Mobile Cultural Heritage: The Case Study of Locri

Mobile Cultural Heritage:
The Case Study of Locri

Giuseppe Cutr´1 , Giuseppe Naccarato2, and Eleonora Pantano3
ı
1
University of Turin, 10124, Turin, Italy
giuseppe.cutri@unito.it
2
University of Calabria, 87036, Arcavacata di Rende, Italy
naccaratogiuseppe@gmail.com
3
University of Calabria, 87036, Arcavacata di Rende, Italy
eleonora.pantano@unical.it

Abstract. The goal of this project is to study the use of mobile tech-
nologies equipped with global positioning systems as an information aid
for archaeological visits. In this study we will focus in the study of the
technologies used to implement these systems. To this end we analyze
an archaeological site where this systems have been tested. In this ex-
periment we have applied state of the art technologies in virtual and
augmented reality to implement a system that allows users to access the
site using their mobile devices. We conclude that the use of this kind of
technologies is an eﬀective tool to promote the archeo-geographical value
of the site.

Keywords: mobile device, mobile virtual navigation, digital reconstruc-
tion, GPS, cultural heritage.

1 Introduction
Advances in mobile technologies are enjoyed by an increasing percentage of the
population. This is due mainly to lower prices and to the technologization of life
and work style standards of the population [1].
Most of the current communication processes are based on the use of mobile
devices. Some of the most used are tablet pc, pocket pc, smart-phone, PDA
(Personal Digital Assistant), and iPod. These technologies provide several web
tools like, search engines, virtual communities and e-advertising among others.
Adapting the power of these technologies to the ﬁeld of cultural heritage,
allows the broadcast of local heritage to a worldwide level. Innovative uses of
technology can stimulate curiosity and interest in users, satisfy their informa-
tion needs and ultimately allow the creation of a digital heritage [2] [3]. These
devices can guide users in virtual or real world spaces. Virtually reconstructed
environments take advantage of information rich databases providing the users
with historical, cultural, and geographical data. In these environments the user
can better explore in an augmented reality space. This system empowers the
user giving a knowledge rich environment that facilitates learning [4] [5] [6].

Z. Pan et al. (Eds.): Edutainment 2008, LNCS 5093, pp. 410–420, 2008.
c Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2008

Mobile Cultural Heritage: The Case Study of Locri 411

This type of systems can mix real and virtual worlds, allowing the combination
of the geographical location with the exact historical or cultural information. An
added tool that identifies the geographical position [8] allows the system to have a
combined view of a culturally interesting artefact with its virtual reconstruction
(3D model). This 3D model represents its original shape. The user can also benefit
by using the user friendly interface of the device, to view other multimedia data
related to the artefact, for example the reconstruction of the virtual reproduction
of the original environment and the historical source [9].
The aim of this paper it to highlight the possibility to apply these technologies
to regions such as Calabria, which is rich in cultural and archaeological resources
not always exploited. In particular we study the system at the archaeological
park of Locri and study how the tools we describe can improve and value the
enjoyment of the place.

2 Mobile Virtual Navigation
New mobile devices are becoming more and more popular due to their low cost
and their advantages in connection to new services and social interaction. These
devices are not mere cell phones or organizers, but powerful computing devices
[7]. In this study we have used a mobile implementation of a Virtual Navigation
System (VNS). Current VNSs were developed as a desktop application to simu-
late visits for a wide range of environments, ranging from a reconstructed city to
a museum. Today the high performance of mobile devices offers the possibility to
combine the capabilities of a desktop Virtual Navigation System with the ones
of a Global Positioning System (GPS) device. Using a mobile device with GPS
(often already integrated on most PDAs and cell phones) the VNS provides more
exciting features such as allowing the user to have real and virtual information
combined depending on its location. This system has been developed with the
goal of offer a better experience while visiting archaeological sites.

