VISTA-AR - bringing digital technology to cultural heritage sites

VISTA-AR

 

Led by CICT’s Professor Andi Smart in collaboration with Exeter Cathedral, and working with partners in the UK and France, the Interreg France (Channel) England project VISTA-AR will develop an understanding of visitor experiences, create new virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) digital tools, and explore new business models and opportunities presented by digital technology.

VISTA-AR will explore the use of different digital devices to create new visitor experiences. Virtual reality helmets, tablet and smartphone devices, and immersive room experiences will be used to bring history to life, allowing visitors to meet characters from the past and providing access to inaccessible heritage artefacts.

Once developed, the digital tools will be used to create new digital experiences in a further four locations: the National Trust Tin Coast, and South West Coastal Path in the UK, as well as the Lorient Submarine Museum and the Gardens of Valloires in France.

The tools developed by the project will be made available to other UK and French cultural heritage sites on a cloud-based system where they can be easily accessed and adapted to the needs of each specific heritage location.

The project is a major step in providing cultural heritage sites with an effective way to enhance visitor experiences while increasing visitor numbers and revenue.

The aim of the project is to make AR/VR available for a lesser cost to more heritage sites to help them increase the number of visitors by tailoring their digitalisation to their business models.