mobile technologies have revolutionised the way people experience their environment.
Recent research explored the opportunities of using augmented reality (AR) in order to
enhance the user experience however, there is only limited research on users’ acceptance of
AR in the tourism context. The technology acceptance model is the predominant theory for
researching technology acceptance. Previous researchers used the approach of proposing
external dimensions based on secondary literature; however missed the opportunity to
integrate context specific dimensions. This paper therefore aims to propose an AR acceptance
model in the context of urban heritage tourism. Five focus groups, with young British female
tourists visiting Dublin and experiencing a mobile AR application, were conducted. The data
were analysed using thematic analysis and revealed seven dimensions that should be
incorporated into AR acceptance research including information quality, system quality, costs
of use, recommendations, personal innovativeness and risk as well as facilitating conditions.
3D Visualization via Augmented Reality: The Case of the Middle Stoa in the Ancient Agora of Athens
Styliani Verykokou, Charalabos Ioannidis and Georgia Kontogianni
Augmented reality is a rapidly evolving technology that enriches reality with computer generated information as well as a powerful tool that provides innovative ways of information access at cultural heritage sites. In this paper, an augmented reality application that allows the visualization of a part of the Middle Stoa in the Ancient Agora of Athens is presented. Users of this application, pointing their tablet PC at the present situation, have the opportunity to see what this building looked like in ancient times, as its three dimensional model is displayed on the camera view of their device, projected on the modern-day ruins.
A digital look at physical museum exhibits
Jens Keil, Laia Pujol, Maria Roussou, Timo Engelke, Michael Schmitt, Ulrich Bockholt, Stamatia Eleftheratou
In this paper we present the design of handheld
Augmented Reality (AR) experiences that are seamlessly
incorporated into interactive museum narratives, specifically for
the Acropolis Museum. The experiences start by forming a visitor
profile that later dynamically adapts the narrative, including the
AR activities, to the user‘s behaviour. In this cohesive narrative
context, the AR activities provide four ways to digitally look at
the exhibits: virtual reconstruction of the original aspect;
placement in the original location; visual highlighting of
interesting details and annotations; and recreation of
mythological appearances. The challenges of this design are
presented, conluding with a discussion and lessons learned.
History and Cultural Heritage in Virtual Environments
Erik Champion
Applying virtual reality and virtual-world technology to historical knowledge and to cultural
heritage content is generally called virtual heritage, but it has so far eluded clear and useful
definitions, and it has been even more difficult to evaluate. This chapter examines past case
studies of virtual heritage; definitions and classifications of virtual environments and virtual
worlds; the problem of convincing, educational, and appropriate realism; how interaction is
best employed; the question of ownership; and issues in evaluation. Given the premise that
virtual heritage has as its overall aim to educate and engage the general public (on the culture
value of the original site, cultural artifacts, oral traditions, and artworks), the conclusion
suggests six objectives to keep in mind when designing virtual worlds for history and
heritage.
The MIT Museum Glassware Prototype: Visitor Experience 2 Exploration for Designing Smart Glasses
Marco Mason
With the growth of enthusiasm for the adoption of wearable technology in everyday life, the museum world has also become
interested in understanding whether and how to employ smart glasses to engage visitors with new interpretative experiences.
The growing interest in wearable technology encourages experimentation with smart glasses, as this trend is going to influence
digital media interpretation for museums in the near future. To explore the use of smart glasses in the museum, a Glassware
prototype was designed and tested through a field experiment that took place at the Robotics Gallery at the MIT Museum. During
the experiment, I observed and then interviewed participants. Finally, I analysed the data following a qualitative research
approach. The findings of this study have to be seen as an initial contribution to the design of latest generation of smart glass
apps, providing reflections for further studies and projects.
Mobile Augmented Heritage: Enabling Human Life in ancient Pompeii
George Papagiannakis, Nadia Magnenat-Thalmann
We propose a new methodology for real-time mobile mixed reality systems that feature realistic simulations of animated virtual
human actors (clothes, body, skin, face) who augment real environments and re-enact staged storytelling dramas. Although initially
targeted at Cultural Heritage Sites, the paradigm is by no means limited to such subjects. The abandonment of traditional
concepts of static cultural artifacts or rigid geometrical and 2D textual augmentations with 3D, interactive, augmented historical
character-based event representations in a mobile and wearable setup, is the main contribution of the described work as
well as the proposed extensions to AR Enabling technologies: a VR/AR character simulation kernel framework with character to
object interaction, a markerless camera tracker specialized for non-invasive geometrical registration on heritage sites and a
PRT mixed reality illumination model for more consistent real-virtual real-time rendering. We demonstrate a real-time case
study on the actual site of ancient Pompeii.