3 System Architecture
The system we present is a program that enriches the exploration of open spaces
with additional data. The system provides real time visualization, on a mobile
device, of a 3D reconstruction of the environment. This environment also gives
navigation capabilities using its GPS data system.
To achieve this task we designed a new graphical engine for the mobile device.
The system is built on top of a set of new graphic libraries developed in collabo-
ration with the E-Guide S.R.L. which were called Q3 libraries. These C++ APIs
(Application Program Interfaces) are divided in two parts:

Q3Engine: is a 3D graphic engine;
Q3Widgets: is a GUI library for rendering the GUI (Graphic User Interface).

412 G. Cutr´ G. Naccarato, and E. Pantano
ı,

These two set of APIs are linked together by these other libraries:

Q3Toolkit: is the glue between the 2D layer and the 3D layer and the OS
(Operating System);
Q3Lib: offers many platform independent functions as well as computational
geometry functions used to manipulate meshes and other 3D and 2D objects;
Q3GPS: receive and process GPS data.

The API is built on top of OpenGL ES and OpenVG [10] libraries that are
the standard de facto in mobile environments (Many CPU manufacturers sup-
port natively these libraries on their products). A converter allows the import
of a COLLADA [11] file or a Google Earth file (Google Earth 4 files are com-
pressed COLLADA files, with textures and other information) and save them as
a compressed format specifically designed for.
The system processes GPS data to obtain the user position and move the vir-
tual environment along with the user’s movements. It is also possible to connect
a GPS with an integrated compass in order to know the user’s orientation. If the
compass data is missing the user has the possibility to move the view using the
joypad of the device. The meshes position is stored in xml format together with
other information such as a text and multimedia contents so the user can click
on any object of the world and read the description, watch images, and so on.
Since most of today’s mobile devices do not have FPU (Floating-Points Unit)
the system hasn’t the possibility to be compiled using fixed-points and a special
library for fixed-point algebra was developed.
The GUI has many graphical effects like shading, anti-aliasing and is planned
to be used using a touch screen. The 3D engine can show any textured mesh and
support multiple light effects.

4 The Case Study of Locri
We chosed to analyze the case study of Locri because of the rich archaeological
heritage of the zone and because, at the moment, it hasn’t been studied yet,
using the latest technologies.
Locri Epizefiri is one of the most important Greek poleis of Calabria. Its
archaeological park covers a big area: more than 568,34 acres. It spreads out
along the coast and the mountains (Fig. 1 shows the findings of famous Greek
Theatre built the IV century b.C.)[12], [13].
To implement the systems for the archaeological site we followed several steps:
Evaluation of findings accessibility;
Evaluation of most interesting routes inside the park;
Access to useful information to reconstruct ancient artefacts.


Fig. 1. An image from the archaeological site of Site

Fig. 2. The zone of Centocamere, in the archaeological site of Locri (image from Google
Earth)

Inside the archaeological park of Locri, tourist can visit 3 zones: Centocamere
(Fig. 2), Museum (Fig. 3), Theatre (Fig. 4).
In these zones there are few routes that allow tourists to access the most
interesting ﬁndings. Archaeologists have excavated the ancient ruins especially in
the zone of Centocamere, where the ruins of the ancient city centre are located.
These are characterized by houses, and workshops where clay ceramics were
manufactured and sold.
For example, in Fig. 5 we show the map of the zone of Centocamere in the
park, where we highlight the possible routes:

ı,

Fig. 3. Museum zone, in the archaeological site of Locri (image from Google Earth)

Fig. 4. Theatre zone, in the archaeological site of Locri (image from Google Earth)

We investigated the required details to develop the virtual reconstructions of
the ancient objects of the zone to test and validate the system. This test shows
several routes that a tourist can visit (Fig. 6). The system gives the user also the
opportunity to choose a fixed route from the list of all possible ones. In fact, the
user can visit the archaeological park with his personal mobile device and use it
to choose his preferred route to visit the park. For example the user can choose a
fixed route or can invent his own choosing the most interesting findings to see.
The most important part of the visit is the route and it is a fundamental factor
to exploit the territory. From a mathematical point of view, we can describe the


