Four technologies that are transforming museum experience
Our reliance on technology consumes all the aspects in which we are experiencing life. It has unlocked the power to engage the user across various segments including museums. To capture the attention of 21st-century visitors, museums are leveraging technology to curate a riveting experience for them. Technology can help bring visitors closer than ever to a museum, and the history a museum is trying to convey.
Four technologies that the museums are exploring to transform the museum experience are as follows:
1. Touch screen displays:
‘Do not touch’ is the first thing that is told to you when you enter a museum. But now museums are installing touch screens to help transform the visitor experience from passive to active, helping guide them through the exhibits and improve accessibility. In the Bihar Museum, Patna, a touch screen monitor has been installed which allows visitors to either create cave paintings using stencils or draw their own.
In some museums, they are even using a multi-touch display case, an interactive display case where the audience can engage and interact with objects through the touch display glass.
2. Virtual reality (VR), Augmented reality (AR) and Mixed reality (MR):
These technologies are breaking the boundaries of dimensions and bringing exhibits and artefacts to life in new and immersive ways. VR allows the visitor to experience a space that is no longer accessible. In 2015, the British Museum of London became the first museum to incorporate virtual museum technology where visitors were able to explore a virtual reality of a Bronze Age site. AR, unlike virtual reality, is the projection of a digital image into a real environment. For instance, the Bapu Museum, Vijayawada has used AR intending to engage the visitor in crucial historical moments.
MR is the combination of AR and VR technologies in a single interface. In 2018, a mixed reality museum “MR Museum Kyoto” was established in Japan, in which a holographic image of a monk guides the tour. Visitors experience the works with a graphic narrative of the eternal universe and a lush world depicted under a rainstorm with lightning and thunder.
3. Artificial Intelligence (AI):
AI can be incorporated into museums in various ways from visitors' experiences to interpreting data and visuals for museum collections. In 2018, the world was introduced to Pepper, a humanoid robot developed by the Smithsonian. Pepper answers visitors’ questions and tells stories using voice, gestures, and an interactive touch screen. Visitors love to interact with Pepper and the robot would even pose for selfies!
4. Mobile Technologies:
Mobile technology has grown enormously in the past decade. Today we can’t imagine our lives without it. Museums have integrated mobile technology to create a customised experience and are using it to convey information ranging from descriptive wall labels, audio guides, interactive screens and much more, at our convenience. Recently, the Museums of India mobile app was launched which digitally showcases 750 objects from museums across the country. It supports features like search & retrieval, category-based browsing and 3D interactive objects.
The future of the museum is infused with technology and it is lucrative to scale upon these. But at the same time, it becomes even more necessary that we strike a balance between the traditional and the modern experience of the museum. We have to be mindful of the use of technology such that the value of the artefacts does not diminish and does not get overpowered by technological experience. It's time to embrace the changes and experiment with new technologies as a long way is still ahead of us, but the world is constantly changing, hence, what lies ahead remains to be seen!
References:
https://www.lamasatech.com/blog/evolution-experiential-technology-museums/
https://customtechnologies.biz/home/bihar-museum.html https://blog.timelinefy.com/5-digital-tools-used-by-museums-in-the-pandemic
https://www.cambridgeseven.com/about/news/the-future-of-technology-in-museums/
https://www.garamantis.com/en/application-area/museum-and-exhibition/
https://www.cdac.in/index.aspx?id=pk_pr_prs_rl249
