https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6053-6742
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Abstract
Museum artifacts are the main way for visitors to experience and learn about cultural heritage. Augmented reality (AR) allows for high interactivity and is increasingly applied in museums to improve tourists’ experience and learning. It also supports the extension of museum experience to outside of the physical museum space, contributing to the visiting trajectory and takeaway experience. In this paper, we present our design of two tangible AR interfaces for cultural artifacts: Postcard AR and CubeMuseum AR, followed by three user studies that evaluate and optimize the design. In Study 1, we conducted a within-subjects study (N = 24) that compares the two AR interfaces with a baseline condition (Leaflet). Our results demonstrate the positive effects of tangible AR interfaces on users’ motivation and engagement in learning cultural heritage. In Study 2, we further explored how to optimize CubeMuseum AR by adopting a user-centered design approach. Through the analysis of expert interviews (N = 7) and an online survey (N = 207), the results specify a series of requirements and design guidelines for tangible AR interfaces to be used as a learning tool and a hybrid gift. Based on the findings, the design of the CubeMuseum AR was optimized and evaluated in Study 3. A between-subjects user study was conducted (N = 32) to compare the optimized design with the initial design. The results verified the positive effects of gamified tangible AR interfaces on users’ motivation, engagement, and performance in learning cultural heritage. We present our design and evaluation results, and discuss the implications of designing tangible AR interfaces for cultural heritage learning and museum gifting.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank our participants for their time and valuable comments.
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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
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Notes on contributors
Ningning Xu
Ningning Xu is a PhD candidate at the University of Nottingham, Ningbo China. She holds an MSc in Applied Informatics from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. Her research interests are in human-computer Interaction, augmented reality, virtual reality, and information visualization.
Yue Li
Yue Li is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Computing, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. Her research interest is in the field of human-computer interaction, with particular emphasis on the design, evaluation, and application of virtual and augmented reality technologies in cultural heritage and education.
Xingbo Wei
Xingbo Wei is a Masters student in Engineering and Education at University College London. He holds a BSc in Information and Computing Science from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. His research interests include human-computer interaction, virtual reality and augmented reality.
Letian Xie
Letian Xie is a Masters student in Data Science at the University of Edinburgh. He holds a BSc in Information and Computing Science from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. His research interests include human-centric computing and data science.
Lingyun Yu
Lingyun Yu is an Associate Professor at the Department of Computing, Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University. Her research focuses on interactive visualization, human-computer interaction and computer graphics. She is particularly interested in 3D interaction techniques and HCI techniques to fluidly express user intention in data exploration and explanation.
Hai-Ning Liang
Hai-Ning Liang is a Professor of Computing and Founding Head of the Department of Computing at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. His main research interests fall in the broad area of human-computer interaction, focusing on virtual/augmented reality, visualization, and gaming technologies.