Fig. 5. A map with the possible routes of zone of Centocamere in the archaeological
park of Locri

Fig. 6. Mathematical representation of place of interest and connections among them

place by using a graph G, defined G=(V,E), where V is a set of vertices and
represents the places of interest and E is the set of links and represent the possible
connections among them (the communication channels) [14].
After the mathematical formalization of the routes, we can apply mathemati-
cal tools to find the itinerary that maximizes the travel performance and a more
personalized route [14].
It is possible to use technologies of virtual reality and computer graphics to
use in terrains in an efficient way. These allow to reconstruct archaeological sites
and environments which existed only in the past [15]. The traditional access to
archaeological ruins required a mental effort from visitors because they had to
reconstruct in their minds the ancient scenario. Using this system the virtual

ı,

Fig. 7. Virtual reconstruction of the Centocamere zone

Fig. 8. An example of the user-friendly interface for language choice

reconstruction of objects and environment using graphics, audio/video repro-
duction allow users to live a more interesting and immersive experience [16] [18].
Virtual reconstructions and their related multimedia contents make visit more
interesting and instructive (Fig. 7).

4.1 How the System Is Working
In may museums or archaeological sites, tourists can ﬁnd audio-guides which
guide them along ﬁxed routes, or force them to use information points with a pc
in which visitors can get access interactive information. In this paper we present


Fig. 9. An example of the user friendly interface to choose the route

Fig. 10. Sto´ in the zone of Centocamere
a

a diﬀerent tool, because it is not stationary, it can be personalized by user, and
it is based on the geographical position of the user.
Mobile devices, and wireless communication systems, are combined with vir-
tual and augmented reality to obtain a new tool which can be an electronic,
personalized and mobile guide through archaeological sites [17].
We can summarize the use of this system in the following fundamental steps:

STEP 1: User accesses to archaeological site and decides to rent the partic-
ular mobile device or to use his own (in this case he has to download on his
device all the useful information, like maps, photos or other data);

ı,

Fig. 11. Access to Sto´ from mobile device
a

STEP 2. The user starts the application and chooses the language (Fig. 8)
and route (a fixed route from the list or personalize his own) (Fig. 9);
STEP 3. The device becomes a tourist guide. It locates the geographical
position of user (using a GPS system) in the park. When the user is close
to a particular object (Fig. 10), the display shows a virtual reconstruction.
The user can see the real object while comparing with the reconstruction in
the mobile device(Fig. 11). The user can play the object (as a game) and
he can choose to listen to historical data, or information about the struc-
ture or manufacturing process, read the text or visualize other multimedia
information.

5 Conclusion
We illustrate how the archaeological park of Locri, and is big extension, can
be enjoyed in a more effective and efficient way by using this new system. This
system allows users to understand, learn and appreciate also parts that don’t
exist anymore, artefacts, which were destroyed by weather or man. The user
can experience an immersive and more interesting experience, especially for that
part of population which is less interested in the archaeological heritage but
more sensitive to the use of new technologies [19].
A similar system could be applied to other archaeological sites with the same
success.

6 Future Work
Next generation of mobile devices will have more powerful CPUs and many will
have a GPU also, which means that there will be no problem rendering very


complex meshes with a low frame rate. These new kind of devices will allow to
render even more realistic scenes.
But the future is not only based on new powerful hardware. AR (Augmented
Reality) systems will play an important rule on the current scenario. Even today
a lot of mobile phones and PDAs have a camera inside which already permits to
embed real image data in order to overlap the 3D reconstruction on top of the
reality. People can experience new HCI (Human Computer Interaction) that will
permit a more interaction with the environment and many new exciting features.
The next step will be the integration of maps and a multi-modal guidance en-
gine which will permits the user to be guided throw a city using various transport
services (bus, train, taxi, etc.). These technologies are currently under develop-
ment in collaboration with the E-Guide S.R.L.
Furthermore, the system we presented will be tested and evaluated through
a quantitative analysis with consumers in the archaeological park of Locri.

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