Mobile Augmented Reality edutainment applications for cultural institutions
Thomas Chatzidimitris, Evangelia Kavakli , Maria Economou, Damianos Gavalas
The paper focuses on current practice regarding the
application of mobile Augmented Reality (AR) technologies for
enabling learning in the context of cultural heritage. It also
presents ARmuseum, an application developed for the
Museum of Industrial Olive Oil Production in Lesvos (MBEL).
Finally, it discusses a number of issues related to the evaluation
of mobile AR applications for cultural institutions.
Survey Enhancement of Projection and Recognition in Augmented Reality System
Snehprabha M. Davare, Rahul Vasant Chavan
The enormous technological improvements
around the world have created momentous challenging
competition among companies where each of the companies
tries to attract the customers using different techniques. One
of the most popular techniques is Augmented Reality. The field
of augmented reality grows and improves remarkably in some
areas. The AR is a new technological trend which is capable of
presenting possibilities that are difficult for other technologies
to offer and meet. Augmented reality is a live direct or indirect
view of physical and real word environment whose essentials
are augmented by computer generated sensors. Augmented
Reality can be defined as demonstration of computer
generated virtual characters on a live view of the real world.
This paper describes the difference between augmented and
virtual realities, types of augmented reality, current mobile
applications available in market using AR.
A Prototypical Interactive exhibition for the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki
D. Grammenos, X. Zabulis, D. Michel, P. Padeleris, T. Sarmis, G. Georgalis, P. Koutlemanis, K. Tzevanidis, A. A. Argyros, M. Sifakis, P. Adam-Veleni, C. Stephanidis
In 2010, the Institute of Computer Science of the Foundation for
Research and Technology-Hellas (ICS-FORTH) and the Archaeological
Museum of Thessaloniki (AMTh) collaborated towards the creation of
a special exhibition of prototypical interactive systems with subjects
drawn from ancient Macedonia, named “Macedonia from fragments
to pixels”. The exhibition comprises seven interactive systems based on
the research outcomes of ICS-FORTH’s Ambient Intelligence
Programme. Up to the summer of 2012, more than 165.000 people
have visited it. The paper initially provides some background
information, including related previous research work, and then
illustrates and discusses the development process that was followed
for creating the exhibition. Subsequently, the technological and
interactive characteristics of the project’s outcomes (i.e., the
interactive systems) are analysed and the complementary evaluation
approaches followed are briefly described. Finally, some conclusions
stemming from the project are highlighted.
Flow, Staging, Wayfinding, Personalization: Evaluating User Experience with Mobile Museum Narratives
Maria Roussou and Akrivi Katifori
A multitude of challenges comes into play when attempting to design (and evaluate)
an interactive digital storytelling experience for use by visitors in a museum. This paper reports
on the evaluation of the prototype mobile-based storytelling “guides” designed, developed and
deployed as part of a research project at the Acropolis Museum in Athens, Greece. Experiences
designed for different visitor profiles were evaluated several times throughout the iterative design
process, in a number of on-site studies, and with more than 180 museum visitors of all ages (with this
paper reporting on two studies conducted with a total of 53 users visiting individually or in pairs).
The evaluation methods included ethnography (i.e., observation of visitors in the Museum’s galleries),
pre- and post-experience in-depth interviews and questionnaires to measure the Users’ Experience
(UX), as well as data logging. The analysis of the data focused on themes representing components of
the experiences, such as interactive story plot and narration, staging and way-finding in the physical
space, personalization and social interaction. Our findings confirmed that understanding UX and
what makes it effective or not in the rich context of a cultural setting is a complex endeavor. The paper
discusses our findings and proposes relevant recommendations for the design of digital experiences
for cultural, educational, and recreational purposes.
The virtual reconstruction of torre guaceto landscape
Erik ChampionItalo Spada, Ferdinando Cesaria, Francesco Chionna, Anna Marina Cucinelli
The search for alternative and technological solutions for enhancing the cultural
and archaeological patrimony represents a difficult challenge for the Information and
Communications Technology market. In recent years, there has been such a boom in
the number of tools and applications for communication that it has become difficult to
be innovative. Technologies such as virtual and augmented reality – commonly driven
by giants like Apple and Samsung – have offered a new user-friendly approach to
digital environments. As for cultural heritage, unfortunately, the widespread usage of
new technologies has been associated with a lack of attention to scientific data and its
“cultural” message. Thus, while in the last decade APP and multimedia products have
impoverished scientific data in favor of entertainment contents, today there is a need
to move beyond entertainment in order to support smart products that are able to enhance
culture and research and to guarantee access to target users. To succeed, collaboration
between different professionals with a variety of skills and proper scientific
support becomes very important.