Overview
Volumetric video (also rererred to as volumetric holograms) is a novel form of immersive media that allows bringing real people into eXtended Reality (XR) experiences.While production of volumetric video was complex and expensive in the past, latest achievements in AI and machine learning make such content more affordable and accessible. This motivates the VEMAR project, where we showcase how volumetric video can be used to enhance augmented reality (AR) applications in a museum environment.
freisicht GmbH is a software company that focuses on XR solutions for museums and cultural institutions. The Aaragauer Kunsthaus is one of their collaborators. The Immersive Realities Lab of HSLU has expertise in volumetric video technology. These 3 institutions combine the necessary expertise to realize the VEMAR project as implementation partner, end user and research partner respectively.
The main goal of the VEMAR project is to buld a prototype of an AR app with volumetric video for the Aargauer Kunsthaus. This may include a hologram of an artist explaining their work and a curator welcoming the audience to an exhibition. Via the mobile AR app, visitors will be able to get an enhanced experience, i.e., "meeting" the holograms of the artist and the curator in the museum environment.
In a formal user study, we will evaluate the technology and the experience design. These insights will be used for further improvement of both, with the intention to develop a full Innosuisse project on enhanced XR museum experiences.
