Virtual Museum Report - Bird Artifacts.

The Virtual Bird Artifact Museum has been created for this assignment.  Virtual Museum Sample which will showcases a collection of bird artifacts, using Virtual Reality (VR) technology. Using virtual reality for this purpose helps people to experience the artifacts without actual touching them in order to maintain the quality of the artifacts and avoid damage to the historical masterpieces.

Application Functionality

The Virtual Bird Artifact Museum sample we created is a digital representation of a museum dedicated to bird artifacts. It will allow the users to explore and interact with 3D models of various bird species, and they can move around and engage with it. Users will be able to virtually walk through the museum, inspect 3D models of the birds, and engage in educational experiences related to artifacts related to birds.

Significance in Context

The significance of such application is that a historical artifact can be brought in public eyes for its artistic, historical and educational purposes to the general population. Giving access to people to such real-world experience of historical object from being far away at their home or in a different country and having an experience of something which is precious is amazing for tourism as well as research purpose also.

Significance of VR Technology

The significance of the virtual reality technology in this assignment is that users will immerse themselves in virtual environment of a museum which will give them an experience which is like a real-world experience by making them feel that they are present at the place and, they will have a sense of engagement with the artifacts as well (Maria Shehade2020). Hence it aligns with the step 2 and step 3 of Human Computer Design Process which we also discussed theoretically during our lectures

Purpose of Interactions

We have added 2 interactions in this virtual reality application. First interaction is with the dodo bird obj that we have imported, second is the cube which we created in unity. Interactions in our Virtual Museum Sample are designed to enhance the educational experience. Users can interact with 3D models of bird artifacts by examining them closely. The dodo bird artifact, a user can hold it and move it around and get virtual experience of an artifact. To add more interaction the user can also pick the cubes on which the other artifacts can be placed, these cubes have no significance logically in terms of artifact exploration, but just to give and add more interaction, idea how in future other artifacts can be kept on those cube objects

Storyboard

Storyboard: Exploring the Virtual Bird Artifact Museum

Scene 1: Entry

- Frame: I put on my Oculus VR headset and stand at the museum entrance.

- Caption: "Entering the Virtual Museum."

Scene 2: Museum Interior

- Frame: Inside, I'm in a  3D virtual museum.

- Caption: "The museum is impressive."

Scene 3: Dodo Exhibit

- Frame: I head to the dodo section, where there's a  3D dodo model.

- Caption: "I approach the dodo exhibit."

Scene 4: Dodo Interaction

- Frame: Using Oculus controllers, I touch and rotate the 3D dodo model.

- Caption: "I interact with the dodo model."

Scene 5: Cube Fun

- Frame: I notice cubes around and play with one using the Oculus controllers.

- Caption: "Experimenting with cubes."

Scene 7: Exit

- Frame: Satisfied, I exit the museum.

- Caption: "Leaving the virtual museum."

Scene 8: Reflection

- Frame: Outside, I reflect on the educational VR experience.

- Caption: "Reflecting on the museum visit."

Interface Technology

. This Virtual Bird Artifact Museum can be explored by user via having a VR Headset. The users must wear the headsets and use controller which will allow them to move in the museum and interact with the 3d objects.

Engaging with Interactions

In this application the user can engage and perform the interaction via simply using the Oculus controllers to select and manipulate 3D model objects of bird which we have imported. They can pick up and inspect artifacts and navigate the virtual museum environment for their experience.

Descriptions of 3D Models

We created has a 3d museum room  by using the objects within the unity, we used 3 cubes for creating the wall and one for the room an importing the 3d DODO model to make the interaction possible.

1.1 Dod jpg

1.2 museum jpg

User Requirements and Limitations

The application is a good place for the users to experience artifacts, the user requirements are having VR headsets and controllers which are quite costly and might not be accessible to everyone. The limitations is that currently we have the dodo model as object and in future the number of artifacts can be increased to increase exploration of more bird artifacts.

References

‌ Shehade, M. and Stylianou-Lambert, T. (2020). Virtual Reality in Museums: Exploring the Experiences of Museum Professionals. Applied Sciences, 10(11), p.4031. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/app10114031.

‌

sketchfab.com. (2016). dodo-edit-base - 3D model by pengo. [online] Available at: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/dodo-edit-base-f91db022d3f145fda0d6f863e8a808fb .

‌University of Tasmania. . Tutorials - KIT208 KIT724 Virtual and Mixed Reality Technology. UTAS (University of Tasmania). URL. Tutorials - KIT208 KIT724 Virtual and Mixed Reality Technology and Virtual and Mixed Reality Technology (utas.edu.au)

Dodo 3d Model Asset:

Sketchfab. (2015). Dodo Bird Asset. [Online 3D Model]. Available at: [dodo-edit-base - 3D model by pengo (@pengo) [f91db02] (sketchfab.com)]