Designing 3-D Prints for Blind and Partially Sighted Audiences in Museums: Exploring the Needs of Those Living with Sight Loss

Abstract

Modern museum practice embraces equal access for all, but access for blind and partially-sighted (BPS) audience remains problematic given the ocularcentricity of museums. Many museum professionals and BPS visitors remain frustrated by the degree of accessibility on offer. The use of 3-D printed replicas as a handling surrogate represents a solution, allowing BPS visitors to engage tactually with museum content while minimizing risk. However, the design of such replicas is poorly researched. This exploratory examination of the design of 3-D printed replicas utilizes semi-structured interviews, sensory observations and content analysis to examine BPS perceptions of museum objects in the absence of interpretational support. Interpretation was dominantly multisensory, while participants found it easier to determine material traits than object traits, with textual, geometrical and optical properties being of use. Assistive approaches rather than major alterations were favored. Overall, museum professionals should consider how the process of 3-D printing influences BPS perception.

Acknowledgments

Thanks goes to Kamleish Parfect and Ian Reynolds of Focus Birmingham, the staff at Birmingham Vision and Matthew Harrison of the Beacon Center for the Blind for their invaluable assistance in getting this project off the ground. Thanks also goes to Chris Jarvis of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History for loaning objects and assisting with their selection. This work was supported by the EPSRC under Grant 1645325.

Disclosure statement

The authors of this article have no affiliations with any organization or entity with a financial or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the EPSRC under Grant 1645325.

Notes on contributors

Paul F. Wilson

Paul F. Wilson is an Early Career Fellow at the University of Warwick who studies the use of digital technologies in cultural heritage and museology, focusing on 3 D printing, AR, VR and other digitization approaches. Of particular interest is the user experience that visitors and consumers have when engaging with such technologies.

Susan Griffiths

Susan Griffiths is the Community Engagement Officer at the OUMNH, working with many communities in the Oxford area to engage disadvantaged audiences with museum content. She works extensively with BPS organizations in Oxfordshire.

Ellis Williams

Ellis Williams is an intern at WMG, the University of Warwick who assisted with data processing during the project.

M. Paul Smith

M. Paul Smith is the Director of the OUMNH and responsible for managing its role as world-leading university museum. He is also a professor of paleontology at Oxford University and a previous president of the Paleontological Association.

Mark A. Williams

Mark A. Williams is a Professor at WMG, the University of Warwick, and is responsible for managing the Center of Imaging, Measurement and Tomography, a cutting-edge facility for digitization and visualization.