Supporting Sign Language Narrations in the Museum

Abstract

The accessibility of Cultural Heritage content for the diverse user population visiting Cultural Heritage Institutions and accessing content online has not been thoroughly discussed. Considering the penetration of new digital media in such physical and virtual spaces, lack of accessibility may result in the exclusion of a large user population. To overcome such emerging barriers, this paper proposes a cost-effective methodology for the implementation of Virtual Humans, which are capable of narrating content in a universally accessible form and acting as virtual storytellers in the context of online and on-site CH experiences. The methodology is rooted in advances in motion capture technologies and Virtual Human implementation, animation, and multi-device rendering. This methodology is employed in the context of a museum installation at the Chios Mastic Museum where VHs are presenting the industrial process of mastic processing for chewing gum production.

Reviving Antiquity in the Digital Era: Digitization, Semantic Curation, and VR Exhibition of Contemporary Dresses

“…Notable examples include virtual tours of renowned museums, historical sites, and events [79][80][81], offering users the ability to navigate through exhibitions, zoom in on artifacts, and access additional information at their own pace. These advances in virtual exhibitions enhance accessibility, including for people with disabilities [82]. At the same time, recent developments redefine the traditional boundaries of cultural heritage presentation, fostering a more inclusive and immersive way for individuals worldwide to connect with and appreciate our shared cultural legacy.…”

Digital Interaction with Physical Museum Artifacts

“…At the same time, especially in the domains of exhibiting and educating, modern methods based on interaction design, interactive storytelling, and artificial intelligence have been employed and paradigms for museum experience design have been proposed [60][61][62]. A survey on virtual museums has depicted the following technologytypes of the virtual museum [63,64] (a) enhanced imaging [65], (b) virtual reality exhibitions [66][67][68][69][70], (c) augmented reality (AR) and web-based AR exhibitions (e.g., [71][72][73][74]), (d) Web3D exhibitions (e.g., [75][76][77][78][79]), (e) mixed reality (MR) exhibitions [80][81][82][83][84][85], (f) haptics (e.g., [86][87][88][89][90] and (g) mobile devices in museums (e.g., [91][92][93][94][95][96]) and (h) accessible virtual museums (e.g., [97][98][99][100]). Among these, interactive museum artifacts are blending bits and pieces from the aforementioned technologies to provide unique interaction and storytelling experiences (e.g., [101][...…”

Multimodal Narratives for the Presentation of Silk Heritage in the Museum

“…Narratives, when successfully used for guiding the user through a Virtual Museum, motivate visitors to stay longer and see more [60]. VHs can bring these experiences to a wider audience, including people with disabilities [61], as well as provide a welcome invitation for discovery [62,63]. As such, several approaches have been presented for the implementation of realistic VHs, including segmentation of the motion files acquired through the recording of craft practitioners and narrators (e.g., [59,61,62]).…”